Chapter 17:

Setting the Record Straight:

"I just wish you'd told me first," Severus said with a sigh as he and Harry lay on the sofa that afternoon; Abbey on the loveseat across from them, asleep.

"What was I suppose to do, Sev?" Harry asked as he lay curled up beside his lover, his head lying on the man's chest. "We made it through to Muggle London fine, but we didn't have much luck on the way back."

"Muggle London?" Severus inquired in surprise. "I thought you said that you were only going to Diagon Alley."

Harry fidgeted nervously although the man didn't really seem angry by the news. "Well, we did," he said quietly. "We just went to Muggle London first."

"Why did you go there?" Severus asked curiously, carding his fingers through Harry's soft locks.

"Um," Harry said and looked away a moment. "There was just something I wanted to pick up there," he finished softly. He had received the rings by owl post while Severus was distracted with laying Abbey down for a nap and hid them in a safe place, wanting to be sure that the time was right.

Severus arched a brow in question and Harry sighed. "I was picking up your surprise," he clarified. "I just feel bad that I wasn't able to get Abbey's. I was going to stop by the Magical Menagerie to see about a kneazle."

"You wanted to get her a kneazle?" Severus asked in alarm. It was a known fact that the Ministry of Magic considered kneazles extremely dangerous.

"Well, yeah," Harry replied. "I figured that it could help protect her and she could also learn to take care of it. Hermione's cat, Crookshanks is part kneazle. He's the one who first knew about Pettigrew. Ron threw a fit in our third year because he thought that Crookshanks had killed him. This was before we knew that his rat was really an Animagus, of course."

Severus nodded, remembering having seen the redhead in a particularly grouchy mood that year. "So, may I inquire as to what my surprise is?" He really was please that someone had troubled themselves over him – no one had ever gotten him anything before – well, not unless you counted Albus giving him socks every Christmas when he was alive. All of his books he had either inherited or bought himself with the money he earned teaching.

Harry was silent a moment, then nodded with a smile. "All right," he said, sitting up. "Face the fireplace and close your eyes." Severus looked at him sceptically. "Come on, Sev, it's a surprise. I don't want you peeking."

Severus nodded and complied with Harry's wishes, turning to face the fireplace where it met the side of the couch; Harry had seen to moving the furniture to accommodate the loveseat while they had been there; closing his eyes.

Harry rose and headed over to the desk, opening the bottom drawer and shuffling the parchments aside to retrieve his package. Opening it, he carefully removed the necklace and put it back.

Severus felt him hesitate a moment as he sat on the couch behind him a few moments later, which was followed by something rather heavy being settled on his chest before it was drawn up and fastened around his neck.

Harry moved and knelt before the side of the couch to be sure the necklace caught the firelight just right, gently guiding the man into position before whispering, "All right, you can open your eyes now."

Opening his eyes, the first thing Severus saw was Harry smiling at him, then his gaze travelled downward to see what the young man had fastened around his neck and he gasped in surprise. He had seen the same necklace countless times on his trips through Muggle London on his searches for Harry. At one time, it had been in the display window, but vanished later, and he'd thought that they had sold it. Severus reached up, brushing his fingers lightly, reverently over the gold, emeralds and rubies.

Harry's smile widened when he saw the man's reaction to the gift, but faltered when he spoke. "I – I can't accept this, Harry," Severus said quietly. He could only guess, but he assumed that if Susannah Lovis still had the necklace, then it had cost a great deal of money. "It's beautiful, really," Severus continued, and looked up to see his lover's expression. "But…"

"But what, Sev?" Harry asked, looking heartbroken.

"It – it's too much," Severus stammered. "It must have cost a fortune. I'm sorry, Harry," he said, still fingering the serpent as it lay around his neck. He reached up to undo the clasp but Harry stopped him.

"No," he said quietly and rising to his feet, he reached up and covered Severus' hands, stilling them with a gentle touch. Severus blinked, looking at him thunderstruck. "You can accept it, Sev," he murmured as he settled himself in the man's lap, drawing his hands away from the clasp. "You are worth every Knut it cost. You're worth even more then that to me. I want you to have it."

"Harry, I –," Severus started and was cut off by his lover placing a finger to his lips.

"Shhh," Harry crooned. "Please don't argue with me on this; I've already had to listen to Ron and Hermione for hours."

Severus nodded slowly and Harry withdrew his finger, opting instead to place his arms limply about the man's shoulders. "I – I don't know what to say," Severus murmured, gazing into his lover's emerald eyes.

Harry smiled. "You don't have to say anything, Sev," he assured him. "Although a 'thank you' would be sufficient. Severus," he continued seriously. "I meant what I said; you are worth more to me than I spent on this necklace. So much more. I know that it cost a lot, but I don't care – I'm not concerned with it… Believe me, Sev; I'm not saying this to brag, but I have more than enough for it. I've never used any of the money I inherited except for school. I don't mind spoiling you at all. I'm happy to do it."

Severus blinked. Harry had never spent any of his money, had Draco bought everything? Well, if he thought about it, that wasn't unlikely, the prat liked to 'keep' things and keep them happy, even if hedid have to spend his own money on them.

"It really is beautiful, Harry," Severus said, admiring the necklace once more. "Thank you," he finished quietly.

Harry's smile widened and he tilted Severus' head up, gently applying pressure to a finger he placed beneath the man's chin. "You're welcome," he said softly once their gaze met. He leaned forward then, closing the small distance between them and gave his lover a chaste kiss before deepening it slowly.

Minerva had been fire called and pelted with owls nearly non-stop for three days. Finally, the reporters from The Daily Prophet and The Quibbler had reached an agreement on the time and day for the press conference, and sent notices to the public as far as Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. This of course, excluded the immediate families of those students who attended Hogwarts, who received invitations to attend no matter where they lived.

Word had spread like wild fire through the school. The headmistress had announced two mornings previously, the day after Harry's jaunt to Muggle London, that all students would be allowed a free afternoon to attend the conference, inviting their families if they chose and would receive credit for History of Magic.

Harry sighed where he stood by the window with Severus on the fourth floor. They were alone, watching in relative silence as the media and crowd arrived. The fourth floor and those above were now clear, all the students and teachers; he was not surprised, were heading down to the conference. He had led Severus there an hour ago, avoiding most of the crowd by taking the secret passages.

"I don't know if I can do this, Sev," Harry said, his voice filled with anxiety.

Severus arched a brow, but remained silent, moving over behind his lover and wrapping his arms around him. Ever since Harry's return from his outing, they hadn't done anything except fall asleep in each other's arms. Harry would rant about the conference, and Severus would listen to him quietly. Severus chuckled inwardly. If the truth were told, more had happened between them the day that he Apparated to the gates of Hogwarts, and arrived in their chambers to see him laying down a tired, grumpy little girl, than it had in the past two days since.

Harry sighed, leaning back against his lover, taking comfort in his presence. "You can do this, Harry," Severus said softly as he bent to kiss the soft locks of his lover's hair. "I know you can."

"How?" Harry whinged. "I've never done this before… I'm not good at speeches. Look at all those people."

"You've given interviews," Severus pointed out.

"Only one, in fifth year when I'd had enough of all the crap they were saying about me," Harry pouted. "Rita Skeeter wasn't doing so well, so Hermione blackmailed her into doing an interview with me."

"Blackmailed?" Severus asked curiously.

"Yeah," Harry answered. "Hermione thought something was funny, when in fourth year, she was alone with Viktor Krum in the gardens, and then pictures and names appeared in the Prophet the next day. Viktor told her that she'd had a bug in her hair, and when he reached for it, it flew off. Hermione watched, and before we left Hogwarts that year, captured an unusual bug on the window. She found out that it was Skeeter when nothing appeared in the papers from her. When she met with her to set up the interview, Hermione told her it would be one-on-one, but that she and Ron would be staying to make sure the story told would be the truth and not more of her lies. When Skeeter asked what she would do if it was, Hermione just smiled and said that she'd report her to the Ministry. It turns out that Skeeter's an unregistered Animagus."

Severus chuckled, pulling Harry to him tightly, and resting his chin on the young man's shoulder, swaying with him gently. "It would serve her right," he said quietly. "Most of what she wrote, not even about you, was slanderous gossip that they passed off as fact."

Harry sighed at the closeness he now felt with his lover, lightly covering Severus' hands with his own. "What am I going to do?" he asked softly, his eyes still on the growing crowd below, his anxiety increasing as the time of the conference grew closer.

"Harry," Severus murmured and turned the younger man to face him, gently tilting his head as he placed a finger beneath Harry's chin. "You can do this," he said encouragingly when their eyes met. "I know you can. You didn't do too badly with the speech you gave me." Harry arched his brow in confusion and Severus smiled at him. "Either of them, actually. You know," he said softly. "The one about Dumbledore and the one about loving me."

Harry blushed and lowered his gaze. "They were true," he said quietly. "I was mad because I thought that you'd really killed him and I loved you more than anything."

"And this is too," Severus said with soft urgency. "You know, Harry, you had me scared to death when you drew your wand on me. I didn't know what you were going to do. I'm just glad that you gave me a chance to show you what really happened. I'd be in Azkaban now – or still in hiding if it weren't for you. Now," he said softly and pointed outside to the crowd in the grounds, Harry's gaze following. "All those people need to hear the truth. They know about The-Boy-Who-Lived and they know about The-Boy-Who-Defeated-Voldemort, but they don't know about Harry. I think it's time they knew, don't you?"

Harry nodded slowly, still looking rather nervous. He turned and looked at Severus seriously. "We're going to have to tell them," he said quietly. "About us, about your role in the war and my parents' death… everything."

"I know," Severus said gently. "And I know you can do this. I'll be right there with you, I'm not going anywhere. If it makes you feel any better, just imagine that I'm the only one there."

Harry nodded once more and threw his arms around the man's neck before kissing him tenderly. "Thank you, Sev," he murmured, drawing away slightly.

"Come on," Severus said, taking his hand and leading him down the hall, back down toward the entrance hall. "All this stress can't be good for you, let's get this over with."

Harry smiled at his lover gratefully. "Yeah," he said softly. "I'll be glad to relax when this is all over."

"All right," Severus said, wrapping his hands around Harry's upper arms, turning to look at him once they reached the deserted entrance hall. "Stay here and watch, once I get to my chair, head out and Minerva will introduce you – not that she needs to, but we wanted to keep this as a controlled situation as much as possible." Harry nodded and Severus drew him into a warm embrace and kissed him softly. "You'll do fine," he murmured and caressed Harry's cheek before heading out the door and across the grounds to the stage.

Harry moved to the window and after a few minutes, saw that Severus had reached the stage. He took a deep, cleansing breath, closing his eyes on the inhale and standing up straight, throwing his shoulders back proudly and raising his head on the exhale, he opened his eyes and headed out the door.

Minerva looked over as Severus took his seat and nodded to her curtly, a scowl firmly in place on his pallid face. She smiled, knowing that it was all an act right now and turned to see that Harry had almost reached the platform.

"Sonorus," Minerva said pointing her wand at her throat after clearing it. "Ladies and Gentlemen," her voice travelled over the grounds, amplified by the spell. "Thank you for coming to the press conference today. Please give a warm welcome to Mister Harry Potter." She stepped back and beckoned to the young wizard as he stepped up on the stage and the crowd erupted. "Quietus," Minerva said, her voice returning to normal.

The clapping and cheering continued for some time as Harry approached the podium and looked around nervously. Severus growled and rose from his seat. "Enough!" he yelled, glaring angrily at the crowd after the cheering had gone on for several minutes. "All of you are here to hear what he has to say, so be quiet so he can say it!" He glared around at the members of the crowd as they fell silent. Harry gave him a grateful look as he turned back to his seat, the scowl still gracing his pallid features, his onyx eyes sparkling.

Harry turned back to the now silent crowd and swallowed dryly. Its show time, he thought and pointed his wand at his throat, silently casting the Sonorus charm. "Thank you," he said, his voice carrying over the grounds. "I know that you are all here for answers, that you all wonder where I have been for the past several years and what has gone on between Malfoy, my daughter and I. I promise that you will get those answers, but first, I would set the records straight."

A confused murmur coursed through the crowd and Harry waited a moment before holding up his hands and was astonished when the crowd fell quiet once more.

"Forgive me, but I can't remember their names right now," Harry said. "But I hope that sometime after this conference, the authors ofGreat Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century, Modern Magical History, and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts will resubmit their manuscripts for publication without my name appearing in them. Or if they feel I must be mentioned, that they take careful notes if they are present." He paused and chuckled. "The reason is that you have only two things about me right."

"I know that many of you have read these books, many of them are people I even went to school with; and you are raised to believe that it is the truth. However, the only things that they gotten right are that my name is Harry James Potter and that I survived Voldemort's attack when no one else has." Harry rolled his eyes when there were several gasps and fearful murmurs from the crowd. He couldn't believe that people were still afraid of hearing the name of a madman, long after he was dead.

"I know that you all believe that you know everything about me, but you don't. You know The-Boy-Who-Lived and you know The-Boy-Who-Defeated-Voldemort. Today, I am going to do something I have never done; today, I am going to tell you about Harry Potter." He paused smiling slightly, and lowered his head a moment, taking a deep breath. Behind him, Severus shifted in his chair, making enough noise to let his lover know he was there.

Raising his head once more, Harry leaned forward, resting against the podium. "First off, I, Harry, knew absolutely nothing about the Wizarding world until Rubeus Hagrid appeared on my eleventh birthday to hand deliver my acceptance letter to Hogwarts." He paused, there was a murmur through the crowd, and he smiled. "But I am getting ahead of myself. For you to understand my story, I need to start at the beginning."

He stopped again and lowered his head, taking a shaky breath. The crowd looked on in confusion as Severus Snape; a man known for his coldness and cruelty rose from his chair and approached the young man. Severus spoke to him softly, so softly in fact, that they were unable to catch what he was saying exactly, but they didn't miss the nod of Harry's head, his smile, or Severus placing his hand over Harry's gently. They saw him step away, but he didn't return to his seat. Instead, the man dressed in black remained relatively nearby, though there was a scowl on his pale features.

"Severus Snape," Harry spoke finally. "Was coerced by the Dark Lord not long after he graduated from Hogwarts. Shortly after joining the Death Eaters, Severus had an interview with Albus Dumbledore, who at the time, was hiring for a few positions here at the school; namely Potions, Defence against the Dark Arts, and Divination." A murmur coursed through the crowd once more and Harry waited patiently for silence.

"But we were told that he wasn't a Death Eater," came a voice from the crowd. "It was in the Daily Prophet that you were there at his trial and you defended him. Why aren't you now?"

Harry smiled and gazed down at his fingernails, inspecting them intently, appearing unconcerned. After a moment he looked up again, knowing he once again had their attention. "It was said earlier this week, as well as today by Professor McGonagall, that this would not be a question and answer session," he said plainly. "The story is hard enough for me to get through without being interrupted every few minutes to answer a question. I hope all of you will understand if I cannot finish this interview do to emotional strain. Also, I have decided that I will be writing my memoirs soon, so whether or not I am able to finish this press conference here today, you will know the truth."

"It is nice to see that you are finally questioning what is written instead of believing everything you read though. However, I will say this: the story that appeared a few weeks ago concerning Severus, is true. Now if you will allow me to proceed without further interruption, I will explain. I want to make one thing perfectly clear though, and that is if there is one more interruption, from any of you, this press conference is over."

Harry nodded when silence was his reply and cleared his throat before continuing. Severus shifted subtly closer, giving his lover silent encouragement.

"Now, as I was saying," Harry said. "Severus went to Albus Dumbledore for a job interview. This interview took place at the Hog's Head here in Hogsmeade. Sibyll Trelawney," he called out clearly, and the woman rose to her feet from her place in the crowd. "You will recall that you told me of this night?"

"Yes," the witch answered, nodding her head in a slight bowing motion. He smiled to see that she still looked much as she did from her days as his Divination teacher. She still had the appearance of a glittering insect, with her jewellery and large, round, thick glasses and she pulled her many shawls tightly around her.

"Please let me know if there is anything amiss in my description," Harry said kindly and the witch nodded before resuming her seat. "Now, Sibyll had her interview before Severus. As I understand it from Albus himself, it was on that night that the prophecy about Voldemort and I was first told." He looked to where the witch sat and she nodded in confirmation.

"I have it from both Severus and Sibyll that Severus spied on this interview, for what exact purpose, I am not real sure of at this point, however, that is not important now. What is important though is that Severus overheard part of the prophecy before someone caught him listening. He then took this information back to Voldemort and my parents were forced into hiding under the Fidelius Charm."

A murmur coursed its way through the crowd again and many shifted in their seats, trying to contain their curiosity as they waited for him to continue.

"Now, some would think that by his role in these events, Severus is guilty of their murder," Harry said once silence resumed. "I say that this is not so, and I will explain my reasons a bit later. Also, I am aware that most of you still believe that Sirius Black was to blame." Another murmur coursed through the crowd. "This also is not so, although he took the punishment that he felt he deserved, he was innocent."

"The man responsible for their deaths was PeterPettigrew!" Harry announced with conviction. "I know what you are all thinking: How could I know that? Am I right?"

A murmur course through the crowd as they agreed.

"I learned many things while I attended Hogwarts. One of them was that although Sirius was supposed to be my parents' secret keeper, there was a last minute change. This change was made in the hopes of flushing out the spy they knew to be in their midst. Sirius took the blame for my parents' murder because he felt responsible since he was the one who talked them into making Pettigrew, who was their friend, and an unregistered Animagus who could assume the form of a rat, their secret keeper instead; but once again, I digress. I am getting ahead of myself, and the way I want this story told."

"After I was rescued from my parents' house in Godric's Hollow, I was sent to live with my mother's sister, Petunia, my uncle Vernon, and my cousin, Dudley. It may or may not surprise you to know that the years I spent with them were not as you were led to believe through your history books in which I am mentioned. As I said, the authors of the books in which I'm mentioned had only two things right; I was not given everything on a silver platter. My relatives did not treat me like a king, nor did they give me everything I ever wanted. Actually, it may surprise you to know that in fact, they treated me more like a house-elf than a person. My relatives were Muggles, the worst kind. They were repressive, abusive, and hated anything to do with what they called 'our kind'."

"They would be here today, so that you could witness what I am talking about, only they were one of the families killed by Voldemort in the raids before the final battle. Minerva?" Harry asked turning to the witch behind him. The witch nodded and handed him the materials that he had requested be available earlier in the week and he smiled his thanks, turning back to the crowd.

"This," Harry said, raising one of the documents in the air for all to see. "Is the envelope in which I received my acceptance letter from Hogwarts – well, one of them. You see, I had thousands of letters just like this one, sent to the house I lived in, because my relatives would not let me have them. They believed that if they pushed me down and belittled me enough, they could stamp the magic out of me. The address on this letter," Harry said clearly, waving the letter in the air. "Reads: Mister Harry Potter, Cupboard Under the Stairs, 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey. So, the truth after all this time is that Harry Potter was made to serve a despicable family of Muggles, and not just until he – err – I came to Hogwarts, but well after when school was let out."

"I don't know, but it may come as a surprise to you that I have faced Voldemort more than just in the final battle and when my parents were killed. Today, if I can get through this, you will know exactly what has happened in each encounter and how, exactly, they occurred."

"Now," Harry continued. "I've heard that what happened to Professor Quirrell during my first year remains a mystery to this day."

There was a murmur in the crowd along with various choruses of agreement.

"During my first year, I came to believe that Severus was trying to kill me," Harry revealed. "I thought that he was on Voldemort's side, and was trying to acquire the Sorcerer's stone to bring Voldemort back to life. Not all of these beliefs were entirely unfounded. For one thing, Severus was more lenient with Slytherin than any other house, namely Gryffindor. Also, he seemed to take pleasure in making it difficult for me, and always hung over the cauldrons belonging to me and my friends, making comments on our abilities."

"Draco Malfoy and I began our rivalry that year, and he challenged me to a duel. He was a real prat then and well – I guess he never grew out of it now that I think about it – anyway, Draco challenged me to a duel, and we planned on meeting in the trophy room at midnight because it was the only room that remained open. My friend, Ron Weasley was my second. We snuck out and headed to the trophy room when Hermione and Neville confronted us. They went back to the common room when Ron and I refused to listen, but got locked out of the tower when the Fat Lady went visiting."

"They eventually caught up with Ron and I, and we made a run for it when we found that Draco had set us up and didn't show, sending Argus Filch after us instead. Being relatively new to the castle, not to mention that we were wandering around at night, we got lost. We ended up on the third floor, which Professor Dumbledore had deemed off limits. It was there where Filch nearly caught us, and if it weren't for Hermione's quick thinking, opening a locked door while the rest of us panicked, he would have caught us. On the other side, we found out why the headmaster locked the door in the first place, as well as why the floor had been off limits. It was there that we found an enormous three headed dog."

"On Halloween, Professor Quirrell entered the Great Hall screaming that there was a troll in the dungeon. At that time, my friend, Ron and I had not really taken to Hermione Granger, who would later become our best friend. Neville had been saying at dinner that he had heard from the Patil sisters, that Hermione had not been in class after Charms and had been in the girls' loo, crying."

"Knowing that she knew nothing of the troll, Ron and I went to find her when the others in our house headed to the dormitories. Severus showed up with the professors McGonagall and Quirrell when they heard the noise in the girls' loo. My suspicions grew when I saw that Severus was injured. That night however, Hermione truly became our friend. Without thinking, she took the blame for taking on the troll that Ron and I distracted and knocked out."

"It was at the Quidditch game the next day that Hermione suspected Severus was trying to kill me by jinxing my broom. It was only later that I found that she had caused the distraction that allowed me the chance to regain control of my broom and catch the snitch. After the game, we caught up with Hagrid and told him of our suspicions, and as you all probably know," Harry said smiling at the man. "Hagrid is not one who can keep a secret long." The man in question blushed, shifting nervously.

"However, even for his mistakes, if he had not slipped and told us that whatever was being guarded concerned not only Dumbledore, but Nicholas Flamel as well, Hermione, Ron and I would have never been able to prevent the theft of the Sorcerer's stone. It was after Christmas that we really knew what we were looking for anyway, and on into spring before we found out when the person we suspected was going to try and steal it. We went to Professor McGonagall about it, asking to speak with Dumbledore, but she informed us that he received a call to London on important business with the Ministry. It was that night that I found that it was Quirrell who had tried to kill me in the Quidditch game, and Severus had been trying to save me."

"Now, for you to understand what happened that night with Quirrell, you need to know that it was an effect caused by the magic that my mother used to protect me, not of my own doing," Harry said. "But it was that night that I found that Voldemort had possessed Professor Quirrell and he was in a symbiotic relationship. Voldemort needed the stone in order to make the Elixir of Life, which he wanted to use to make a body of his own. How and where Dumbledore hid the stone is not important now, but when Voldemort realized I had acquired it, he ordered Quirrell to kill me when I refused to give it to him. It was because of Quirrell's possession and the fact that he tried to harm me that Professor Quirrell died. The magic my mother used literally killed him, burning his body to no more than a cinder. I should have trusted Severus after that; after all, he did try to save my life; but I didn't."

"Severus also stepped in for me in my second year, the year you will recall; many thought that I was the heir of Slytherin. Argus was out for blood when he found Ron, Hermione and I in the corridor near moaning Myrtle's bathroom and then saw Mrs. Norris, who he believed to be dead. When he still insisted on punishment after Dumbledore assured him that she was simply petrified, Severus was the one who suggested that we were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. I will not go into all that happened that year because it's still a sensitive subject for some of those here. I will say however, I was not the heir of Slytherin even though I could speak Parseltongue. Dumbledore believed that it was a trait Voldemort passed on to me when he tried to kill me when my parents died, and I have no reason to doubt him."

"The events that you really need to understand though, are those of my third, fifth, sixth and seventh years at school, though I will dip into the last part of my fourth year as well," Harry said. "But first," he pointed his wand at his throat and silently cast theQuietus charm, and conjured a glass and some water, making the crowd wait once again for the information they craved.