A/N: Yes yes yes, I know it has been too long since I last updated ANY of my stories. Thankfully, midterms are coming up so the massive amounts of homework are starting to wind down so I might have some more time to write. I plan on finishing at least one of my other stories soon so I can start some new ones eventually. I hope you like this chapter. REMEMBER: READ, REVIEW, REPEAT!

Chapter 7: A Hint of Magic

Several days later, Severus woke up more nervous than he had ever before in his life. Not even his school years, where he'd been tortured to the older Potter and his gang, could compare. He knew that the Dark Lord had been purposefully vague the day before. The man had a love for dramatics, especially if it was to keep Severus in suspense. He was quite sadistic in fact; how couldn't he be, with a title like the Dark Lord?

Throwing aside the hot comforter and sheets that covered him, Severus sat and sighed. He swung his legs over the side of the bed, rubbing the back of his neck carelessly. The bones in his shoulders and spine cracked back into place, his knees joining the chorus as he rose up onto his feet. He may have only been in his late thirties, but Severus found that age was starting to affect him already. Perhaps it was the fact that he hardly slept when he was at Hogwarts. He just could never get comfortable there. The school that had once been his haven had been tainted after he'd discovered the absolute wretchedness that had possessed the Light in the form of Albus Dumbledore. Add to that, there were annoying little children running around stupidly blowing up cauldrons and unable to tell their right hand from their left. Utter stupidity.

Throwing open the armoire door, the Potions Master tugged one of his signature black robes from the hanger. He set it on the chair beside the armoire and unbuttoned his white nightshirt. Folding the shirt, he set it in a basket for the house elves before he grabbed a pair of clean black slacks from the shelf in the armoire. Changing out of the sleek silk trousers he wore to bed each night, he slipped on the slacks with ease.

He shut the armoire door to stare in the mirror on the back of it. He ran a finger over the scars that adorned his upper chest, left behind by once-bleeding, deep cuts. A shiver ran up his spine as he thought about each scar and how he'd gotten them. Most were old, from when he was a child. His father had loved belting him for no real reason. A few, however, were much newer, the result of misfired spells and nasty curses.

Sighing, he dropped his hand to his side and was reaching over to grab his shirt when there was a knock at the door. Snarling under his breath, Severus stormed over to the door and threw it open. He instantly felt bad. Sprite scampered away in terror, running down the hall as quickly as he could. Sighing, he threw his shirt on over his head and dashed after the small boy.

Inwardly cursing at his own stupidity, he skidded across the hardwood floors and tried not to trip over the expensive Persian rugs that adorned the upper levels of the manor. Every now and then, he'd catch a glimpse of a flash of white disappearing around a corner and he would dash after it, hoping to catch the frightened boy.

He finally caught Sprite at the grand staircase, leaping down the last few steps to skid to a stop beside the boy. Sprite's wide, blue eyes stared up at him as the boy abruptly stopped, quivering in fear. Sighing again, Snape gently clapped the small boy on the shoulder and knelt down in front of him.

"It's okay. I just have a bad temper in the mornings," the Potions Master said as gently as possible. "I wasn't angry."

Sprite stared at him in disbelief, his mouth set into a firm line. Slowly, the boy nodded and set his small hand over Severus's patting it. Snorting in amusement, the man stood and ruffled the boy's blond locks with his free hand.

"So, what did you want when I scared the hell out of you?"

The boy's eyes brightened as he suddenly remembered his original objective. He hopped from foot to foot and pointed in the direction of the dining hall before rushing off in that same direction. Rolling his eyes, Severus set off after the boy, striding confidently and quickly.

The Dark Lord stood in the middle of the dining hall, his normal throne abandoned. His face was dark and heavily lined as he thought deeply. Sprite was beside him, staring up at the serious man with keen interest. The moment that Severus stepped into the room, Voldemort looked up and nodded once to him. He shooed Sprite away, who skipped off towards some unknown location.

"I thought you would scare him," the Dark Lord snickered humorously as he stepped up onto the dais where his throne sat.

Crossing his arms over his chest, Severus shook his head in fake anger. "You sent him on purpose."

"Of course. I know all about your morning temperament, Severus as well as your feelings for those young boys. You're protective of them," the Dark Lord said as he took his seat.

"I won't argue with you over that," the Potions Master replied. "Now, what were you thinking so hard about?"

"The meeting this afternoon," Voldemort said.

"What about it?"

"This is the first time Harry will see his beloved family in years."

"And this is worrying to you?"

"You saw what happened when I called him by his real name that first time. Just imagine what will happen when he sees Michael."

"Michael, as in Michael Potter? Why is that little brat- "

"He, Sirius Black, and the werewolf, Lupin approached Lucius yesterday afternoon asking to see Harry. They came to the Manor and waited at the edge of the wards for him. Michael was most adamant. Lucius was surprised that he wasn't on his knees begging to see his brother."

Severus raised one eyebrow in surprise.

"Surprising, isn't it?" the Dark Lord laughed. "It would seem that Michael Potter loves his younger brother more than Dumbledore and his group of half-wits, even though they gave him Harry's title and everything he could ever want."

"What about his parents?" Severus asked, thinking of his long-lost friend and her bastard of a husband.

"Lucius asked him about that as well. All three, Michael, Black, and Lupin, have forsworn both James and Lily as their parents or friends. They only ask that we leave his sister Alana alone," Voldemort replied.

"Hm. Who knew that the Potters would unravel over a single son," Severus mused.

"I know, but Michael seems to love his brother more than his parents. They abandoned him, you know; their parents, I mean. James and Lily Potter dropped Harry off with her muggle sister and her husband ten years ago. How Harry got from their house to Tender's, they don't know. Not even Tender himself could remember how Harry came into his possession," the Dark Lord sighed.

"He hasn't told me how either," Severus quickly added.

"That's not surprising either. He may trust you as much as me, but I fear it will take a long time for him to truly open up to us. Ten years in a… whorehouse certainly doesn't make one talkative," Voldemort replied.

Severus nodded in agreement. "When are we meeting with the br- with Michael and the others?"

"One o'clock tomorrow. I told them to apparate to the edge of the wards and we'd let them in when we arrived. You can't be too careful," the Dark Lord said.

"Agreed."

Believing the conversation to be over, Severus turned away.

"Oh, Severus?"

The Potions Master glanced back over his shoulder at the Dark Lord.

"Yes?"

"Be nice."

Rolling his eyes, the Potions Master stalked off towards the library. Slipping into the warm room, he closed the door behind him and headed over to the table he'd occupied the day before. Sitting down in the chair, he pulled a tome on runes towards him, flipping it open carelessly. He hunkered down in the chair and began to read, mumbling quietly to himself.

He was halfway through the first chapter when he sensed something strange. It was a hint of magic, tickling at the skin on his hand and making the hair on the back of his neck stand up. Slowly, he raised his head and looked around. No one else was in the library with him as far as he could see, but then again, he hadn't spent all of those years as a spy and learned nothing.

Standing, he stepped over towards the bookcases, abandoned the tome on the table. Slowly and quietly, he walked along the first row, dark eyes searching. Through the rows of books and shelves, he saw a small form kneeling next to the back wall. His back was turned towards Severus. The Potions Master recognized the mop of dark hair. Silently stepping up behind the boy, he watched as the teenager focused intently on the small ball of green light in his hands. Black eyes widened as he realized what the light was.

"Harry!"

Ra jerked out of his thoughts, hands flailing apart as he fell back into his butt. The last hints of green light quickly disappeared from the boy's hands as he looked over his shoulder at Severus. He scrambled up, shaking slightly as he stood before the Potions Master, head lowered.

"What were you doing?"

Ra started to shake a little more, long tresses of black hair hiding his face and eyes. His hands were clenched in front of him.

"I'm not mad. Just tell me."

Slowly, Ra lifted one hand and made a quick sign, one that Severus did not recognize.

"What does that mean?" he asked, frowning.

Ra glanced up at him through his bangs and Severus sighed in reply. Pulling out his wand, he summoned a piece of parchment and a quill. He held them out to the boy, who snatched them away. If the Potions Master had been an ordinary man, he may have even laughed at the boy's antics. Ra quickly scribbled a single word on the parchment and handed it back to Severus.

"Freakishness? What the hell are you talking about?" Severus asked, flicking his gaze up to Ra.

The boy gulped and pointed to the wand in Severus's hand, then to his own hands.

"You mean magic?" Severus asked.

Ra nodded and took back the paper. He wrote a reply.

I don't use the stick like you and the others do, but I can make strange things happen too, though that was the first time I've ever controlled it. It's called my Freakishness.

"It's called magic, Harry and its not strange or… freakish. It's a normal talent for a wizard."

The boy's large green eyes stared up at him in shock. Then, he suddenly frowned and looked down at his hands. Clenching them, he looked back up at Severus and motioned for the parchment. Severus watched as the boy wrote a few more sentences.

That wasn't what my uncle called it and he said it was strange and abnormal. Magic is for good people like wizards. I'm not a wizard. Wizards go on adventures and save people like in books. I'm not good, I don't go on adventures and I don't save people.

"Yes you are. You were born to a wizard and a witch. Unless you were born completely without magic, you are then a wizard as well," Severus sighed. "And you are good. Don't think less of yourself because of what men like Fudge think of you."

Ra frowned heavily and shrugged before handing the parchment back to Severus.

"How were you doing that anyway, the light I mean?"

Tipping his head to the side a little, Ra's eyes lit up a little and he looked back down at his hands. Cupping them together, he furrowed his eyebrows in concentration. Slowly, a small green light appeared in the middle of the cup made by his hands, floating. It grew stronger as Ra continued to stare at it. Suddenly, the light started to wave and quiver, separating into long tongues of fire that tossed moving shadows onto the back of Ra's hands.

Noticing the sweat dripping from the boy's forehead, Severus placed a hand on his shoulder in a silent command to stop. Ra let his hands drop to his sides as he looked up at the tall Potions Master.

"I should have known you would still be access your magic despite the block they put on you. You are Tom's successor, after all," he said softly.

When he saw Ra's look of confusion, he explained, "From what I've managed to decipher so far, there is a magic suppressor built into the contract mark on your hip. It prevents you from being able to access it in any way and should have blocked even accidental magic, but it sounds like you've had… incidents in the past, yes?"

Ra nodded furiously.

"My guess is that when we eventually take this suppressor off of you that you may be as power if not more powerful than Tom himself."

The green eyes grew in size as the prospect. Reaching up, Severus ruffled his dark hair lightly.

"Don't worry. Between Tom, Lucius, and myself you'll be able to use your magic as well as any of us and better than most. You'll surpass your brother and sister by far."

Ra suddenly grabbed at the front of Severus's shirt, pulling his smaller body against the Potions Master's. Blinking in surprise, Severus looked down at the boy. A faint glimmer of hope shone in Ra's eyes at the thought of his brother and sister, a shine that almost made Severus want to smile.

"Yes, you will see him again. I can promise you that."

Smiling widely, Ra hugged Severus tightly around the waist, squeezing his body up against that of the taller man. Severus gulped slightly and patted the boy's back, willing his heart to calm down. Thankfully, Ra quickly pulled away and trotted in the direction of the table. Severus slowly brushed his hand along his stomach, feeling the warmth from the body that had been there.

Sensing someone's eyes on him, Severus looked up to see Ra staring at him. The boy tipped his head to the side like a dog and motioned for Severus to follow, trotting away like a cat that caught the canary. Severus quickly followed him, eager to get back to work. He wasn't comfortable with the feeling that had wormed its way into his heart.