AN: I'm so excited about this story. This chapter is the longest so far over 4100 words. I hope you enjoy it!

I don't own Harry Potter.

Third Times a Son

Chapter 7

Severus left Harry's friends with more questions than before and mostly about a certain vault key. His next excursion out of his rooms will be to Gringotts. Not only does he want to know about the mystery key, but all his other keys and documents. It seems the Goblins helped Harry a lot before he died and Severus is hoping they will have no issues helping him. They should hold some answers that even Hermione didn't know.

The first thing he did when he returned home was sit in his favorite chair and take out the letter from Lily. The envelope was supposed to be white with a yellow lily on the left side, but it actually looked to be a hundred years old and very delicate. Severus held it in one hand and caressed it with the other. His long stained fingers glided over the smooth surface of the paper. He tried not to get emotional but at this point his emotions were running the show. He teared up just thinking about how this is the last piece of Lily he now owns.

Very carefully he unfolded the letter and began to read. He read it slowly, wanting to savor every word she wrote. When he finished, he read it again and again, soaking in her words and their meaning. His eyes full of love and tears, his throat closed up from the emotions swelling inside him. When he got his fill of her words, he folded the letter back up and just sat there. Lily always was a good letter writer. He let the tears fall as he thought about what she wrote. She was so happy, he sob laughed, he made her so happy. That thought brought another sob. "Lily...who would do this to us?"

After awhile, Severus put the letter in the envelope and cleaned his face. He was proud of himself for immediately not reaching for a drink. He put the envelope in a safe place knowing the importance of his possessions. Harry's friends believe there's truth in the Deathly Hallows, but he's not sure whether he's totally on board with the concept. Really, if Harry acquired the Deathly Hallows and became the Master of Death, then why is he dead? Wouldn't the Master be able to control his own death? Also, if he is in possession of the stone...the resurrection stone, couldn't he just talk to Harry? Oh!, he could talk to his Lily!

Lils. He stopped dead in his tracks and thought about that. He could see her again, talk to her, maybe ask her who did this to them. His body got a cold chill at the thought. Like something bone-chilling just touched him. It scared him and quite frankly, it terrified him and he looked around the room making sure he was alone.

Thinking of Lily, he decided now would be a good time to view that memory Harry left him. So he gathered up the memory and headed to his lab. He kept Albus' pensieve in there knowing no one would bother it. He considered it one of his most prized possessions, second now to the things his son has left him.

Placing the pensieve on the work table, he took the vial with the memory and upended them. Normally after putting memories into a pensieve, you give them a couple of stirs with your wand before going in, but the second this memory spilled out Severus knew they'd be different. Firstly, the color of the memory was a misty light blue instead of white. Secondly, the second the memories hit the bowl they began to shift, realigning themselves into what Severus didn't know. And thirdly, a cyclone of mist came up almost instantly and morphed into Harry; a miniature version, perhaps only a foot and a half tall. Harry walked around an invisible floor until the mist cleared enough for him to be seen. Once Severus realized what was happening, the small Harry stopped and looked to him and spoke, "Professor, I was hoping to show you this memory myself, maybe even viewing it together with you, you know, as father and son, but time ran out on us." Severus blanched, "It's okay though, don't think what you're thinking, there's not enough time for a pity party. Inside here are four memories but the only one you can see now is when I went back for you in the shack, after the final battle was over. Also, you'll notice the other memories but you won't be able to access them. I'm hoping that if all goes as it should you will be able to access this one plus two more. If it doesn't then you could view all four or only this one, it depends on you. I'm putting my faith in you, dad, don't let me down." Harry stood confidently staring at Severus, making Severus feel a little self conscious.

So, Harry did have a plan after all, this is definite proof. "I won't let you down, my son. I promise." He said and he meant it with all his heart. That seemed to be the key because Harry disappeared back into the bowl with a poof. Severus stared at the open air above the bowl for minutes before plunging in.

Memory

Severus found himself in a hallway with four doors. Each one marked with a number, however only the one marked number one was open slightly. He guessed the other three doors would be locked and would open at the correct time. How would he know? How is Pot...Harry going to tell him?

Deciding not to worry about that now, he pushed open the first door and stepped in. Immediately he was hit with Harry's fear, anticipation and resolve.

"Avada Kedavra!"

"Expeliamos!"

Everyone stopped and stared, frozen in place, as both curses flew toward the other. Harry, breathing hard, eyes determined that the other wand will obey. And true to form, it flew from Voldemort's hand flying through the air towards its rightful master. The spell voldemort cast rebounding and killing him at the same time. His body fell to the floor, dead before he landed.

Harry just stood there, not moving, breathing hard and watching the fallen man for any sign of movement. When nothing happened after a couple of minutes, he fell to his knees. Everyone around him ran to his rescue but Ron was there first, spreading his arms to keep everyone else back.

"Harry!" Ron said as he knelt next to his best mate. "Mate, you did it! You defeated old snake face!" He looked Harry over and noted the far away look in his friend's eyes and the pale color to his skin. Realizing something wasn't right, "Harry. Harry!, it's Ron! Come on, you're exhausted. Let's get you to the infirmary." Keeping his hand on Harry's shoulder to keep him steady, Ron stood, "Hermione!"

Hermione would like to tell people that when Ron called her name it was out of joy and euphoria, but that's far from the truth. The fear she could hear in Ron's voice scared her. She all but ran to their side, seeing Harry's face and far away look she immediately knelt and guided Harry to stand and they left for the hospital wing. Luna and Ginny bringing up the rear and keeping everyone else away.

The infirmary was crowded with students and Order members. Everyone quieted down when they came in watching them with interest.

"Over here you two. Put him on the last bed here and I'll be right back." The Mediwitch said as she made her way to the medicine cabinet.

Ron helped Harry onto the bed, took his shoes off and placed them under the bed and guided Harry back onto the pillow.

"What's wrong with him?" Hermione asked.

"Is he going to be alright?" Inquired Ginny with concern on her face.

"I dunno. He just collapsed. Hasn't said a word. Hermione, look at him. Do you remember him looking this bad? What happened out there?" Ron's face full of worry and fear.

"I don't know, Ron. I hate to say it but I have no idea what happened with Harry since we came in from the shack. I thought he was in the Castle until I saw him with Hagrid. Merlin, he looks awful." She wiped some bangs off his forehead before cataloging his whole body. That's when she noticed the blood on his hip and moved his shirt up to see. "Oh my god. Madame Pomfrey! Madame Pomfrey! Please!" She yelled over the noise. "Please hurry!" She cried frantically.

"What's going on? What is it, Hermione?!" Ron bellowed. If his best friend was hurt he wanted to know right now!

"He's bleeding from the hip. Looks like he was hit with something. I mean, I can't see the whole thing but it looks pretty bad. It won't stop bleeding!"

"What's going on over here Ms. Granger? What has you so worked up?"

"Harry's been injured. On his hip. It won't stop bleeding. Merlin, I'm sorry we didn't notice it earlier!" Hermione frantic with worry.

"It's okay dear. Let me have a look." The Mediwitch waved her wand over the injury first to stop the bleeding then to close it up. She then started scanning Harry from head to toe. "Well, he was definitely hit with something out there. I've closed the wound, but other than that he's fine. Just exhausted and his magic is drained a bit. He needs rest. He will stay here for the next forty eight hours and not move from this bed. Sleep will do him good." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a vial and handed it to Hermione. "Dreamless sleep, this will ensure he gets rest."

As she turned to leave she looked to Ginny and Luna, "You two should go back to your families. Harry will be fine and I don't want unneeded people in my infirmary."

"Can't we stay? We're his family too." Ginny whined.

"Come Ginny, the whirlysprouts will watch over Harry." Luna said as she pulled Ginny out of the infirmary.

"I'm not taking that." Harry mumbled from the bed, surprising his two best friends. "I'm not taking dreamless sleep. I'm fine really, just...I'm tired, but not so bad that I need that. Please, Ron." He implored. "Please."

"Okay, Harry, lay back now and rest." Hermione said to Harry while looking at Ron. They always could communicate with each other without words.

"Right Mate. Get some rest. We'll be here when you wake up." Ron moved closer to Harry and tucked the blanket under his chin. They were worried about him. He's never looked this pale before. Hopefully a good night's sleep will help.

Harry woke sometime in the night with a start. "Dad" he whispered frantically. Jumping out of bed and almost falling on his face, he gathered the robe at the end of the bed and put it on. His hip was hurting real bad but the urge to get to the shack overpowered any other feelings he had. He looked around the infirmary to make sure the coast was clear and started out. It was slow going with his hip burning with every step but he pushed down the pain. He passed a bed closer to the door with his two friends snuggled together asleep, and had to sneak past them extra quietly so as to not wake Hermione. Every little sound woke her up and he needed to get out and find out about his dad.

The trek was slow going but he finally made it to the Whomping Willow and wandlessly pushed the knob to freeze the tree. He made his way inside the tunnel with an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. 'Please let the man be alive...just enough to get him to the Castle and proper help. Please Merlin let him be breathing'. Harry kept repeating the mantra until he entered the room where his dad lay, and froze...his dad was not alone.

Harry stood frozen unable to comprehend what he was seeing. His stomach sunk thinking the worst. His father was dead...he was too late. Tears rolled down his pale face as he let out a soft "no". He moved into the room another step but not any further. Leaning over his dad was a woman with soft flowing red hair. Her hair fell around her, blanketing her face, but Harry could see her caressing his dad's cheek and moving his hair away from his forehead. It was done so lovingly that he knew who it was just from that gesture. She was whispering something in a sweet voice but Harry couldn't make it out. Suddenly a wave began to emanate from her chest, like a heartbeat, spreading out to fill the empty space of the shack.

Harry couldn't move, in shock at the sight and the wave hit him full force all over. He felt pure joy course through his body, touching every cell and molecule. He fell to his knees with the intensity of it. Trying to keep his breathing steady and finding it hard to even breath at all. He wasn't in control of his body anymore either and he knew he wore the silliest smile on his face. He knew what he was experiencing and it filled him with such emotion he began to cry. That's when the figure next to his dad turned around and she smiled when she looked upon her son. Harry could feel her emotions; like they were his own. The love she felt for his dad and for him. It was overwhelming, exhilarating and wonderful and much much more than he could ever have imagined.

"Harry, sweetheart. I'm so proud of you. You've become such a great man. In many ways you take after your father." She turned her loving eyes back to Severus and moved his hair away from his face and neck again. "I'm so very proud of both my men. I knew the two of you could do it. Imagine what the two of you could have done if only he knew the truth. He would love you, Harry, with everything he is. I've no doubt about that. He will always be my hero, my true love...my Sev."

Lily looked back to Harry as her son stood back up. "It's not his time, Harry. He still has work to do. Guide him right my son." She said then she turned back to the unconscious man and placed her hand over his heart and spoke softly. Harry didn't hear her words, too engrossed in watching his dads face.

He watched as the once pale and cold skin became warm and rosy, where he looked pained he became relaxed and he watched Severus' eyes; waiting for them to open like he knew they would. He heard his mom speak, "Come on love, you can do it. Come back to me sweetheart." His dad's eyes flew open and landed on him. His mum said "I love you, Sev" and the man only stared at him and grunted not noticing Lily at all and before Harry could say a word she was gone.

Harry smiled at the man, "Professor, thank Merlin." He was beside the Professor faster then he thought he could move with his hurt hip, and helped him up. Together they made the trek back to the infirmary, no one saying anything to the other.

Severus came out of the pensieve with tears in his eyes. "Thank you son" he whispered while wiping his eyes. Seeing Lily was a balm to his soul.

He remembered that long trek to the infirmary, not knowing what to say to the boy who should be dead. Harry guided him to the hospital wing and made sure Poppy looked him over right away with an air of confidence he's never seen before.

It was a long recovery for him but he doesn't remember most of it. He remembered Harry holding him up and Poppy ranting and raving at Potter for leaving his bed and something about over exhaustion magic overload. Then waking up a little over a year later. Apparently when he was led to the shrieking shack, for what he thought was a meeting with the Dark Lord, he was ambushed by other Death Eaters and left for dead. It was just lucky that the golden trio found him.

He reached out to move the pensieve when a cyclone of mist shot up and Harry once again stood.

"Dad, don't leave the memories in the pensieve. Please put them in a safe place, for no one must have access to them. When you meet my new friend come back." Harry smiled at Severus, he even managed to get a twinkle in his eye, "Mum was so beautiful. I'm glad I got to see that. See you later, dad." He waved then disappeared. Severus sobbed out a laugh. "Yes my son, she was." Turning to do exactly what his son asked.

XxxX

The next day Severus ventured to Gringotts with his envelope securely in his cloak pocket. He only brought the keys and the deeds with him today, wanting to learn as much as he could about them. He put the Hallows in his safe back at Hogwarts so he wouldn't have any opportunity to lose them. He was meeting with Griphook the Goblin in charge of the Potter estate, and whom he owled the day before.

When he entered the Bank, a Goblin met him at the door and escorted him to a private office down a long corridor. Griphook sat behind his desk with a stack of papers in front of him and a silver blade with an ivory handle next to them. "Mr. Snape." Was all he said as Severus came in and took a seat.

"Hello, May your gold always always flow." Severus said and Griphook nodded in appreciation.

"What can I do for you today, Mr. Snape." Griphook said with a sneer which could have been a smile, it's hard to differentiate the two. "Am I to assume this has to do with Harry Potter and your inheritance?" He placed his small chubby hands on the stack of papers and with a gleam in his eyes, he waited for the Professor to answer.

Severus cleared his throat and pulled out his envelope. By now the manila envelope was looking pretty worn, all crinkled and used from being handled so much. He put the envelope in his safe the first night but since then he's been keeping it with him under his pillow at night. Just being close to the items that meant so much to his son was comforting in some strange way. "Yes, as you know Harry gave me several vault keys and deeds. I would like to review these with you today and maybe visit one of the vaults."

"Of course. I see you brought everything with you. Good. Good, but I will not require anything from you except the vault keys. If you would, please, take them out and place them on the desk while I get my ledger out." Griphook hopped off his chair and went to the corner filing cabinet and pulled out a ledger that was longer than he was tall. It must have a featherweight spell on it for he carried it with ease to the desk and started flipping through it.

As the Goblin did that, Severus rummaged through his envelope and scooped up the three keys and placed them on the desk.

"Right, you have keys 79, 405, and a Horseman key."

Severus sputtered. "A-a what?"

"A Horseman key. One of the four oldest vaults, known to us as the 'original four'. They're so old no one really knows when they came to be. Mister Potter acquired the key sometime after the final battle. He, like you, came here to see the vault. I assume that's the vault you wish to enter?" He raised his bushy eyebrows in question. Goblins really are an ugly race, Severus thought.

"Yes, but what does that mean? How did he acquire a key from no one? Isn't there anything you can tell me?"

"When it comes to the 'original four' we can't explain anything because we don't have that knowledge. You and only you, as the rightful key owner, can enter the vault and get your answers."

"But surely Potter told you things, you set up his Will and helped him divide his assets! You have to know something." Severus said grasping for anything, any small piece of information. How is it that Harry manage to keep this key a secret from even his two best friends?

"Mr. Snape, Goblins don't lie when it comes to gold and vaults. Mister Potter came here with the key already in hand and went down into the depths of Gringotts, and when he came back, he said nothing to anyone and we knew better than to ask. I suggest we talk about your other assets first before heading down to the vault. This way you can spend as long as you'd like there and then go when you're done. What say you?" Griphook asked roughly. Severus nodded and waited for the Goblin to continue.

Turned out the properties Harry left him were four of Harry's favorite places to visit. Two of them were Potter properties and the other two were Black. The first key, key number 79 was indeed a Potter key. The Potters had several vaults, this one being the oldest, but Harry knew the books and knowledge in this vault would please his dad. Some of the items date back to the founders time and Severus was intrigued enough to have a look today but remembered why he was here and sobered quickly. The key marked 405 was a Black key but a newer one. From what Griphook told him the vault was opened during Harry's school years while his dogfather was still alive.

"Have these vaults been inventoried recently?" Severus asked. It would make going through the vaults much easier if they had.

Griphook bared his teeth in what Severus guessed was a smirk. "Yes, Mister Potter had one done as soon as he was able." He handed over two separate parchments. "He was very interested in the Black vault, he spent a great deal of time in there, as well as the Horseman's vault." He added.

Severus looked over the two parchments, "May I keep these?" He asked.

"Yes, they are yours. We have the originals on file." The Goblin reached over and picked up the knife with the ivory handle, "Mr. Snape, in order to proceed to the last vault, we must verify this key belongs to you."

Severus arched an eyebrow? "How can that be? Harry bequeathed me the key, there's no possible way my blood is keyed to it." He said weary. Blood is not something he's willing to just give up, he's seen too much evil done with the liquid.

"Trust me Mr. Snape, if you're the true owner of the key, it will know." He handed the blade to Severus hilt first and waited. "I only need a drop, one drop on the key if you please." Griphook's eyes seem to glow with anticipation, the look very unsettling to Severus. With trepidation Severus pierced his finger and let one drop fall on the silver key. He healed his finger and cleaned the blade with a simple spell and waited to see what would happen.

At first nothing seemed to be happening, then slowly it began to glow, soft at first but soon it was pulsating light, bright and blinding. "Ah ha! Well done! Well done, Mr. Snape! Seems you are indeed the rightful owner of the vault. Alright, let's get you down there, shall we." Griphook jumped down and motioned for Severus to follow him out.

Severus grabbed up his keys and put them in his pocket and hurried after the Goblin. Excitement and nervousness running through his bones, he was finally getting somewhere but he was anxious of what he was walking into.

XxxX

Please review!

-Lovetoreadseverusdotcom