Chapter 9
"That's good Severus we need someone who can calm the boy down, if he has a panic attack again. Well done, it's better than stuffing him full of potions every time it happens. He would never learn to trust us if we do" said Dumbledore,
Severus nodded his head in agreement before grabbing Harry and taking him through to his new room, which he and the headmaster had just made for him. It was decorated mostly in hues of blue, with beech cupboards, chest, and drawers.
Dumbledore went to his office, and flooed to the minister of magic's office, making a complaint, then left after getting the date of the trial, tomorrow. Dumbledore had tried to get it at a later date but nothing he did seemed to work. Giving up he went to the dungeons to inform Severus what was happening.
Meanwhile when James Potter showed up for work he was arrested, of course they did not believe James could do it. Then they went to James's home, to find a very pregnant Lily Potter, bringing her in gently, more gently than they should and before locking her up in one of the ministry holding cells, right next to her husband.
Where they were kept that night screaming was heard, Lily yelling for help, but that did not come for over three hours and Lily Potter ended up giving birth in a holding cell in the ministry of magic. A baby girl, who Lily did not get to hold, she was sent right to St. Mungos (The baby not Lily).
Lily had cried for hours after her little girl was taken away, the people on guard pitied her, she had just had a baby and was not allowed her, of course, they were suspects they were not allowed anything. It was not long before the next day. The day of the trial, the day that will change their lives.
That same morning, Harry woke up, remembering what was happening, he just wished himself into sweet oblivion, but it did not come, he whispered, "I won't have to will I? Won't have to see the, the Potters!"
"Yes Harry, I'm afraid you will see them."
"I can't do it, please don't make me!" said Harry nearly crying.
"Do you want to go back to them?" he asked.
"No!" Harry nearly yelled.
"Then you will have to testify against them, get them locked away, then I will adopt you if that is what you wish," said Severus getting nervous at the end.
"I can't Sev, can't talk about them or with them can't!" said Harry rocking back and fourth.
"Will you do it for me?" he asked Harry.
Harry looked up and simply said, "Yes."
"So do it! I will be there every step of the way!" said Severus comfortingly.
Harry closed his eyes and then opened them saying, "Ok."
Severus was taken aback with Harry's compliance looked at him suspiciously wondering why he had said yes so quickly, before doing a quick mind read before nodding his head. Knowing Harry meant what he said.
"I'm proud of you." Severus told Harry.
To Harry it meant the world to hear those words from someone he cared about. Before he could think on the subject much more he was told something he really did not want to know or do.
"The trial is tomorrow, he tried to get it earlier but it didn't work. I'm sorry. I don't think they believe you when you said they abused you and they are currently in a holding cell!" said Severus.
Harry nodded miserably, not wanting to do this but he would do anything to gain Severus approval and Severus knew this thanks to reading his mind. He felt a wee bit guilty about reading Harry's thoughts and feelings like he had but it had to be done, he did not want Harry to do a runner. And to be honest that was what he had been expecting.
What he did not expect was for Harry to love him, respect him and the feeling that Harry would do anything to gain Severus approval and excitement and content at the thought of being adopted, Severus already knew the answer to the question before he ever got an answer.
Severus was glad he was getting rid of James Potter, getting him out of his life, he was sick of hearing James Potter this, James Potter that, not only was he getting him out of his life he was getting sentenced to Azkaban and would probably go insane there. He sat smirking to himself life was good.
They ate dinner together, quietly and peacefully. Not thinking about trials or anything else. Harry began getting more and more strong as he ate, the energy potion in his drink did wonders, he sat on the chair reading that was until the potion wore off, the energy drained out of him, he fell asleep, his book stuck on his face.
That was till Severus took the book away, then carefully picked him up, Harry unconsciously flinched, till he felt the familiar voice tell him, "It's ok, just putting you to bed," and the smell of the man he always had around him. Snuggling back in he did not see the smile that spread on the potions master's face. As he placed Harry on his bed, tucking him in, he placed a kiss on his head; Harry leaned into the caress having been so long since he was kissed good night. With a small smile on his face, Harry yawned and fell into a peaceful sleep.
Severus settled down next to him again, falling asleep, keeping his promise to be beside him the whole time of the trial. That was how Harry woke up. To find a very asleep potions master sleeping, himself curled around him.
Yawning he got up, before he covered the potions master up. Keeping him warm, having been a bit cold before. He made breakfast for both of them in the kitchen, the rather small kitchen. Cooking all he could think of, he was just cooking the pancakes when Severus came through.
He gave the man a coffee then his breakfast before joining him; they sat eating their breakfast. Harry could not eat much, feeling sick about the up coming trial. He did not think he could stand in the same room as the man who had tortured him for years on end never stopping, not even when he fell unconscious.
They looked over; Harry looked ready to dive under the table, but held still, when he saw it was only the headmaster he let out a sigh. Severus looking at him with a proud glint in his eyes, making Harry smile and the headmaster's eyes to twinkle more and more.
"I come with news your mother was pregnant and had the child, it was a beautiful girl, and she didn't get to name or hold. She gave birth in a holding cell in the ministry," said Dumbledore.
Harry dropped his fork; it fell to the floor with a clatter, Severus' eyebrows rose at the unexpected news. Both of them shaking their heads, they left for the trial, going by portkey; before they knew it, they were next to the courtroom.
Opening the door they entered the room, the jury took one look at him then at James before shaking their heads, it was obvious he had been abused, but did not believe that James Potter was the one to do it. The one who catches dark wizards all day? Before Harry, Severus and Dumbledore knew it, a voice boomed the hall.
"The court is now in session, take your seats please!" said a man; Harry would have bolted for it if he could have. Severus had kept him in a tight grip, not letting him go, but not hurting him either.
Once everyone was seated, Fudge stood up and said, "The trial shall start. We are here because of the report of child abuse, brought forward by Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape; the child abused is Harry James Potter and has been in James Potter's care after he destroyed Voldemort. Before that he had stayed at his mother's and father's house, Petunia Evans, Lily Evans's sister and her husband Vernon who died in the attack, bless them and they are accusing James Potter and Lily Evans Potter for child abuse," said Fudge, it was hard to tell who he believed and who he didn't.
"James, Lily, how do you plead?" asked Fudge.
Both answered "Not Guilty" together
They nodded Dumbledore then said "Harry how do you respond to what they said?"
"They lie. They did hurt me for as long as I was there with them, not Lily but James, most of the time Lily was there and let it happen," said Harry,
Who seemed to get stronger and stronger as Severus held on to him, soothing him and telling him to go on, that he could do it and Harry did it because Severus thought he could do it. It would take a long time to get over it but it would not bother them, because as long as they had each other Harry was content.
"LIAR BOY! I TOOK YOU IN FOR THREE YEARS. THIS IS HOW YOU BETRAY US BY TELLING NASTY LIES," yelled James the courtroom began to get silent as they watched the drama unfold before them. Lily was strangely quiet.
"QUIET!" yelled Dumbledore.
Knowing how Harry reacted to loud noises knew he would curl into himself if he kept shouting; Severus had Harry in his lap, and carefully cuddled him, soothing him again. Having jumped out of his seat when James had shouted, again as always Severus was able to calm Harry down. Everyone had seen that, that set James off again, he started spewing things that would get him locked in Azkaban for life, but he didn't care he was beyond fury at the boy, his boy taking care from a man he hated. If this was how he acted when Harry was lying how were they going to act when he wasn't?
"Stupid boy, I wish I had killed you, you good for nothing selfish, selfish boy, your mother has not seen her only daughter because of you. I have not seen my child yet! Just you wait boy I will get you! And Snape too!" said James spitting the last bit, that was when someone shouted effectively shutting him up.
"I will call Severus Snape to the stand!" yelled Mr. Jones the lawyer of the Potters, him getting to go first; Dumbledore's lawyer letting him go first, knowing the case was already won.
"When was the first time you met Mr. Potter," asked Mr. Jones but when he did not answer he repeated the question, Severus snarled.
"He is not a Potter; he doesn't think of himself as one, he is an Evans or a Dursley not a Potter."
"Fine, then fine when was the first time you met 'Mr. Evans?" said the man.
"I first met him when he was just a few days old, I had just told Dumbledore that the dark lord was going to go after them for their son, Dumbledore told them they could go into hiding but James said no. James then suggested that Harry go to the Dursley's Evans did not want to. She told us that Petunia would abuse him,"
"Then what happened?" asked the man.
"Evans soon gave me the new born child, all he had was a blanket and the clothes they had brought him in, Dumbledore told me to take him to his new home, knowing how hard it was for the Potters," said Sev.
"And then?"
"I took him to the Dursley's, the husband was not home, Petunia was though, she looked like she wanted to slam the door in my face, but because of me holding a baby she didn't. She let me in, I told her everything about the danger she was in and she accepted him in and cleaned a few of Dudley's things for him until they got everything sorted. I gave them 7 million pounds in sterling from my own vault because the Potters were not going to give him anything. I told her not to hurt him, that it was not his fault his parents abandoned him." finished Severus.
"And did you ever see him again?" asked Mr. Jones, not finding anything useful to protect his clients, if they were child abusers he did not want to.
"Yes, I saw Harry and Dudley in Diagon Alley, Dudley didn't see me though, just Harry. We spoke for a while, and then I helped him get some books from the shelves he could not reach," said Severus still not telling the prophecy.
"Is that it?" asked the man.
Severus rolled his eyes and began telling the tale, "As you know I was a spy for the light side, I went with the dark lord where he wanted us to go. I was surprised he wanted all those Death Eaters to kill one family but did not say anything. I was surprised to see a older looking Harry and Dudley, I was going to start helping them, even though I knew there was no way we would win, when Dudley and Harry began taking the Death Eaters out." said Severus.
"Then when there was only about four of us left standing as well as the dark lord, Voldemort, seeing Harry using magic, sent the killing curse at him, for some reason it didn't work, it bounced back killing Voldemort at the same time the remaining Death Eaters stabbed Petunia and Vernon went down with a killing curse." said Severus.
Everyone was hanging onto every word he had been saying, having never been told about it, it had been written yes, but does not mean they believed it, but now they did. They had heard it from someone who had been there. The reporters there looked like that had just won the wizard jackpot, five thousand million gallons, told they were the ministry of magic, and had control over wizarding Britain.