Co-written with Stormypup
Beta'd by Carpet Diemon
This chapter had a scene with the rating of NC-17 that was cut. It is posted over on my livejournal which I have a link for in my profile page.
"Poppy?"
The matronly woman smiled and pressed a vial into Harry's hand. He took it without question, swallowing it all.
"There's a good lad."
Harry clutched his throat, his brows knitting in concern. His voice had taken on an odd rasp, and he wasn't sure whether that was a good thing or not. "Where's Douglas?"
"He's fine."
Poppy fussed with his blankets and Harry let her do what she had to. "Can I see him, then?"
She smiled, the corners of her eyes wrinkling. "Of course."
"I'll get him."
"Ron?" Harry struggled to sit up, and spotted his friend standing off to the side with a relieved smile. "Where's Hermi-"
"You're awake!"
"Daddy!"
Harry didn't have a chance to react before a set of arms wrapped around him.
Harry held Douglas tightly. "Are you okay? Do you hurt?" he asked, kissing the side of his son's head.
"Nope, Papa made me better, gave me a potion, and I took a nap," Douglas told him, voice muffled in Harry's shoulder.
"Where's Severus?" Harry asked, searching the faces in the room for his mate.
"Still at the Ministry, Harry," Hermione told him, running a hand through his hair.
Douglas sat up so he was straddling Harry's waist. "You slept a long time, Daddy. Guess what, I drawed you a picture!"
"You did?" Harry asked, eyes shining with amusement. "Of what?"
"It's a surprise," Douglas said, grinning and flopping down on Harry to bury his face in his father's neck again.
Harry ran a hand up and down that small back, smiling up at Hermione, who looked ready to cry. "When do I get to see it, then?"
"I'll get it!" Douglas rolled off Harry and ran from the room.
"How do you feel?" Hermione asked as Poppy ran another scan over Harry's body.
"Like I got trampled by a hippogriff...nothing new to me though." He shrugged. "Where are Mellie and Luc by the way?"
"With my mum," Ron answered. "They wanted to play with Douglas, but were too nervous to come down. And we didn't think you'd want Doug to go anywhere."
Harry nodded in understanding.
"Got it!" Douglas crowed, leaping back onto the bed.
Harry grunted as Douglas settled himself on Harry's stomach once again. "See, it's you and me and Papa, and we're flying on a broom!" Douglas held the picture up for Harry to see.
It didn't so much resemble people on a broom as three heads on stick.
"It's brilliant, Doug," Harry said, grinning.
Douglas beamed and rolled off Harry's stomach to snuggle against his side. "Can we do that sometime, maybe?"
"Yes Doug, I think we can try that. You'll have to convince your papa though."
"Convince me of what?" Severus asked from the doorway.
"Papa!" Douglas was off the bed in a second, drawing snatched from Harry's hands. "Look what I drew!"
Severus took the picture and studied it, but he couldn't interpret this one at all. Harry came to his rescue. "Douglas thinks we should all go flying on a broom, just like the picture."
"Ah," Severus said, handing the picture back to Douglas. "We'll have to see. Douglas, can you go with Hermione and draw Daddy another picture?" he asked, looking meaningfully at Hermione.
She held out her hand. "Come on Douglas, I bet Uncle Ron wants to draw too, don't you," she asked, smiling sweetly at Ron.
"I guess I do," he said, shrugging.
"Okay, I'll be back!" Douglas said, beaming at his parents as he trotted out of the room between Ron and Hermione.
"How is he, Poppy?" Severus asked, frowning in Harry's direction.
Harry rolled his eyes. "I'm right here, you can ask me."
"He's fine, no lasting damage is evident at the moment."
Harry huffed. "See, I'm fine."
"Call for me if he relapses," Poppy said, patting Severus on the shoulder and leaving the room.
Severus sat on the bed next to Harry, studying his face. "Are you really feeling alright?"
"Would I lie to you?"
"About this, yes," Severus said, a small smile on his face.
"Douglas seems to be handling things well," Harry said, studying Severus' face. "Did you do something to his memories?"
"I erased the last few minutes from his mind."
Harry frowned. "Severus."
"I wanted to erase the whole bloody thing, but Poppy said it wouldn't be good for him. How it can be good for him to remember is beyond me."
"You've seen what messing with someone's memories can do to them. I'd rather have Douglas remember now than find out later."
Severus knew it was pointless to argue.
"What happened at the Ministry?"
"They scheduled Finch-Fletchley's trial for later this week, until then they have him detained in a holding cell."
"And?"
"And an Auror will be coming to get your statement. I've told them you're not going to be able to attend."
Harry nodded. He figured as much. They couldn't hold a fair trial without his statement, and, as much as he didn't like it, they'd probably need to take Douglas to be questioned as well. Harry knew they'd both be fine so long as Severus was there. He sighed, fingering the quilt. "How are you then?"
"I'm not sure," Severus answered honestly.
"Come here," Harry grabbed his wrist and pulled him down onto the bed.
Severus stretched out on the bed next to Harry, wrapping his arm around Harry's waist. "I'd be happier if he were dead," he said against Harry's shoulder.
Harry shuddered, curling around Severus. "I know you would be, and, if things go the right way, he'll get the kiss."
"I don't trust the Ministry to get it right," Severus growled.
"Daddy! Papa! Lookit!" Douglas came barreling into the room and jumped onto the bed with them, holding up a picture.
Harry gasped, and then laughed. Perhaps he wasn't as well as he thought he was. He took the picture from Douglas and examined it with a critical eye. This time, it was more obvious what it was a picture of, and he smiled. Douglas was watching him, biting his lip nervously.
"It's good?"
"It's spectacular," Harry answered, wrapping an arm around Douglas and pushing him into the gap between him and Severus. "Don't you think so, Severus?"
Severus smiled. The three of them were standing outside of what he assumed was their house, holding hands. "It's brilliant," Severus agreed.
Douglas beamed and snuggled in between them. "Can I sleep wif you tonight? I don't want the bad man to get me."
Harry pressed a kiss to his messy black hair, this time it was his heart constricting. Now he understood why Severus wanted to erase all Douglas' memories. "Course you can stay here tonight, Doug."
Severus knew that he should insist Douglas sleep in his own bed, that coddling wouldn't help him get over his ordeal. But he also knew he would sleep better with Douglas tucked safely in his arms.
Ron and Hermione peeked around the doorway. "We're leaving now, unless you need anything."
The fact that Severus didn't move away from Harry and Douglas was a testament to his emotional state.
"I'll talk to you soon, promise," Harry said, smiling at his friends.
"Thank you," Severus added, causing Ron's jaw to drop before Hermione could pull him away.
"I think you might have just given Ron a heart attack," Harry teased, earning a giggle from Douglas.
Severus snorted and looked at his son. "How are you feeling, Douglas?"
"Good," Douglas answered promptly, but the moment of hesitation gave through to a slightly startling revelation. "Wrists still hurt."
Frowning, Severus rolled from the bed in search of something to sooth his wrists.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Harry asked as Severus retrieved a salve from the bathroom.
Douglas shrugged. "Cause you were sleepin'".
"But I asked you earlier if you were still hurting."
"Are you mad at me?" Douglas asked softly.
"Of course not," Harry said, pulling him into a hug. "Why would I be mad?"
"The mean man said you didn't love me and that Papa didn't want me," Douglas said into Harry's neck.
Severus went still next to the bed, and Harry could see the muscles twitch next to his right eye, a sure sign he was furious.
"Love, did you believe him?"
Douglas lifted his head and shook it quickly. "I told him he was lyin', and Papa would hex his bullocks off." His hand flew to cover his mouth. "Oops."
Smirking, Severus sat down on the bed. "Let me see your wrists."
Harry let Douglas clamber onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around the boy's waist, dropping a kiss to his head, telling him without words that he was forgiven. Douglas held out his wrists, revealing the still red skin and Harry scowled.
"I thought Poppy would have given him something for that."
"It didn't work," Douglas informed him, his face screwing up in anticipation of the sting.
Severus muttered something about inferior potions and gently applied the salve to the raw skin. "Daddy, blow on it!"
Harry grinned and did as ordered, leaning forward and blowing warm breath over the salve.
"Does anywhere else hurt?" Severus asked, and Douglas shook his head.
"Nope."
Severus leaned forward and kissed him on the nose before putting the cap back on the salve and setting it away.
He stretched out on the bed and helped Douglas get snuggled between them again.
Harry reached across Douglas, cupping Severus' cheek, and then leaned forward, pushing his lips against his mate's.
"What was that for?" Severus asked when Harry pulled away.
"Reassurance."
"For whom?"
Harry shrugged, offering Severus a sleepy smile as he tucked Douglas' head beneath his chin. "Both of us."
"Papa, will you hum?" Douglas asked sleepily.
Turning onto his side, Severus draped his arm over his son and mate and began to hum. It was the same song he'd hummed to Douglas since the day he was born.
Harry carded his fingers through messy black locks as he joined in the humming. The gentle tune lulled him into a state of calm, and he grabbed Severus' hand midway through its running up and down Douglas' side, locking their fingers together.
Their eyes met over their son. Harry smiled, squeezing Severus' hand. Severus watched as Harry closed his eyes and fell asleep with Douglas before following suit.
Harry sat at his kitchen table, a Pensieve placed before him. The Ministry hadn't felt comfortable sending representatives down into the lake to question Harry, but they were willing to accept submitted memories in his stead.
"I don't want to do this," Harry murmured, his eyes flicking over to meet Severus'. "Do they really need these?"
"Yes. Without your testimony, he'll get nothing more than a slap on the wrist. And that is unacceptable."
"I won't have to view them when I remove them, will I?"
"Not if you don't wish to," Severus answered, frowning. "You've never told me the details, and I've never pushed you for them. I will see them at trial. Will that bother you?"
"A little," Harry admitted, fingering his wand, rolling it back and forth on the table. They had sent Douglas out to go play with Ariana so Harry had time to do this, but suddenly Harry wished Douglas were still there, because if anyone was always up for a hug, it was his son.
Severus sat at the table across from Harry and took his hand. "You'll never need look at them again, but it has to be done."
"See them with me first?"
Severus squeezed his hand and nodded.
Harry picked up his wand and hesitated. "All right... how do I do this again?"
Severus knew Harry was stalling, but he indulged him anyway, and told him the process of removing memories.
Harry sighed. It seemed so easy: touch your wand to your temple, think of the memory, and then imagine it leaving your head. No spell involved, just simple willpower, something Harry wasn't sure he had at the moment. He knew that removing it would dim the impact on his mind, leaving it fuzzy and not as distressing, but he couldn't bring himself to do it.
He felt Severus squeeze his free hand again, and, reluctantly, he raised his wand to his temple. He focused on that afternoon trying to recall the moment he set foot in the pub as he slowly he withdrew his wand. He kept his eyes shut, not wanting to see the silver thread going from his head to the basin. The only thing that told him he was doing it properly was the gentle, reassuring pressure on his hand. It took him another five minutes to pull every last memory of that hour from his mind, and, when he finished, he slumped back in the chair.
"Are you alright?"
Harry nodded. "Just tired and kind of...numb."
"You don't have to look at them again," Severus reminded him. "I'll see them at trial, you don't have to watch them with me if it will be too difficult."
"No, I have to do this." Harry leaned forward, making the chair creak and groan. He gripped Severus' hand and looked up at him pleadingly. "We have to do this."
Severus sighed. "Waiting won't make it any easier. Would you like me to go first?"
"Please."
Severus nodded and leaned forward, entering the Pensieve. His feet landed with a thud inside of the pub. Harry followed soon after, grabbing onto Severus' arm to keep his footing. Severus clasped Harry's hand, and, together, they walked toward the table where Justin sat just as Harry joined him.
Harry tried not to be disturbed as he watched the interplay between him and Justin. He felt Severus tense beside him as his earlier self gave Justin his wand.
They followed the two outside of the pub and into the alleyway out back. Then the memory shifted, now they were standing in the middle of Justin's living room. The moment Severus saw Douglas bound and gagged, his hand went to his wand.
"You can't do anything," Harry muttered, gripping Severus' wrist. He couldn't watch any longer and buried his face in the folds of Snape's robes.
Severus wrapped an arm tightly around Harry, but didn't put down his wand. He knew it was no good here, but he couldn't seem to lower it. By the time he'd returned to the lake, Douglas had already had treatment... Finally seeing the pain his son had been in made him want to rip Justin's heart from his chest.
Harry fidgeted as the conversation drew to a close and his earlier self took Douglas to the bathroom. He looked up into Severus' face, gnawing on his lower lip.
"I couldn't think of what else to do," he explained as he watched himself dump salt into the water. He flinched, the scream was just as terrifying as it had been the first time.
"You did the right thing," Severus whispered, watching as his son cried out in pain, as he tried to transform and failed. He stood by helplessly as his son and his mate suffered. When he saw himself step through the door, he squeezed Harry's hand.
"That is enough."
Harry nodded. The room dissolved around them and they found themselves back in their kitchen.
Severus stared at the grain of the table, unable to look at Harry. He should have gotten there sooner, but the tracking spell he had put on Harry was disrupted by the unexpected Apparation. He couldn't get the image of his writhing son from his mind.
"Do they have to see?" Harry asked again, jumping up on the counter by the sink only to hit his head on the cabinet with a dull thud. He shut his eyes in pain.
"Yes," Severus whispered, wishing he had simply killed Justin himself. It wasn't too late. He still had connections enough to have the man killed.
Harry sighed softly, kicking his legs back and forth. "When do you leave then?"
Severus glanced at the clock, his eyes settling on Douglas' spoon.
Playing.
"I've got to leave within the hour."
"Want me to go get Doug?"
"Yes," Severus answered with a tired sigh, "I'd like to see him before I go."
The water was cool, but it no longer bothered him as much as it used to. He kicked his feet, propelling himself forward faster. After three minutes, he reached the entrance to the city. Not for the first time, he felt out of place as he swam down the center between the shelters and entered what could only be described as a park.
He saw Douglas playing tag with a bunch of the merchildren, and he let himself just watch for a few seconds.
"Douglas!"
"Hi, Daddy!" Douglas waved. He said something to his playmates and then swam to Harry's side. "Can we go home now?"
Harry blinked. "You want to go home?"
Douglas nodded. "I wanna see Papa. Is he in his lab?"
"Nope, he wants to see you too." Harry took his hand, and they started out through the archway.
"He does?"
"Yup, he does."
Severus was pacing in front of the door when Douglas and Harry returned. Douglas transformed, his feet hitting the ground as they came through the door. He ran to Severus and jumped, forcing Severus to catch him and lift him up, groaning.
"You're getting too big," Severus told him, tapping Douglas on the nose.
"Nuh-uh," Douglas shook his head.
"Can you do something for me?" Severus asked. He knew the afternoon would be hard for Harry, just waiting.
"Yup."
"Can you stay home and play with your daddy until I get back?" He looked at Harry. "I bet if you asked, you could go for a ride on his broom."
Douglas' eyes went wide and he bounced a little in Severus' arms. "Yeah! I wanna do that! Can we do that, Daddy?"
Severus reached into his pocket and held the potion out to Harry. "Be mindful of the time."
Harry took it and slipped it in his pants pocket with a smile. "Good luck."
Severus kissed the side of Douglas' head before putting him down. He retrieved the Pensieve, put a protective spell around it, kissed Harry, and left.
"Can we go fly now, Daddy?"
Harry ruffled his hair and grinned. "All right. Let's go get my broom."
When Severus returned late into the evening, he was furious. The crime of abducting his son didn't even rate a life sentence. In sixty years' time, Finch-Fletchley would be eligible to leave prison. He would be a free man, even after the torment he put a five-year-old through.
He had ranted and raved to no avail. The Wizengamot's new attitude of post-war understanding couldn't be swayed. Their new ideas of rehabilitation rather than punishment were a joke, and now his family was going to suffer for it.
"Home so soon?"
Severus pulled off his dress robes and tossed them over the sofa. How was he supposed to tell Harry? Our son didn't matter enough. He's not a full-blooded human, a lesser being in the eyes of society. I failed you yet again.
"It didn't go well. He was convicted, but his punishment is nothing compared to what he deserves," Snape said angrily.
Harry tensed, shooting an anxious look at the entrance to the hall. He strained to hear if their son was listening in.
"What did he get, then? Please tell me he didn't get away free."
"Sixty years. Sixty fucking years," Severus hissed, pacing in front of Harry. "I should have just killed him myself and incinerated his sodding corpse."
Harry wasn't sure how to react to that statement. Part of him wanted to jump up and pace angrily around the living room with his mate, the other half- the other half was telling him that accepting this fact would be taking the moral high road.
"Is that all?"
"No, he only has to serve forty years at a minimum." Severus ran his hands through his hair. "I think some of them actually bought into his story, that he was trying to free the Savior of the World from the clutches of the evil Death Eater," he said mockingly.
"Pricks," Harry groaned, lying across the couch, suddenly drained. "The whole lot of them."
Severus sighed. "Has Douglas gone to bed yet?"
"He should be coming out to say goodnight any minute," Harry told him, propping himself up on an elbow. "I had him clean up first."
"He's got to learn to stay in his bed again. He can't keep climbing into bed with us in the middle of the night."
Harry exhaled. "Yeah, I know he does."
Severus sat down on the couch next to Harry. He had been preparing to fight over the subject and was glad it was one battle he wouldn't have to fight today.
"Daddy, I brushed my teeth and washed my face," Douglas cried, running full tilt into the room, nearly tripping over the pant legs of his pajama bottoms. He diverted course when he saw Severus. "Papa!"
Severus prepared himself for impact as the boy took a running leap onto the couch. Douglas flung his arms around his neck and planted a smacking kiss on his cheek, before burrowing beneath his arm, regardless of the fact that he was sitting on Harry's feet.
"One day you're going to puncture my liver," Severus groused, shifting over to make room for Douglas.
"What's a liver?"
"Never mind," Harry told him, chuckling. "Ignore your papa, he's in one of his moods."
Douglas frowned and studied his father. "Nuh uh, his eye's not goin' all twitchy."
Harry's eyes flickered up to meet Severus' and he sighed.
"We really couldn't have expected anything better, you know."
"Yes, we could have," Severus argued, pulling Douglas tighter against him. "Would you like to tell him or shall I?" Maybe Douglas would sleep better and have fewer nightmares if he knew 'the bad man' could never get near him.
"You do it," Harry answered, sitting up and securely placing himself at Douglas' side, smoothing his hair with one hand.
Severus sighed and nodded. "Douglas, remember when we told you that I was going to make sure the man that took could never come near you again?"
Douglas' eyes took on the haunted look they got anytime they mentioned Justin.
"He was mean," Douglas whispered, snuggling closer to Harry.
"We know he was," Harry soothed, still carding his fingers through the fine black hair.
"Today, they put him in Azkaban, and he can never leave." Severus wasn't above lying to make Douglas feel safer. "There are men who will watch him all the time to make sure he never leaves his room."
"Like a time out?"
"In a way," Harry hedged, "A very, very long time out."
"But what if someone else tries to get me?"
"That will never happen," Harry snapped possessively, and then tensed, before relaxing. He had been trying so hard not to seem to overbearing in the past week, and now he almost lost it.
"But what if it does?" Douglas asked, frowning.
Severus pulled his wand out from his sleeve. "I'm going to cast a spell on you, it might tickle a little," Severus warned as he stood.
Harry didn't recognize the spell, but he watched the blue glow settle around Douglas.
"What was it?" Douglas asked, wiggling his shoulders.
"That," Severus answered, rejoining his family on the sofa, "was a charm. It will let me know where you are all the time. So, no matter where you go, or what you do. Even if you just get lost, your father and I will be able to find you and bring you home right away."
Douglas' eyes widened and his mouth opened just a bit. Harry kissed the crown of his head to hide his smile.
"Oh," the five-year-old's face scrunched in thought. "I can go n'where an' you will know?"
"Yes, I will know right where to find you and bring you home. That doesn't mean you're allowed to wander off, or go places you know you aren't allowed. That will just get you sent to your room," Severus warned.
Douglas frowned, and Harry tickled his side, making him giggle. "'Kay Papa."
"Speaking of your room," Severus said, putting a finger under Douglas' chin to ensure he had his attention. "No more climbing into our bed in the middle of the night. You've got to start sleeping in your own bed again."
"But--!"
"Shh," Severus placed a finger on Douglas' lips. "No buts. You're perfectly safe in your bed. I'll let no harm come to you in our home, and neither will your father."
Douglas' eyes started misting. "But, Daddy!"
"I'm sorry, love, but your papa is right. You've got to be a big boy and sleep by yourself again."
"Can I sleep on your floor? Wif a pillow and blanket?"
Harry bit his lip, and glanced up at Severus.
"No, you're going to sleep in your own bed in your own room. If you wake up, and you're scared, you can come get your Daddy, and he'll come lie down with you until you go back to sleep," Severus told him, smirking at Harry over Douglas' head.
Harry rolled his eyes, squeezing Douglas' shoulders as the boy blubbered out, "I don' wan' to!"
"I know you don't want to, but that's how it's going to be," Severus told him.
"Daddy, please?"
Harry shook his head. "I'll stay with you until you go to sleep, but that's it."
Douglas slid off the couch and to the floor, crying pitifully.
"Do not give in," Severus warned Harry, recognizing the look on his face.
Harry had to look away as he said, "Doug, go to bed. If you pick out a story I'll read it to you."
"No."
"Douglas, either go pick out a story, or I'll take you to your bed and you won't get a story tonight," Severus informed him, ignoring his puppy dog eyes.
Douglas scrambled to his feet with a wounded expression and fled the room, the door slamming behind him.
Harry slumped sideways, head knocking against Severus' shoulder. "That went well," he muttered, rubbing his eyes.
"He'll be fine, he's just pushing his boundaries. Unfortunately, he takes after you in that regard."
Harry chuckled weakly. "I made your life hell, didn't I?"
"On a daily basis," Severus replied, smiling. "Now go read our son a story so he'll go to sleep. You still owe me," he thought for a moment, "approximately twenty-three minutes."
Harry grinned and got up off the sofa. "And here I thought I was the insatiable one."
"I only insist on having what is owed me," Severus answered, leaning back and resting his arms on the back of the couch. "Hurry up, your son is waiting."