You Can Live: Chapter 22
Ok, so my WC poll is coming down, and the winner will get its story first. Thank you! :)
This part of the story is dragging a bit for me, and I'm having difficulty picking it back up. We'll see how this week goes. :/
No slash here, only guardian/ward psuedo-parent/child relationship and friendships.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of this, except for the plot. I would be able to afford school if that were the case.
Warnings: SEE CHAPTER 1 FOR WARNINGS AND OTHER IMPORTANT NOTES!
Ingredients
The next day, Harry was anxious. Excited, but anxious. He didn't want to mess up such a special night for his best friends. Severus had to tell him multiple times to not pull at his bandages or scratch. Albus perched at random places around the house, wherever he could see Harry. It seemed that the bird found his wizard's constant movement fascinating.
A little before lunch time, Severus found Harry ransacking the kitchen. He frantically searched every pantry and cupboard.
"Harry, what are you looking for?" The young wizard barely glanced at him as he continued to rifle through all the food in the kitchen.
"I-I can't find chestnut mushrooms. I was going to make Shepherd's Pie tonight, but I didn't check the kitchen yesterday, and we don't have any chestnut mushrooms." Severus would have laughed at the boy burying himself in the contents of their kitchen, had he not been so obviously upset.
"It is alright, Harry. I can just pop by the market really quick and pick some up. Is there anything else you need?" Harry had found nearly everything else; Snippy kept a very well stocks kitchen.
"Um…Marigold stock powder. That's it. Thank you very much, Sir. I'm sorry. I didn't think.." Snape did chuckle then.
"It is fine, Harry. I'll be back in a few minutes." Harry nodded, and the man left. While Snape was out, Harry made the best use of his time, by getting everything ready and starting to measure and chop. He had just peeled the carrots and was starting on the potatoes when there was a knock at the door. Harry set down the knife he was using and debated with himself whether he should open the door or not. Snippy couldn't answer it, because it could be a Muggle, and if the person got through the wards and to the door, they couldn't be seen as a threat, right? Deciding to just check it out, with his wand on hand, Harry went to answer the door.
As soon as he opened it, he knew he shouldn't have.
It was the man from the market yesterday. Harry knew he couldn't attribute the violent nausea to his concussion now. Despite the man's smile, Harry felt the strong urge to slam the door in his face and lock it. He did not, however, because he was frozen in his place by…fear of something. When Harry didn't say anything the man broke the ice.
"Hello, Harry. I came by to see how you were doing? You seemed to have a pretty back knock to the head yesterday and-" Harry shook himself out of his stupor enough to speak.
"I'm fine. Really. Have a nice day." Harry tried to close the door, but the man put a hand on it and stopped him.
"Whoa, there. Are you sure you're okay?" The hand on the door moved and just barely touched Harry's hair before he reared back. Harry smacked the man's hand away and put himself as far behind the door as possible.
"I-I said I was fine. Now, please leave." The man gave him a look he couldn't decipher as his hand just hung there for a moment between them. Then the man smiled and held his hands up in surrender.
"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable, Harry. I guess I'm just a bit of a tactile person." His eyes raked up and down Harry's body one more time and he smirked, before he started to back away. "Have a nice day, Harry. Hope to see you around." Harry shut the door as soon as the man turned around, unable to keep it open any longer. He shot his hand out to brace himself against the wall, before he fell over. His other hand shook as he ran his fingers through his hair.
"No, no no no." Harry tugged at his hair and forced himself to push any thoughts of that man out of his head. It would drive him insane trying to understand why he made him want to crawl out of his own skin. Just no. He hurried back to the kitchen and went back to his cooking.
The knife was poised mid chop when a sound behind him made him jump and while around. He held the knife out in front of him pointed like it was his wand, and his heart was pounding furiously in his chest. Meanwhile, Snippy was looking at him with confusion and a little bit of hurt.
"Master Harry? Did Snippy…make Master Harry mad?" Harry took a few deep breaths and set the knife down.
"No, Snippy, I'm not mad. Though I think we need to discuss this obsession with sneaking up on me you seem to have." The confusion didn't leave her face, but she nodded anyway.
"Is…there anything Snippy can help Master Harry with?" Harry turned back to his vegetables and took a few deep breaths to calm down.
"Um…well you could taste test for me, once I've gotten to that point. I'm also going to be baking a pie, so…yeah." Snippy smiled and nodded eagerly, her confusion completely wiped away. She decided to stay in the kitchen to watch Harry cook, since he cooked in an entirely Muggle way, and it fascinated her. Harry smiled a bit at that, and went about his business. Her presence calmed him and the familiar movements of chopping and measuring and mixing soothed him.
Snape was walking back to the house, when he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned and spotted Kingsley's patronus just behind the tree line. Severus had a strong feeling that this would be connected to the fire call he had received the previous evening. He quickly made his way over and looked down at the animal. It opened its mouth as soon as he stopped moving.
"The press is starting to become a bit too curious as to Harry's whereabouts, and are pressing for updates. There are also those in the Ministry, specifically the Magical Children's Wellness division, that are not pleased that you have taken guardianship of him. They are under a lot of heat, and want to put Harry back in the care of his relatives to save their own careers. I know Harry does not want anyone knowing about his treatment from the Dursleys, and the MCW made your taking guardianship of him conditional, in that you will never go public with the information. However, someone started a rumor that you are not a fit guardian for Harry. You need to be careful Severus. If I interfere, everything will end up going public, and none of us want that. Be cordial to the case workers and don't give them any reason to take Harry away from you. This should all die down in a few weeks, and I will be able to get them to drop it. Until then, keep your heads down." The patronus faded away soon after, leaving Snape standing among the trees, furious and indignant.
The officials in charge of Harry's case were trying to call his bluff. To get guardianship of Harry he had threatened to go public with their screw up of sending the Wizarding world's hero back to an abusive home. But in all honesty, he never would have done that, for Harry's sake. Now they were going to try and cover their mistakes, and find a reason to take Harry away from him.
That was not going to happen. Not if he had anything to say about it. And Severus had a feeling he had quite a few supporters, Harry included. Harry was staying with him. He would make sure of it.
The important thing though, was that Harry should not catch wind of this, until it was absolutely necessary that he know. It would only send him into a frenzied worry, probably not unlike how he was this morning, but in a more 24/7 fashion. That was the last thing Harry needed right now, after everything that had happened in the last week alone. Thinking he was going to get taken away, go back to the Dursleys? Or, Merlin forbid, thinking Snape didn't want him anymore and was sending him away? No, Severus would not allow that to happen under any circumstances.
All of these thoughts occupied his mind on the rest of the walk home. He soon found himself opening the door, without noticing and walking halfway to the kitchen. Pausing for only a moment, Severus shook the negative thoughts out of his head and continued, hoping to find Harry in better spirits than when he had left. The potion's master smiled when he heard Harry chatting happily, and calmly, away with Snippy. His entrance startled Harry slightly, but it was quickly pushed away in favor of a overly bright smile aimed at him.
"Oh, thank you so much, Sir. Again, I'm sorry you had to run out and get these." He was soon divested of his bounty and watched as Harry deftly went about preparing the ingredients and putting it all together. Severus watched Harry work for a few minutes, before shaking himself out of his stupor.
"Do you require any assistance, Harry?" Harry smirked and shook his head.
"No thank you, Sir. I told Snippy the same thing. It should hopefully be ready before Ron and Hermione get here, and then I'll just put the food under a stasis charm." Harry paused then, and Severus saw a small smile on his face.
"Harry?" Harry shook his head and went on with his work.
"Uh, I just, I never got to do that at the Dursleys. Gosh I love magic." Severus smiled at the young wizard's bright enthusiasm over being able to do a simple spell, after all the darkness he had seen. It still amazed him that he could perform even the smallest bits of magic. Harry resumed cooking and as soon as the Shepherd's Pie was in the oven, he went about making something else.
"Harry? Tell me you are not going to make a feast. You should rest some before they arrive." Harry smiled reassuringly at Snape and pulled out the fruit they had gotten the other day.
"Don't worry. I was just going to make a dessert for after. I promise to rest once it's all done." Snape smirked and shook his head at the boy. Well, while the boy was occupied in the kitchen, Severus could slip away and wrap the present he had gotten Harry for his upcoming birthday.
Snape was not abundant in wealth, though he would not say he was financially burdened. He lived comfortably and most of his money sat in Gringott's anyway as he lived by himself.
Now, though, he actually had reason to spend the money that had been gathering dust. He had already gotten Harry an owl, and no doubt the boy thought just being able to live with him was a great gift, but he wanted to get the young man something else. Not only had he ordered Harry a cage and other necessities for Albus, but he had also picked him up a couple of Muggle novels, that had seemed somewhat interesting. He really wanted Harry to enjoy his first birthday at his new home, despite his seeming reluctance to celebrate. Snape was also planning on asking Snippy to prepare treacle tart for that day, since he knew it was Harry's favorite. He finished quickly and hid the gifts in his closet, not that Harry would come into his room without permission though, but it was something his mother used to do.
When he returned downstairs, Harry was finishing his dessert and checking the Shepherd's Pie. Snape could see the boy starting to wilt, and knew Harry really wanted to enjoy tonight. He came up behind his ward and settled his hands on the boy's shoulders.
"Snippy can take care of the rest, Harry. You should rest, so you'll be able to enjoy the evening." Harry reluctantly let himself be led away to the couch in the living room, with enthusiastic promises from Snippy to ensure the food cooked properly and kept until dinner. He wasn't too worried. A nap would do him good, he knew, even if the constant need for them drove him up a wall.
"Not too long," he muttered as he settled back onto the couch. Snape chuckled and threw a blanket over him.
"I promise to wake you up, an hour before they are set to arrive, if you do not wake on your own." Severus shook his head and had a fond smile on his face, as the boy was asleep before he had even finished his sentence.
So, I did look up traditional English dinners and desserts and found a recipe for Shepherd's Pie. This means the ingredients Harry is so frantically searching for are actually in the recipe. At least the one I found.
BTW is it just me or does Harry sleep a lot? I feel like he has a lot of it to catch up on. :/ Please Review :)