Warning: I am not a native English speaker.
"Once we have dealt with this, I will leave you alone. I have a few more things to do. Before Severus can officially become a guardian. Good day." Dumbledore smiled good-naturedly at Harry and left the office. The two Gryffindor's did not expect this and burst into the office as soon as the door opened. "You seem to have more guests, Severus. I'm glad you have such good friends, Harry."
The children just smiled innocently. Snape sighed heavily. He lacked one Potter, so two more of his friends are included with him. Here is the cunning Dumbledore. I hung three troublemakers on him.
"Come in, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger," the man asked with Snape's cold politeness. The children obeyed. They walked over to Harry and stood on either side. Potions Master again felt that Ron and Hermione were protecting Potter.
When the director hurried to leave, an oppressive silence fell in the office. The children behaved wary and looked at the older man with apprehension. While Severus wondered what to do with the restless trinity.
"I don't think this is a very good place to talk," the Potions Master finally said, which made the Gryffindor flinch. The man was even a little amused. He walked to the nearest wall of his office and tapped the bricks with his wand. After a few seconds, the wall trembled and opened a dark passage. The trinity froze.
"I ask you to. My personal apartment," without much enthusiasm and with slight irritation, the man invited his temporary, as he hoped, headache to himself, "I'm not going to wait forever."
The children sat in a daze for a while, until Snape's caustic comment made them move. The Potions Master's dwelling was not quite what they had imagined. Harry and Ron were even a little disappointed. The living room was quite ordinary. Two velvet green chairs stood in the center of the room. Opposite was an expensive black leather sofa. On the other side, a fire crackled peacefully in a gray brick fireplace. The brick walls were almost invisible because of the bookshelves filled with books on potions and magic. The man pointed to the sofa and the Gryffindor's obediently sat down.
"Do you want some tea"? Snape asked dryly, the three nodding uncertainly, not knowing what else to say, "Wiesel!"
With a soft pop, a house elf appeared in the living room. He bowed deeply, awaiting orders.
"Bring my young guests some tea, Wiesel. And I have a cup of strong coffee."
"Of course, master," Wiesel returned a few minutes later with four steaming mugs and a plate of cookies.
"What is it, Wiesel?" the Potions Master nodded in the direction of the cookie.
"I thought the young guests would want a bite to eat." Severus didn't ask any more, only cast a disapproving glance at the little housekeeper's self-righteousness. He knew well that Wiesel was very fond of pampering children with all sorts of sweets. The elf set the tray down on the mahogany coffee table that sat between the sofa and the armchairs. Then he hastened to leave with a soft clap.
"And so, while I am your temporary guardian, Mr. Potter. I want you to follow some rules. First and foremost, I don't want your omnipresent trinity to get in trouble. The recent incident with the Whomping Willow showed that you can't help but get into trouble." Ron and Harry shyly lowered their eyes, hiding behind steaming cups of tea. "And I don't want you to hide anything. Last year in the Philosopher's Stone incident, I was there. But you didn't bother to say anything and could be seriously hurt."
The Gryffindor was now uncomfortable. They nervously ate the chocolate chip cookies and thought hard over the Potions Master's words. Sometimes the trouble just happened and they couldn't do anything about it. It was especially hard to trust someone, someone from the adults.
"That's all for now. A little later, after all the documents are ready. We have another meeting, Mr. Potter. Have a nice day," when Snape saw the kids out. He was finally able to relax. Falling into his favorite velvet chair, the man pondered over Dumbledore's recent words.
"Think about Lily, Severus. The boy just needs a little love just like you. I think you fit together. At least for a while, take care of him."
"This sly old man," Snape thought, rubbing his tired eyes, "made me Potter's temporary guardian. But at the same time, my headache tripled. Potter comes with Granger and the younger Weasleys. Apparently I can't get rid of this in any way."
"Wiesel! Bring me the Headache Potion."
"Yes, master."
The new perspectives with Snape worried Harry all night. Nightmares, different from usual, kept my eyes closed. At one point, he even had his worst nightmare. The dark lord, to whom the Potions Master gives him, without any regret. Ron and Hermione lay next to each other without breathing. The bodies slowly cooled, and the Avada released by Snape himself was still ringing in the ears of the boy who survived. The man looked indifferently at the corpses of the children, then at Potter. The dark lord laughed terribly, and the ghosts of his friends mocked him.
"Harry, it's your fault."
"You can't even imagine how we regret that we became your friends."
"You don't deserve our love and our friendship."
Voldemort was laughing wildly, his red eyes glittering like rubies. And the smile did not leave his ugly face for a second.
"Look at you, you nonentity. Everything was thrown to you. You couldn't save anyone. You are left alone. No one needs it."
"No!"
Harry was awakened by his own scream. But he was lucky. Living with the Dorsey's, he learned to drown out screams with a pillow. This time he didn't want to wake anyone up. Looking around and making sure everyone is asleep. Potter slipped out of bed, grabbed the Invisibility Cloak, and walked out of the living room. The boy urgently needed fresh air and there was only one place where he could go.
Weaving through the corridors of Hogwarts and trying not to bump into any of the attendants or Filch. Harry finally made it to his destination. The Astronomical Tower was the tallest tower in the castle. And the safest. None of the teachers came up here at night, and many students from Slytherin and Gryffindor took advantage of it. For some reason, only the students of these faculties carried out night outings. Maybe they were attracted by the peace and quiet that could only be experienced at night. Or the feeling of a little adventure. Excitement to break a couple of rules. And maybe something more. They all had their own reasons.
Harry climbed to the very top of the tower. Immediately, a gust of autumn wind enveloped him. He shuddered from the cold, but did not back down. His lungs filled with fresh night air, from which all fears and nightmares receded. Sitting on the stone floor, the boy began to stare out at the clear night sky. Here, at the top of the tower, he felt as close as possible to free flight on a broomstick.
The silence of the sleepy castle was broken by quiet footsteps. At first Harry was scared that he had caught the eye of some teacher. But after listening, he quickly calmed down. And when a warm red woolen blanket fell on his shoulders trembling from the cold, he completely relaxed.
"I'm sorry, I woke you up," Potter said earnestly, leaning his forehead against the white railing of the balcony. The fluffy blanket quickly warmed the boy and the trembling stopped. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw how an uninvited, but very welcome guest came to his side.
"Nothing," Ron assured him. "You know, you don't have to apologize every time you feel bad. Another nightmare?" Harry nodded weakly.
"Will you tell?" The boy with the scar nodded again. As selfish as it sounded, he was glad he woke Ron up. Now, more than ever in his life, he needed Ron and Hermione to stand side by side. To make sure he's not alone.
"It was not exactly a nightmare, that is, yes… I had a nightmare, but it was related to Snape. And with you too. I dreamed that you were no longer around. That you rejected me, abandoned me, or worst of all died at the hands of Snape," Harry blurted out in one breath. Tears welled up in his eyes again.
"Hey… It was just a nightmare. You are our friend and we will never leave you. Promise. Just tell us if something is wrong. If something bothers you. We are always there to help you," Ron's warm hand fell on Harry's shoulder. This gesture gave the boy a lot more than the Weasley imagined.
"You know. Sometimes I feel like I don't deserve you or Hermione. I never thought that I could have such wonderful friends as you."
"Do not be silly. You are our friend and that's enough for us to worry and take care of you. You do the same for us. You don't need to be special to be loved." Ron sat on the wide rail of a small balcony on the Astronomical Tower. Of course, it was not very safe, but the golden trio has done a similar trick more than once. The cold wind beat right in the face, reminiscent of flying on a broomstick. Harry sat next to him, wrapped in a warm Gryffindor blanket. Watching the stars in the clear, cloudless sky, he pondered Ron's words:
"You don't have to be special to be loved."
Leaning against his friend, the boy quietly whispered in his ear:
"You're probably right. Thanks."
"It's my pleasure…"
Nobody else said anything. Ron was whistling softly to himself a melody reminiscent of an old Muggle lullaby. And Harry was enjoying the knowledge that he was still not alone. That he had Ron and Hermione and that was enough. And that even Snape's guardianship could not ruin his life at Hogwarts. So on the wide handrail of the small balcony on the Astronomical Tower, they sat until dawn. Watching the sun slowly show up over the horizon. A new day was beginning.
