A/N: Hey all! Wow, what a response! That was amazing. Boosted my ego. As a little gift to all of my reviewers and faithful readers, I present this mini-chapter so that you can all find out whether Harry lives or not (I freely admit that I am evil for my previous cliffy) and you all won't hunt me down for making you wait too long.
"Sirius?" Harry said, seeing the man standing before him. Sirius turned and a huge smile spread across his face.
"Harry!" Sirius threw his arms around the boy and swung him around. Harry clung to Sirius and refused to let go. "It's alright, Harry." Sirirus smoothed back Harry's hair and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. "It wasn't your fault, you know." Harry shook his head.
"If I hadn't gone…" Sirius shook his head.
"It was only a matter of time, Harry. You had nothing to do with it. It was my time." Harry looked at Sirius. "You can't change the time you are supposed to die, Harry. It's like the sun setting in the west. No matter how much you want it to set in the east, it's still going to set in the west." Sirius carded a hand through Harry's hair. "If I hadn't gone that way, Harry, I could have died several other ways, each more gruesome than the last. I am glad that I got to see you right before I died." Harry tried to bury himself in the man's chest.
"I miss you, Sirius." Harry told him, hanging onto him as though afraid he would disappear.
"It's okay to miss me. After all, how could you not?" Harry smiled and brushed tears away. When had he started crying? "But Harry, I am always with you. Here." Sirius reached out and put a hand over Harry's heart. "Remember?" Harry put his own hand over Sirius's and nodded. Sirius smiled. "I've been watching you." Harry looked up. "Surprised?"
"A little. I just that was a bedtime story told to small children to make them feel better." Harry admitted. "Why?" Sirius wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulders.
"Everyone needs someone to watch over him. I chose to do so. I like your friend Tom. He takes great care of you, and more importantly, he cares about you." Sirius looked down at Harry and tried to look stern, a look he wasn't quite capable of pulling off in front of the teenager. "It's okay to want to love him and need him. Neither I nor your parents are upset about this. We're all for the idea." Sirius paused. "He needs you too, Harry." Harry nodded, relaxing against Sirius.
"You don't mind?" Sirius hit Harry lightly on the head. "Ow!"
"Of course not! I want you to be happy. That's all I ever wanted for you. Same thing with your parents." Harry looked around, expecting them to show up beside Sirius. "Sorry, Harry. They're not here. They said you needed me more right now. Are you upset?" Harry shook his head. "Good. They asked that I pass on a message." Sirius paused, obviously waiting for Harry to say something.
"Well, what did they say?" Harry demanded. Sirius smiled.
"That didn't sound too sincere." Sirius teased.
"Sirius! Please tell me what my parents said?" Harry whined. Sirius rolled his eyes.
"Oh, no! He's whining! I can't say no to that face. Okay, I'll tell you." Sirius grew serious again and gave Harry another hug. "They both love you. They're proud of you. The entire family will be waiting for you when it's your time." Harry returned the hug and sighed. He wanted to stay like this forever. "However, this is not your time. You need to start living now. You know, teenager stuff."
"I will." Harry promised. Sirius looked up briefly and then back at Harry.
"It's time for you to go, Harry." Harry nodded. He knew he couldn't stay. "I love you, Harry."
"I love you, too." Sirius smiled, stepped back and faded away. Tom was waiting for Harry.
&&&&&&&
"Tom, I don't know what to say." Dumbledore said, kneeling next to Tom. Tom shook his head, refusing the idea that Harry was dead. Members of the Order and Ministry Aurors were arresting the Death Eaters all around them. The Death Eaters were still unconscious from whatever Harry had managed to do. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that they were still alive and Harry might…It wasn't fair. Tom looked down at the boy in his arms. Why hadn't he protected Harry like he had said he would?
"My poor boy." Tom whispered. "It's not fair." His breath caught as Harry's eyes snapped open and the teenager sucked in air. "Harry?"
"Hi." Harry croaked. Tom hugged him and said over and over again how scared he had been. "Air!" Harry rapsed. Tom loosened his hold, but refused to let Harry go.
"I've never been so worried in my life!" Tom told Harry, checking Harry over for injuries. "I'm never letting you out of my sight again." Tom discovered Harry's shoulder. "What happened?" He demanded, touching the injury lightly.
"Cutting curse." Harry answered. He allowed the man to hug him, both entirely unaware that the crowd around them was watching the scene. "I'm okay, Dad." Harry said, resting against his shoulder. Harry smiled and closed his eyes. He and Draco could – "Draco!" Harry said, jerking away from Tom. "And Snape! They're hurt and in there somewhere!" He gestured towards the building.
"They're both safe, Harry." Dumbledore said, wondering if either realized that Harry had just called Tom "Dad". "They are at Hogwarts and under Madame Pomfrey's care." Harry relaxed again.
"Oh. I bet Professor Snape hates that." Harry said, leaning back into Tom. "You know, I'm getting really tired. I think I'd like to go to sleep now." With that sentence, Harry's head dropped to Tom's shoulder and he fell asleep. Dawn warmed his face, allowing Tom to see that Harry was fine.
"Relax, Tom. He's still breathing." Tom smiled and held his son.
"I know. He is still going to be grounded for life when he wakes up." Tom said, allowing two members of the Order to help him to his feet.
"Let's get him to the hospital wing, shall we?" Dumbledore handed Tom an emergency portkey and Tom appeared in the hospital wing.
"Put him on the bed!" Madame Pomfrey demanded. Tom obeyed, but refused to leave the bedside. Pomfrey waved her wand and muttered to herself at the results. With a few short flicks, Harry's clothes were changed to pajamas and she set to cleaning his shoulder. "He's going to have to stay here a few days until this heals." Tom nodded, not arguing with the matron. He would not leave the hospital wing until Harry was ready. "He'll be just fine, as long as he doesn't go tearing off after some new Dark Lord. Do try to restrain your son, Mr. Riddle." Pomfrey said with a small smile in Tom's direction.
"I shall try my best. Here's hoping that he doesn't need to come here next year at all." He told her. Madame Pomfrey gave a wry grin.
"With his track record, I'll settle for one Quidditch-related injury." She told him. She covered Harry, summoned a chair for Tom, and bustled off.
"Is that Harry?" Draco's voice said from his bed.
"Back to your bed, Draco!" Pomfrey scolded. She went over to the curtains, ready to reprimand the boy for being out of bed. She jumped when she found Hermione Granger behind the curtains, along with her other patient. "Professor Snape! Miss Granger! What in the world are you doing?" She sputtered. Hermione stood in her way while Pomfrey tried to get around the teenager.
"Just a minute, Pomfrey, and then you may yell at me all you like." Severus said as he cleaned the small cut he had made on Draco's finger. Severus cleaned his own and then motioned for Hermione to step aside.
"What were you doing? You are risking infection, which, may I remind you, in your weakened state, could wreak havoc with your immune system." Hermione made her getaway while Pomfrey was distracted, taking Can We Get Along? A Study of Magical and Non-Magical Relations with her.
"I was claiming my son. Thanks to an archaic, but still effective, tradition, the Ministry cannot take Draco away from me." Severus said, trying his best to look intimidating in the hospital pajamas.
"Well, congratulations to the both of you are in order. Congratulations, Mr. Snape, on gaining a stubborn and thoroughly bossy father. Congratulations, Professor Snape, on becoming a father. May your teenager give you as many gray hairs as you have given me over the years. Now, as long as you are in this hospital wing, you are both under my care. Back to bed!" Draco laughed as Severus went back to his bed and got under the covers. "You both better stay there or I'll confine you." Draco blanched and huddled under the covers. Severus said nothing. He waited until she was out of hearing distance.
"This is why I wanted to go to my quarters." Severus mumbled. Draco rolled his eyes.
"So tell me more about this vacation." Draco said. Severus sat up and faced his son. He made a mental note to personally thank Miss Granger for her assistance. He wondered if Draco would be willing to help. His reaction to the girl had been a little surprising, but then, Draco could have missed his peer group.
&&
Tom was still sitting next to Harry's bed, reading by candlelight. He could hear everyone sleeping around him, from Severus's slightly heavier breath to Draco's light whisper. His focus was mostly on the boy in front of him. He noticed that Harry made next to no noise while sleeping. He reached out and stroked the boy's hand, happy to have tangible contact with his son. He looked up when he sensed a presence across the bed. "Mr. Black?" The shape smiled and put something down next to Harry. He dropped a kiss on the teenager's head and then looked at Tom.
"Thank you." Tom could find no words to say to the form, so he simply nodded. The figure faded away. Tom reached out and picked up the object left behind. It was a small plush toy in the shape of a black dog. Its collar had a star charm hanging from it. Tom smiled and tucked it closer to Harry. He smoothed the boy's hair back and settled in to watch him sleep. He had such wonderful news for Harry when he woke up.
A/N: Reviews do make me post faster, in case you were wondering. For everyone who asked about An Aunt's Love, please see my profile.