CHAPTER 29-Losses Turned Into Victories
* Thanks to Nanchih for the wise words and wonderful advice.
* To Bertram-lee, please read the warnings on the stories and save yourself a lot of heartburn.
Neville and Harry worked for three day sweeping up and bagging all the Inferi. The other kids tried to help out but Severus only had to raise one eyebrow to send them scurrying to their dorm. Severus and Alice had a long talk about the boys and came to the conclusion; that the "crime" was not as blatant as when they went into the forest. It would seem from their story that they just found themselves in the middle of it and if they had stayed on the parameters they would have been fine. Their problem was they didn't take stock of where they were at all times and evaluate constantly the danger around them. This, 'assessing where you are at all times in a battle', would have been a part of their dueling class eventually but it looked like they needed to move it up a bit.
As far as punishment; Severus had already told them what would happen if they put themselves in danger and Severus would not go back on his word. If he were to be 'Father' to them he had to be the measure of his word. He would need to always follow-through on his promises and always be consistent. They would get a spanking but not as harsh as when they directly disobeyed him and ran into Malfoy Manor.
Severus had taken Neville over his lap and delivered a good twenty swats to his bare bottom and sent him, sniffling, "out to play". He was now sitting with Harry. "Harry do you understand what happened, when everything went white around you?"
"No" replied Harry.
"You tapped into your magical core and produced a level of magic that you're not ready to use yet. You are going to be a very strong wizard Harry but you are going to have to let your mind, body, AND magic core mature a bit. This is why we ask you, to NOT get involved in heavy fighting and such. You have the power to take care of a lot of situations but you DO NOT HAVE the control. If you had not heard my voice and stopped that magical fire, you could have lost your magic and you could have died........do you understand that Harry................you could have died!"
Harry just looked at Severus with a puzzled look on his face. "No, I don't understand. How can I do magic that I don't know how to do and stronger than I am able to do?"
Severus was sitting on the infamous "Tanning Chair" as the kids dubbed it, and Harry was standing right in front of him between his knees. Severus put his hands on Harry's shoulders and said, "Harry have you ever read about a mother or father lifting a car off their child in a time of panic?"
"Yes", said Harry, "They say it is a surge of adrenaline that makes them able to save their child."
"Yes," said Severus, "But afterwards many of them experience bad physical responses to making their bodies perform in ways it is not prepared or able to respond."
"It is the same with your magic Harry" replied Severus. "It was asked to respond in a way it was not prepared to respond and way over its developed abilities. When that happens, your body will pay the price for it. Now, let me ask you; how did you feel the first day you were out sweeping up Inferi?"
"I was really tired, all I wanted to do was go to sleep, but I couldn't" replied Harry.
"Right," said Severus, "That was your body responding, telling you something was wrong. We try to keep you out of those situations because you do have the ability to expend very strong magic but you are too young to do so safely."
"Now", said Severus, as he pulled Harry over to his right side, drop your jeans and your shorts Harry".
Harry knew it was coming but there was always that deep hope that the man would change his mind, but he never did. He undid his jeans and pulled them down along with his shorts.
"Why are you being punished today Harry?" asked Severus as he pulled Harry over his lap.
"Because we didn't protect ourselves better and walked into trouble without thinking" said Harry.
"Correct" said Severus and at the same time he smacked Harry's bum.
To be fair to the boys, Severus applied a hearty twenty swats to Harry's backside just as he had done with Neville. Harry was crying, which was to be expected after receiving twenty swats, but there was not the deep crying that usually comes with a more determined spanking. Severus handed him a handkerchief, telling himself as he always did about this time, to teach the boys to carry their own.
Severus then looked at Harry and told him again, "Harry, you got off easy today, don't expect it next time, do you hear me?"
"Yes, Sir", Harry responded. He knew in his heart that this had not been hard spanking. Oh, it hurt alright, all Severus' spankings hurt, they were supposed to, but he had definitely received worse.
"OK, Son, go play something!" Harry rubbed him bum on the way out of the study, and Severus smiled to himself. Both boys had left with very confused looks on their faces. He had not grounded them or had them write anything or taken away flying privileges. He had actually, against the better judgement of Alice, given himself a wedding present by not punishing them the way he normally would have.
He never thought he would reach a place where he dreaded punishing his children, but he had. He swore someone had slipped him a potion, as this was a whole different feeling. He had a suspicion that part of it was due to the dark mark being removed. He had felt so much lighter, like his heart was no longer in a dungeon. He was not sure if he liked it or not, as it scared him a bit. He was used to being the nasty, greasy, mad all the time Git. He knew what to do and when to do it and what to say when he was a Git. He felt comfortable being the Git.
But a nagging voice kept calling him to come into the light, to change, to dare to love. So when he became scared he just held onto Alice until the fear passed. Severus knew he had realized the difference between a teacher just adjusting the behavior of a student and a loving parent correcting their child. He had decided to indeed come into the light but the trip was going to take time. He knew he still had to be a strong parent figure, the tough one if you will. He knew that if his kids put themselves in danger again he would blister their bottoms since just words did not seem to get the message across, but he knew it was going to hurt his heart a lot more.
Hermione spent a couple days talking and crying with Alice. In fact she really mentally leaned on Alice. Alice told her that she had received temporary guardianship over her, but it did not have to be permanent, she could just rest and heal until she felt like discussing the future.
"Hermione" said Alice, "It's going to take more than just a few days to recover from losing your parents; it will take a lifetime. Look at Harry, he still has to deal with it each and every day. But after awhile, there will be more good memories surfacing than bad ones, and it will get easier."
"If it wasn't for me they would be alive, I just know it" said Hermione.
Alice smiled and then said to Hermione, "Are you now going to change your mind and start telling Harry that he is to blame for his parent's deaths?"
"NO, of course not" said Hermione with a shocked look.
"Well, how is your situation any different Hermione?" asked Alice. "Did you kill them? Did you stick the bubblehead charm on them?......Well?"
"No, whispered Hermione, Lucius did."
"Right, and it's terrible! BUT, You didn't do it!" said Alice.
Hermione and Harry took a lot of walks over the next few days. They talked about everything under the sun and then talked some more. They now had a lot in common and talking it through seemed to help both of them. Not to mention pressures that were still there, what with the Death Eaters wanting them dead. By the time the wedding rolled around they had developed a bond of friendship that could never be broken. If the truth be known they had developed the foundation for another type of bonding that might take place in a few years. But for now this strong friendship was very important to each of them.
Ron seemed to be comfortable with the way things were working out. He and Luna had become very good friends, just friends but friends who were able to talk about anything. While he was best friends with Harry and Hermione and was a dedicated protector of Harry, he liked hanging around and playing with Luna, the Twins, and Neville the best. They didn't require of him any deep emotional expressions. Oh he was deep, and he was emotional, he hurt with the best of them and he loved deeply. But expressing it was beyond him and he was definitely not comfortable trying to express it or dealing with it, when it was expressed to him.
Right before the wedding Hermione shared with Alice that she wanted to be one of the family. "The thought of not being part of the family scares me a lot! I know it's in my head but I feel safer this way if it's Ok with you? I feel like I have been included in this family all summer and if it didn't stay this way I would just feel like I had lost two families. I loved my parent with all my heart but I could never share my life with them, they just couldn't understand. I couldn't ask them for advice about classes or people. I couldn't talk with them about my fear of the Dark Lord because they would have probably pulled me out of school. This summer has been a wonderful experience for me. I wish with all my life and heart that they had not died but I don't want to give up what I have found here."
"Of course it's Ok with us Hermione. The foundation for our family seems to be fear. We have all come together because of our fears; fear of loving, fear of being alone, fear of the darkness, fear of the unknown, fear over our losses. But in coming together we have somehow forged a family that has enough love to overcome any fear that we might bring with us.
We love you very much and would feel very privileged to have you as part of our family. We can never take the place of your real parents and would never want to. I feel that they would be very happy to know that you have found a place with people you need to be with and who need you to be with them.
So on that special Saturday Minerva and Albus stood upfront. Minerva would be witness and Albus would officiate. They both also became part of the family they were helping to glue together. Alice and Severus walked to the front of the room along with their children; Draco, Harry, Hermione, Neville, Luna and little Cassy. Alice and Severus pledged their love for each other and became Mr. and Mrs. Snape. They also pledged their love for their children and their children pledged their love to them and all took the last name of Snape, becoming not only one family but one big headache for the teachers of second years at Hogwarts.
While there was still pain from recent losses, fear of what pain the future might bring, they still managed to take a day to celebrate their love for one another. They brought out the old tire pool for one last swim but decided, for the sake of Severus, not to bring back the bumper cars.
The new school term was scheduled to start in a couple of weeks so all the teachers were returning to the school and preparing for the return of the students. The Weasley's and Snapes set the shopping date for the following day. It would be a trip taking all the kids to Diagon Alley and buying school supplies. It was decided that after each store they would send the supplies back to a class room that had been prepared and they would divide them up when they returned that evening.
They gathered both families together the night before to set down the rules of engagement and that is how the adults viewed this outing.
Severus shared with them that they were going to divide into teams, each team having a list of supplies for their given assigned store and each team would have one or more adult with them to make the purchases. They would do the required shopping in the morning, then meet for lunch. After lunch they could divide into new teams depending on where they wanted to visit.
Alice added, "Remember that there is a potion called Polyjuice Potion which can transfigure one person into another for a limited period of time. With this in mind remember that Lucius Malfoy could look like anybody. That is why we want you to travel in teams with an adult present. If we find you striking off by yourself we will send you back to Hogwarts immediately and you will be cleaning for Mr. Filch for a couple days."
Harry, Draco, Hermione, and Luna had come to a decision and needed to speak with their new parents. They caught Severus and Alice early and asked if they could speak in private. The family met for breakfast in a private room and the kids shared their decision with them.
Harry, having the most at stake started out, "We have all decided to combine our holdings and monies with yours if that is Ok with you. We want you to take care of it until we are of age. We want it all to be Snape property and you can give us an allowance while we are kids and whatever inheritance we might need to start out with when we come of age. But we want it to all be family money and not private funds. We really want to commit to this family thing with all that we are and all that we have.........and.........we want you to know that we trust you to do that for us. Frankly we have no idea what we have or what to do with it and figure you might teach us budgeting and such later when we need to know."
Draco continued, "We need a family home and Harry said that he has more property than any one person really needs. We want to become a respected family that others will look up to and we want to make sure that our children and children's children will be proud of the Snape name and be able to benefit by it."
Hermione added, "We have already contacted the bank and the paperwork is waiting for us all to sign. All it will take is for you to agree.
Luna added, "I have no idea if my father left me with anything but I do know whatever it is I want to contribute it to establishing our family. I have not really had a family since my Mother died. Dad tried very hard but he was hurting too deeply to really own up to his responsibilities. What I have experienced with you all is something I want for the rest of my life and I want my children to experience it too.
Neville added, "I have nothing as Mom still owns all that we have but I want to say that I agree. I know that Mom is putting all her assets into the Snape accounts and I want you both to know that I think it's great.
Cassy, not to be left out, marched herself up to the front and climbed into Severus' lap. "I just want to say that I don't' know what an "alance" is but if the other kids are getting one I want one to because I'm your kid to!
Severus and Alice just stared at them. "Do you know what you are saying Harry. You have much in the way of assets and you Draco, we were able to preserve a lot of your inheritance. It would take you a long way in the world out there.
Harry replied, "No Dad, you guys will take us where we need to go. Now don't get me wrong, I could really do without your spankings, but we have decided that none of us can do without your love. Some of us have had loving parents, but none of us have ever had a family with other kids. You have treated us all equally special and because of that we want to treat each other equally special also. We are either a real family or we are not, that's how we see it.
At that all the kids agreed.
"Alright you guys" said Severus, "But you will have to instruct the Goblins in this because neither Alice nor I would ever request it."
So their first stop was Gringotts where they had to go into the office of Griphook. All the paperwork was signed and credit cards were issued to Severus and Alice.
Once they were outside Severus handed them fifty galleons and Cassy received ten. "Now", said Severus, "This is spending money for today since we are shopping in Diagon Alley. Your Mother and I have decided that you will each receive twenty galleons a week, during the school year, and thirty a week during the summer, subject to good behavior. Cassy you will receive ten galleons a week to spend on whatever you want.
This money is not to be spent on necessities such as school supplied, school clothes, regular play and dress clothes or other things that are necessary for your upkeep and security. This money is for you to spend on those extras that you might want like candy or broom supplies or that special outfit that we don't feel is a necessity. You will receive a lump sum for the Christmas holidays for buying presents. For other special purchases just come and talk with us and we will deal with them on a case-by-case basis."
This money, other than your Christmas money, is dependant upon your good behavior. Just as we can ground you, or take your broom privileges away we can also take your allowance away for mis-behavior. Do we understand each other?
They all nodded their heads, thinking that their Father had just turned the tables on them.
With that they met up with the Weasleys, divided into teams, handed out the shopping lists and proceeded to hit the stores. "We will all meet at the Leaky Cauldron for lunch at one" said Arthur.
After lunch the kids divided up into new teams, some going to the clothing stores, some wanting to look at the new racing broom. Hermione, of course, along with Percy wanted to look at books and Ron wanted to hit the joke shop. Cassy wanted to hit the candy shop.
"Ok, everyone back here by four o'clock, is that understood?" said Molly. They all nodded that headed out with their respective teams. The kids had also added their own security to the mix and every kid was carrying a clicker with them. If anyone heard the clicker then they would know that there was trouble.
Hermione, Percy, and Draco were in the book store with Arthur watching them from the door. Hermione happened to look up and see a wizard taking to Mr. Weasley, but the wizard was leaning over right in Mr. Weasley's face, which was getting redder by the minute. She grabbed the boys and they started walking toward Arthur when all of a sudden Arthur's fist met up with the nose of the Wizard and blood started spurting out everywhere. Hermione then ran to the door and started clicking, trying to get the attention of the other kids.
Arthur and the wizard were really going at it but Arthur was winning. There were books all over the floor along with blood all over the fighters. Soon kids and adults were coming from every direction. The Wizard happened to look up and notice that Severus, Alice and a few others were headed in his direction so he ran out the door and apparated away. When help arrived, Severus helped Arthur up and waving his wand returned the store to its original condition. "What in the world Arthur?" asked Molly. "What is wrong with you, fighting in front of the children?"
"That was Lucius Malfoy", replied Arthur, and I was trying to hold on to him until you guys could get here. He had whispered in my ear that next time he wouldn't miss and that my wife and kids would be dead. He kept talking about how he would kill them and how he would enjoy it. I couldn't just let him walk away, I had to try and stop him."
"I think it's time to head home, they know we are here and he just might send a few of his friends to visit" said Alice.
With that they all walked to the Leaky Cauldron and Floo'd back to Hogwarts. Each arrived wrapped up in their own thoughts, each knowing that the danger was real and that they were definitely the targets.