-110 - Six Again

The Potion Master froze as he entered the kitchen of Grimmauld Place. He tried to assess the situation he had just walked in on. Lupin was looking at him with a mixture of fear and relief. The small raven haired boy continued to stare at the ground. Black sat against the wall clutching his wand while rocking back and forth with afar away look. He wasn't sure if another prank was being played on him or if Black had done the unthinkable and hexed his own godson.

Harry knew better than to ask too many questions or look at someone for too long. He had just received a painful reminder a few days ago when Aunt Marge let her dog bite him on the foot for getting caught staring at her funny hair. Who were all these strange people?

Why did the man in mended clothes know his name? He couldn't remember ever meeting him. When the tall man in dark clothes walked out of the fireplace it had scared him a little and he wondered if he was stuck in another one of his bad dreams. Any minute now Uncle Vernon would throw his cupboard door open and kick his cot until he woke up. He felt his heart sink as he realized that would mean no breakfast the next morning.

Remus stood up and looked at Severus, "Severus, I-I don't know what happened." He walked over to Sirius and knelt before the delusional man, "Sirius can you hear me?"

When no answer came he reached out and placed a hand on Sirius' arm, "Padfoot! What happened?" Still nothing. He unclenched the animagus' fingers from the wand and put it in his back pocket.

Severus had enough of this nonsense. The immature man was playing another prank on him, "Black, turn Harry back this instant! I will not stand for this nonsense another minute!"

Sirius began mumbling out incoherently, "I didn't mean to. Just wanted my boy back. Didn't mean to."

Severus wasn't in the mood for his drivel. He walked up the boy and tilted his chin up to look in his eyes, "Harry James Potter, I will not stand for this conduct. Turn back this instant!"

The boy literally shook with fear and stumbled back. Harry landed on his bottom but kept his eyes on the angry man in black. He didn't know what the man wanted or how the man knew his name.

Severus could see the fear in the child's eyes and reconsidered the situation. Could Black really have cast a spell at his own godson? Anything was possible when it came to Black. The Potion Master pulled his wand from his cloak and pointed it at Harry.

Harry threw his arms up over his head and tensed up. He knew what was coming next.

Severus immediately lowered his wand and dropped down to one knee. His heart twisted with the memory of this past July when he had found the boy on the floor of his bedroom at Privet Drive. He remembered Harry having that same reaction. He slowly lowered the boy's arms, "Do not fear me, Harry."

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered. Whatever he had done he wished he hadn't. He was so confused and felt like those stupid tears were threatening to betray him again. He knew better than to cry but he was so scared and couldn't stop them from filling his eyes. He swiped at them with the long sleeve of his shirt and hoped the man in black hadn't seen them.

"What are you sorry about?" Severus asked as he saw the boy trying to hide his face by looking down once again. It saddened him that Harry still did that even as a teenager.

"I don't know," Harry admitted in his small voice. "I don't know how I got here or why I'm wearing these clothes. Uncle Vernon's going to be so angry."

A dark look crossed the Potion Master's face and he saw the boy scoot back away from him. "Come here child." Severus held a hand out to the boy.

Harry knew he was brave and usually didn't scare very easily but … well, this man really scared him. He had never seen anyone dress all in black and have long hair and pointed boots. He gathered his courage and stood up before taking a shaky step closer to the man. The man gently took his hand and pulled him closer.

"Stand still." Severus slowly raised his wand and with a swish said, "Finite Incantatum!"

The boy flinched back then looked at him with wide curious eyes.

Severus thought of all the spells that could bring this de-aging about. He knew they should all have cancelled out by using Finite. He continued holding the boy's hand and looked over to Lupin, "What spell do you know that would cause this?"

"The same ones you know," Remus said as he gathered his friend in his arms. "Sirius can you hear me? Sirius what did you spell Harry with?"

Sirius felt the warm arms surrounding him and slipped further into his delusions. He made an awful moaning sound deep down in his throat over and over again.

Harry stared at the man they called Sirius and hoped he wouldn't get the same sort of punishment the man must have gotten. He moved a little closer to the man in black as his heart skipped along in his chest.

Severus could tell the boy was frightened and thought he best get him out of here in case Black became more agitated.

"Lupin, go find Pomfrey and Albus, have them come to my house." On second thought he added, "Take Black with you, he should never have left a healers care. I'm taking Harry home."

Remus was in no position to argue against any request Severus made. He was ridden with guilt for letting the situation spiral out of control. He knew all along that Sirius was not fit to come home but he talked himself into thinking that he could take care of his best friend just as well as the hospital could. He helped his friend to stand and quietly left Grimmauld Place through the floo.

Harry suddenly panicked at the thought of going home and his Uncle finding him with a stranger. He knew better than to talk to any of the neighbors or strangers. He looked down at his long shirt and knew he would get in trouble for losing his clothes as well. The last thing he remembered was wearing Dudley's old brown pants with a hole in the knee and a blue t-shirt. He frantically looked around for the clothes.

"Harry what are you looking for?" the dark man asked in a kinder tone than Harry was used to hearing.

"It's just that I lost my clothes, sir," the boy said in a near panic. "Uncle Vernon isn't going to like that."

"We will not be going to your Uncle's home. You live with me now. I am your new father," Severus stated, preparing for a temper tantrum from the child.

Harry looked at the man in disbelief. He blinked several times. He wasn't sure how he felt about this new turn of events. He had always wanted a father, he'd even prayed every single night for a mum and dad. He never thought his prayers would actually come true though. Was this for real or just part of his dream? He had to find out.

"Um, sir?"

"Yes Harry," Severus was caught off guard as the child leaned in close to whisper in his ear. He could feel the boy's soft breath against his ear and smell the scent of maple syrup.

"Is it forever?" came a soft whisper.

Severus felt completely undone. He knew that question had been filled with a longing that came straight from the heart. He had seen into this boy's memories many times this past year and knew how he had longed for a parent. "Yes Harry, I will not leave you."

Harry smiled at the thought of telling Dudley that he had been wrong all these years. Dudley had always told him that he would never get to have a mum and dad but he was wrong. He looked at the man and simply said, "Okay."

Severus dropped his head into his free hand, something tugged at his heart making it hurt. He couldn't fathom what the boy had been through to make him so willing to live with a complete stranger. He knew Harry had grown up unloved with little care but he had not thought Harry had been treated poorly until he had started showing signs of magic. He hoped this small child wasn't a victim to abuse. He held onto the little hand and looked at the boy. The child stared back at him with curiosity.

"Are you okay, sir?" Harry thought the man looked like he had tears in his eyes, but no, grown ups never cried. He wondered what he had done to cause the man to look so sad.

Severus pulled himself together not wanting to alarm the child any further, "I am fine. Would you like to see your new home?"

Harry nodded then let go of the man's hand to pick up the large shoes and pants from the floor. Severus took them and cast a shrinking charm then spelled the clothes onto the boy. He pointed his wand at Harry and charmed the shirts the boy still wore to fit him properly.

Harry stared at the man in shock. How did he do that?

Severus realized the child had never seen magic before, "Harry you come from a very noble family of wizards. Your parent's were very strong Wizards. Do you know what magic is?"

Harry stepped away from the man. He knew what his aunt and uncle thought of magic, they had forbid him from even saying the word 'magic'.

He shook his head in denial, "No! That's a lie!"

"No it is the truth. You should feel proud of who your parents were."

"No!" Harry walked backwards keeping an eye on the man in black. He knew better than to talk about his parents and he also knew that magic was bad. "Leave me alone!"

"Come now son, calm down," Severus stood up and held his hand out towards the child.

Harry shook his head, fear coursing through him enough to make his legs shake. He knew this whole thing was too good to be true. Magic was evil, only freaks thought magic was real. He didn't want to get into even more trouble than he probably already was in. He jumped back when the man tried to take his hand. "Get away!"

Severus was taken aback by this violent reaction from the child. The boy was most certainly filled with all variety of lies regarding who he was. His anger at Dursley was only kept in check by his sheer willpower not to scare the boy any further. Oh, how he yearned for a few moments alone with Dursley.

He looked at the panic striken boy and tried to come up with a way to make him calm down. He had no experience with small children so decided to deal with the boy the only way he knew how, "This behavior must cease. Come!" Severus used a stern voice. He held a hand out to the boy.

Harry froze then dropped his head in defeat. It really didn't matter what he thought because the man was his father now and that meant he was in charge of him. He had to obey him. He knew that talking back would just earn him a smack or worse.

He didn't run when the man grabbed his hand and pulled him to the fireplace but he almost wet himself when the man tried to pull him into the flames. He fought with all his might not to go in there.

"You will not get hurt. This is how wizards travel," Severus tried to reason as the boy flailed against him. "Didn't you see Lupin go in?"

Harry fought harder kicking and hitting the man with his one free hand. He had burnt his hands plenty of times when he was cooking and knew how much fire hurt to touch. "No please!"

Severus had no idea how to deal with this. He pulled his wand out and watched the boy cower before he cast a sleeping spell on the child. He scooped the boy up in his arms and flooed back to Snape Manor.

Severus went directly to his study and deposited the child on the sofa. He was going to ring that mangy mutt's neck when he had the chance. How could he do this to his own godson? Severus was angry at himself for allowing Harry to go visit Black unescorted and angry at Lupin for not protecting the boy. He should have known better than to allow Harry to be alone with that deranged man.

He paced the floor waiting anxiously for Poppy or Albus to come and fix this. He paused when he passed the sofa and looked down at the little form curled up. The child was so small.

Just then the floo turned green and Albus' head appeared.

"Severus, how is the boy?" Albus looked behind the Potion Master and could see the child asleep on the sofa.

"He is sleeping. You must fix him without delay!" commanded Severus.

Dumbledore didn't take offence to that tone of voice Severus used, realizing how stressed the man must be. He didn't savor telling him this next part, "Severus you must calm down or you will frighten the child. I performed a Priori Incantatem on Sirius' wand and I know what spell was cast. He used a spell that is considered dark magic due to it's very nature."

Severus looked at his son then back at Albus, "Is the boy in danger? Will the spell harm him?"

"I'll be honest with you Severus … this spell is known to cause physical damage if left too long."

"Well then fix him!"

"I can't," Albus said grimly. "Only the caster has the power to release the spell. Sirius is incapacitated at this time. He will need to heal from this latest misfortune before he will be fit enough to put this right. I am sorry, the boy deserves better."

Severus felt more rage than he knew what to do with. Black had used a dark arts spell against Harry! The man deserved to go back to Azkaban for raising his wand against the boy.

"Albus, what am I supposed to do with a small child. I have no experience with this sort of thing. Not to mention the fact that I have no house elf to prepare meals for the child," Severus admitted.

"I will contact Molly. I'm quite sure she will be more than willing to help with Harry. I'll continue to investigate the spell and let you know as soon as I find anything new. In the mean time you will have to be patient with the child," Dumbledore took another look at the sleeping child before disappearing.

Severus had a hard time accepting what he had just heard. Not only was Harry stuck as a small child for the foreseeable future but he was also in danger of the spell physically harming him! He stood up and paced the floor before sitting at his desk.

He pulled a parchment out and began writing letters to a few Wizards he knew that were more familiar with dark arts. Perhaps his time spent as a death eater would come in handy once again.

The boy woke up with a start then stretched out before looking around.

Harry had lost his glasses somewhere along the way but his vision was not so bad. He found himself on a soft leather sofa before a warm fire. A fire! The last thing he remembered was his new father trying to make him go into the fire. He looked around in a panic.

"You are safe child," Severus said as calmly as he could from behind his desk.

Harry slid off the sofa and looked at the man. "I don't want to go in the fire, sir. Every time I burn my hand it hurts for a long time," Harry said and held up his hand.

"How many times have you burnt your hand? How did these accidents happen?" Severus asked, his voice wavering as his control slipped a little.

"Loads of times. When I first learned how to cook I would burn my hand almost every day. Aunt Petunia said I'm just clumsy and need to pay better attention," Harry confessed.

Severus masked his anger as he motioned for the child to come to him.

Harry did as he was told and bravely walked over to the man.

Severus gently took the child's hands into his own and inspected them for burns. He could see a long red mark along the left hand and several old burn scars on both hands. His hands shook with anger so he released the boy's hands lest the boy fear him.

"The fire I was taking you into was not hot and would not hurt you. It is called a floo and it is the way we need to travel," Once he saw that the boy seemed to be considering this he added, "Your Aunt and Uncle were wrong about magic. You must learn to accept this."

Harry wasn't so sure about that. His whole life it had been drilled into his head that magic was not real and that it was bad to talk about anything magic. He wouldn't tell that to the man in black though, so he nodded instead.

"How old are you Harry?"

The boy shrugged, "I dunno. I don't get birthdays, only Dudley does. I'm abnormal."

Severus rifled through his desk and pulled forth a calming draught. He pulled out the stopper before drinking the whole vial in one go.

He saw that Harry was intently watching him as the calming draught took effect. "Harry, how old was Dudley at his last birthday?"

"Dudley turned six. He got a big blue cake with race cars around the sides and loads and loads of presents. Aunt Marge gave him a blue two wheeler bike with a horn!"

So the child was five or six then, but looked much smaller. Severus was unsure what to do with a child of that tender age.

"Dudley was going to save a piece of cake for me but it all got eaten by the time I came out to clean. Aunt Petunia said maybe next year I could have some cake."

Severus watched as the boy's expression turned somber and he knew that that particular incident must have disappointed the child greatly.

"Perhaps, if you behave you may have cake after you eat your supper this evening," Severus offered thinking of the cake left over from last night.

Harry couldn't believe his good luck; cake and supper! "Yes sir! I'll be very good, sir!"

This 'sir' thing had to stop. "Harry, now that I am your father you may call me Dad."

Harry smiled then a little giggle erupted from his lips before he covered his mouth.

"I know, it does sound odd at first but you will get used to it," Severus admitted.

Harry nodded his head but continued to smile. He caught sight of a picture on the man's desk of the man putting his arm around a bigger boy. The boy looked up at the man with a smile. He couldn't take his eyes off the picture, not only because it was actually moving but also because he felt a longing deep inside.

Severus watched as the child clutched at the desk, just tall enough for his chin to rest on the table with small fingers on either side. The boy was wholly enthralled with the picture that had been taken at he gates of Hogwarts on that fateful Hogsmeade day. What would the child think if he knew that was a picture of himself?

As if the boy read his mind, Harry continued to stare at the picture but asked, "Who is that with you?"

"My son."

"Where is he?"

Severus contemplated how to answer that question, "I will tell you the answer to that question once you believe in magic and once you realize that magic is not bad."

Harry's eyes darted to the professor, "I don't want to get in trouble. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia don't like magic."

"Harry, you are safe. Vernon Dursley would never come here and you will never go back there." Severus watched the child closely for any signs of distress over hearing that. The boy looked back at the picture with a wistful look on his face.

Severus picked up his quill and went back to writing his letter. The child remained with his chin resting on the desk looking at him whenever the boy thought he wouldn't notice. After several minutes the child finally spoke again.

"Uncle Vernon does that too."

"Does what?"

"Puts his arm around Dudley."

"And does he do that to you?"

Harry shook his head with eyes opened wide, "No sir. I'm a freak. I think he doesn't want to catch it."

Severus ground his teeth in anger but kept his face impassive as he stared at the child, "You are normal, every bit as normal as your cousin, even more so, I would venture to guess. Your Uncle is afraid of magic because he knows nothing about it."

The child went back to staring at the photograph without saying anything else.

Severus put his quill down and looked at the child. Perhaps he could make this accident work to his advantage. Perhaps if the child were shown love at such a tender age it would effect Harry when he turned back to being sixteen. The boy had no memories of his future but would he remember having been shown respect and love in his past when the spell ended? This whole spell was quite the conundrum. The experiences the boy would have while he was de-aged were real so wouldn't they be part of his thoughts when he was older once again?

Severus did not want to toy with Harry's future but perhaps he could enhance the boy's self worth. It would be an experiment in behavior modification that could effect Harry's tortured past in a positive way. In any case it couldn't be harmful to show the child what he rightfully ought to have. Every child deserved respect and affection, not to mention the feeling of being loved. With those thoughts in mind he pushed his chair back and waited for the child to look at him once again.

"Come here son," Severus watched the boy grip the edge of the table until his fingers turned white before letting go and walking to him.

Harry had to force himself to walk towards the man. He struggled to come up with the reason why he was going to get a spanking. Uncle Vernon always sat down in the chair before putting him over his knee. Maybe he had asked too many questions or stared at the picture too long. He looked down at his shoes in disgrace as he stood before his new father.

Severus lifted the child's chin, "You are frightened but you needn't be. You are my son now and I will protect you from any harm. Come child." He gently took hold of the boy's hand and pulled him until he was close enough to lift onto his lap. He could feel the boy tense up and recognized the fact that Harry had never been held before. He thought to talk with the boy a bit to help him become accustomed to his new surroundings.

Harry was shocked beyond belief when the man lifted him onto his lap. His mind was racing with possibilities, none of them good. It took a moment for his heart to stop racing but it finally did when he concentrated on the deep voice of his father. He let himself relax upon hearing about flying on a broomstick and eating chocolate frogs.

Severus felt the boy lean against him and knew the child was calming down. He smiled at the simplicity of a child's mind. It wasn't quite as hard as he thought it would be to look after a small child. Or possibly it was just this small child that made him feel as if everything would be manageable. He slowly wrapped an arm over the child's shoulder.

XXXXXXXXXXXX TBC

Hi friends,

Thank you for the lovely reviews and great ideas. I have to let you know how I am writing this story. I have not really planned anything out or even know where I am headed until I sit down to write. I just type away and whatever I write I keep. So, please excuse my errors. I have used some of the ideas you suggested so feel free to let me know what direction you want this story to take. Sorry if this chapter was a bit sentimental.

Harry will not remain little for more than another chapter or two.

Thanks a bunch,

Rachel

P.S.

Ginny will be back in the next chapter as well as Draco and Charlet!