CHAPTER: Emancipation

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Severus's pov

Harry Potter was an intriguing character. After he had delivered Lily's letter in the first year, he had taken to meeting me regularly in my off hours, just to chat and build a relationship. I would never say it aloud, but I liked him. He was older than his age and wiser than his maturity. He was also a fun loving person and an intelligent conservationist. Not even in front of my godson, Draco, could I let myself relax like I could with him. Maybe the reason was because he knew me completely, all my troubles, sacrifices, errors and gains.

So I was slightly surprised when he entered the office along with Draco.

"Severus, I need you to perform legilimency on me."

"I know you have a natural shield Potter."

"I will lower it down. You need to see one memory."

I nodded my head and said the incantation. It showed me a memory of the boys speaking under a tree in Hogwarts. It left me shocked.

"Oh no! They are monsters."

"I know. I need you to come with us. We need to go to the Ministry and Gringotts."

Though both Draco and I knew what he planned to do, this surprised us anyway.

"Would that be wise, Harry? Whom do you trust in these places?"

"You'll see. But we need to do it soon before Dumbledore even gets a hint of it."

"What did he do now?" I sighed. This was regular topic between us. He has a lot of complains against the headmaster.

"Dumbledore has been making enquiries on my expenditures and he once tried to find out the location of our family house. I do not trust that he would take the news of my emancipation well. That's why I need one each from Hogwarts, Ministry and Gringotts on my side. So, will you accompany us?"

I agreed and we made plans to leave on the coming weekend. Harry promised that he would arrange the approval for the meetings. On Saturday, we left through my floo for the Leaky Cauldron, but only after I had disillusioned them both. Headmaster had approved the floo for my office during the battle and did not take the privilege away. He would of course be notified that it has been used, but we hoped that we would accomplish our task before returning today.

The first stop from there was the Ministry, where Harry led us directly to Amelia Bones. She was a strict and fair officer, this much I knew. We were given entry to her office as soon as we arrived.

"Yes Harry? Why did you request this meeting? If it is about Sirius Black, I have nearly completed arranging the trial for him. There are a few idiots and arrogant people I still have to go through."

"I have faith in you, Madam. No, this is about another matter. If you can bring us a pensive, I want to show you a memory."

She did as asked, no questions asked. I wondered how good a contact Harry has with Miss Bones. And what was this about Black?

"I have the memory ready, Please…" But Draco stopped him.

"Harry, I better give my own memories. This way she may find out something important. This is not just about me now."

"But Draco…" Harry started, but held his words when he looked into Draco's eyes, and finally nodded with a smile. Taking a deep breath, Draco focused on something and nodded to her. Miss Bones drew a stream of memories and placed them in the pensive. As Harry, Miss Bones and I stepped forward to watch the memories, Draco gripped Harry's hand and shook his head. Harry nodded and stayed with him as we looked into the memories. We were both disgusted with what it showed us. It would not suffice even if I said that Draco gave Harry a pretty abridged version of what happened. Once out of them, Amelia Bones had tears in her eyes as she ordered a whiskey and told us to sit down.

"How do you plan to do the emancipation? I could tell you all the rules and…"

But Harry shook his head, "We need to go to Gringotts first. Will you please accompany us? Both of you could decide on the best path for me to take. Please Madam, come with me as an adult who cares about children, not as the Head of Defense."

That seemed to do the job as she immediately agreed and took a few minutes to rearrange her appointments. Then we headed for Gringotts. When we reached there, harry requested me to drop the spells on us. There were two goblins guarding the doors as usual. What was surprising was Harry greeting them.

"May your life always be happy and rich!" The goblins bowed back and nodded their heads in approval of something. Harry turned to us, "This is the formal greeting of goblins to those you are not much familiar with. Please at least when you are with me, I request you to show them the respect that should be shown."

We accepted and did the same greeting with the goblin guards. It was silly, but I felt ashamed of unconsciously looking down on someone. A goblin was already waiting for us as soon as we entered the doors. He bowed to us and we greeted him the same way without a prompt, earning us a smile from Harry. He smiled at the goblin too.

"Well met, Griphook, the head of your clan and beloved of my heart. May your heart remain bold, your axe strong, and your might high."

The goblin bowed back, "Well met indeed, part of my heart. May you always lead happiness wherever you go! Your purpose for the visit?"

"I have a meeting arranged with King Ragnok in another five minutes and I would request your participation in it."

The goblin, Griphook, nodded and led us through the main doors inside the hall. After various twists and turns, we reached a grand door. Harry asked for a moment and turned to us.

"We are meeting the king of goblins. Show utmost respect and no rudeness, for it will not be tolerated. We are here to ask for guidance, not to give orders. Please remember that and let go of all your past experiences and impressions."

He then told us about the proper greetings and then Griphook knocked on the door. The doors opened to a stone hall decorated with weapons, books and hangings. It was impressive. There were two rows of goblins seated on either side near the walls, each working on some parchments. They did not spare even a glance to us. At the end of the room was seated the King Ragnok; he too had a table in front of him filled with books and parchments. I realized no one sits idle in Gringotts, whatever their position might be. As we neared him, I felt like passing through a film of barrier. Once through, we could hear no sound from the other side. We greeted him as instructed, paying respect to him and to his chain in particular. After the formalities, he asked us for our purpose. Harry again requested him to go through a memory, the King ordered an ancient pensive and then, Griphook and the King delved into the memory. Once finished they were enraged. They cursed him valiantly in their own language for a long time before they calmed down.

"So what do you require from us, Mister Potter."

"I want to be emancipated Your Grace, and need guidance and warnings associated with it. Miss Bones here is a fair officer amongst the Wizards and knows all the rules and procedures. I am but a child, and would agree with what both of you and Griphook would decide for me."

"Why did you come to me, Mister Potter, when this could have been done by anyone in your world?" The king asked Harry.

"Trust and Wisdom, your Grace, and the very fact that I know the three of you well enough to know that you would not stand seeing a child being abused, forced or hurt. Also, I would like to keep this under wraps for now, as if it really refers Voldemort's return, then we need to be prepared. And by we, I mean all the races he would affect or destabilize when he comes to power. I started with you, and then if our doubts turn true, then I need to inform the others, like centaurs and dwarfs."

"Well said, please give us a while to discuss your options."

Draco, Harry and I went back outside the barrier where some chairs have been placed for us. As soon as we were seated, I turned to Harry.

"All the planning is well, Harry, but may I know why I am being involved in this?"

"Two things Severus. First, would you be amenable to be Draco's guardian, though he would be under my protection?"

I turned to Draco, "Would you want to live with me, Draco, as your rightful place as my godson?"

"Yes." He nodded.

Harry continued, "Second, I do not want you to be the spy for Voldemort again."

"That is a very strong demand, Harry."

"Please, listen to me. What use had it been with you being the spy? Dumbledore would not take the pro-action to defeat Him, nor the news you would bring help us in any way as Voldemort knows you will be under Dumbledore's eyes. He would not tell you important things. What little use your spying had been, we can achieve that through other means. Also, your skills as the Potion master will be used against your will by him, as you will have to make them to appease him. No, you are better fighting out against him, than pretending as a spy and unable to take any action. Please, this is one request I make of you. I lost my parents, I will not lose anyone I consider important again."

"I will… think over the matter. There is Dumbledore to consider too, and his Order of Phoenix."

"Yeah yeah, that twinkle twinkle guy does nothing but preach. We will cross that barrier when it comes to that. We still have time, however much it would be, so please think over and be prepared to make a decision for whenever it needs to be taken."

I nodded. We were called by the King then.

"Okay, here is what we think you should do. You will be emancipated under oaths by the Ministry. It would be kept secret. As a proxy, you would appoint someone else to sit at the Wizard meetings till you are of age. Next, regarding the accounts, we would seal off access for Dumbledore as rule states, but tell him that your privacy had been ordered by your parents when you reach this age. Mister Malfoy, you are to remain quiet about your change of guardians until the summer vacation, so you would want to prefer staying at Hogwarts or visiting your friends for the break in between. And lastly, Mister Snape, we would want you to change your residence to the Prince Manor, as it had better protections against any raid."

We nodded at the decisions and thanked him for his time. With one trip to the ministry, where necessary documents were signed by Harry and Draco, the required changes had been made. Draco would be Harry's ward and my house mate from now on. I was… pleased.

We returned to Hogwarts by afternoon and the boys bid me farewell. Just as they were leaving, Fawkes flashed in with a greeting and handed me a letter from the Headmaster, inviting me to his office. I sighed. Time to put the acting hat on! I walked out and watched as the boys were just turning round the corner.

"… want to make a bet on it?"

"I don't make losing bets Potter. Even I noticed the impressed and captivated eyes of the Defense head. She will make a move before we come back for next year school."

"Awww… Even I cannot dispute that. Okay, let's see, when do you think Severus will realize she is interested in him…"

I stared at their retreat with wide eyes. Miss Bones? Interested in me? One moment these boys are talking about emancipation and the next, about matchmaking? Kids these days!

I shook myself awake and went to the Headmaster's office. Why the hell does he uses such ridiculous passwords as 'ice mice'. Sometimes, he acts even more immature than teenagers.

"Ah Severus! Please take a seat. Lemon Drops?"

"No thank you."

"Well, one day I hope you will learn to appreciate chocolates and candies. Anyway, I noticed that you used your floo system after a long time. May I know why? I had left it for your use but you never used it till today."

"I was invited by Lucius Malfoy."

"What did your dear friend want?"

"He did not say anything specific, but hinted that he did something at Hogwarts. He says 'time to rule under the right power will come again soon'. Make what you want of it."

"Ah… would you share your memory of the meeting, my boy."

I stood up, knowing that our discussion had ended, "You know that I would not. My mind is the only thing that remains mine, and I will not share it with anybody."

Susan's pov

All of us were quite pleased yet surprised with sudden shift in Draco's behavior. He went from dead silent to… well, silent. When we ask him about it, he would just smile and say, "I'll tell you before the school ends." Well, at least he is normal again, so I felt confident asking him to help me in potions. Phew! He agreed.

Hannah and I found him with Harry, seated at a corner desk right by the window. Harry was reading a letter with a smile on his face. The sunlight lit his face, highlighting his emerald green eyes, his sharp nose and his kissable lips. Ugh! Ever since I entered my menstrual cycle this summer, thoughts about him have haunted my mind day and night. Add to that, my aunt had to give me the talk about birds and bees. I am still a kid, but does that doesn't stop me from imagining how it would feel to be held in his arms.

"Psss… Susan. You are staring." Hannah hissed at me and I broke out of my stupor. When we reached there, Harry looked up with a smile.

"Hey Susan! Hi Hannah! Tutoring from the next Potions master?"

"Well" I gulped, trying to act normal, "now that he is not the scary potions professor anymore. Whatever you did to bring him to normal, thank you."

"You would never guess how much difficult it was to sacrifice my morning exercise just to bring him from SILENT to silent. Anyway, enjoy yourself. Hannah, you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yes, umm… can we go outside?"

"Sure. Bye guys."

I watched him as he walked away in graceful steps and wished that he would turn and look at me once. It did not happen.

"I am going to compete with you for him, just so you know." Draco's voice brought me back to reality.

"What do you mean?"

"Harry. I like him, very much and I can see that you like him too. We are going to be competing soon."

"He might not be into guys, you know."

"I don't and I am hoping he is. If not, I will help you then. It will be easier watching him with a friend than with anyone else. At least I won't be pushed away then."

"Okay I will do the same. But what if he likes another guy in our friends?"

"Why are you asking so much?"

"I realized recently that I like him. I am trying to work out my feelings. On one hand, I wish he would be with just me. But then I would feel bad from taking him away from you all. He had affected the life of the whole group. So my next thought would be how would I cope when he likes another friend, say Daphne? I like Daphne, trust me, she is my best friend. But Harry is something else."

Draco slumped in his seat, "And there comes my trouble. You all have been like a family for me the past year. After this summer vacation, I don't want to lose any of you. But I want Harry too. Maybe I would beg him to keep me as a side love if he likes another friend, just so that I won't lose both. Ugh! My head is all messed up. I guess that's why they say you should not fall in love so young. Maybe I will get a clarity when I grow up a bit… But then…"

I too sighed, "I know… what if I am too late by then."

"Oh this is so messed up!" He groaned.

Neville's pov

Once again we were in that fraud's class. Cedric is right, DADA would be hell for fifth and seventh years with their main exams this year. Here was Lockhart, telling us a tale of how he defended a town from the dangerous vampires. Does he really think we would believe that he made a vampire fall in love with him by smiling kindly at him? What nonsense! If it was Harry there, I can bet they would fall in love with him; but not this fraud.

"Okay students, enough story telling. You can read my published works to learn about my victories. Let us do some practical now."

I tuned in, wishing that he would teach me something worthwhile for once. Besides me, Harry snorted and continued reading his own book. Now why didn't I think of that?

"I have collected these with very much difficulty, nasty little beings they are. And dangerous too, I might add. One gave me a bite right on my arm, but being the talented healer that I am I healed myself in an instant."

A few girls sitting in the front sighed in admiration and I rolled my eyes. Stupid fans for Stupid celebrities.

"So without any delay, let me present you the bane of existence for many, the deadlyyyyy…." He flapped off the cover over a cage placed in the hall, "pixies." He announced.

The class was silent for a moment, only the sound of screeching pixies could be heard. He brought… pixies? Harry gave a light chuckle beside me, which slowly turned into outright laughter. Everyone joined him in it.

"Oh so you think these are easy to deal with, Mister Potter? Come here and prove yourself like I had done in my noteworthy past. Let's see how a mere student like you would deal with the dangerous pixies."

Harry, still laughing, walked to the cage. Lockhart opened the bolt of the cage and immediately walked back to the far end of the room. Before the pixies would get out, Harry bent to the level of the cage and looked at the pixies.

"Do you want to be set free back to the forest?"

The pixies all nodded simultaneously.

"Did you hurt you in any manner?"

The pixies all nodded simultaneously.

"Did he hurt or find your nest? Do you want to relocate?"

The pixies shook their heads simultaneously.

"Are you hungry? Would you want to take some food with you?"

The pixies all nodded simultaneously.

"Well, let me not stop you. That person who says he caught you, he always has a stock of treats in his room always. You can take as many as you want, okay? Come back again if you are unable to carry all of them at once. Here, eat mine for now, you need your energy."

He took out a big bar of chocolate from his never ending supply. I wonder where and how he keeps them all the time. The pixies accepted it and each broke of a piece from it. It was comical, watching all the pixies eat their chocolates sitting in various places in and around their cages. Then simultaneously, like a swarm of bees, all of them flew towards Lockhart's room and flew in with different treats amongst them. Then they simultaneously blew their tongues at him and immediately flew out of the window. This made the class topple over in another bout of laughter.

Harry was laughing too. He spoke to the class and surprisingly, everyone quietened down to listen to him, "And this is how you get rid of these dangerous beasts. Pixies savage for food. The best way to get rid of them in houses is either to place a stack of food outside the house and ward it against them after they leave, or make a simple deal with them about food supply. They are not harmful; they would keep your kitchen clean of leftovers. Thank you."

Everybody laughed as Lockhart dismissed the class and went running into his office to check on his supply of treats.

I admired Harry's ability to connect with beings if they him too. The fact that this gift came from a unicorn was amazing. But it would only happen if both parties would want to communicate. Otherwise he was just a normal human, who was befriended, loved, envied and even hated.

"Oi Potter! Wait for me." Ron cried out behind us. Harry stopped to let him catch up. Hermione was walking near us, but not with us. Eavesdropping maybe? Oh well, let it be.

"Thanks mate. Why do you always leave class without waiting for me?"

Harry shrugged, "Well, I have Neville for company. And you were busy chatting with Dean, so I let you be."

"I would leave him for you any time of the day, you know." Ron huffed. Harry looked at him in surprise, "And why would you do that?"

"Why wouldn't I? Let's say you are talking to Hermione. Wouldn't you leave her if Neville called you? Though I still don't understand why you are friends with a loser like him."

Harry had stopped in his tracks, making us all stop with him. Except Ron of course. Only when he noticed that no one had answered him did he turn around to see we've stopped. He came back to us, only to be scolded by Harry.

"Ronald Weasley. I wouldn't leave anyone just for another person. My friends have sense enough not to pull me away from another person unless it is an urgent issue. Even then, there will be formal apologies from both of us if we really have to leave." He took a step closer to him, coming face to face with him, "And Ron, I am friends with Neville because he is a friend worth having. I would not leave him for you, or for anyone. He has my trust, my faith and my friendship, and I am proud to be his friend. Never again insult any one of my friends in front of me. You will regret it."

Saying that, he held my hand and we walked away from him. Affection for him filled my heart. No one else had stood up for me, stood with me, my entire life. No one has till now said that they are proud of me, proud with me. For one fleeting moment, I tried to imagine what my life would be if Harry walked out of it now. My heart gave a sharp pang just for thinking that. No, without Harry, I don't think I will be able to survive.