"It's alright. I'm here. I'm not going away."
"No, you're not…because you're grounded for life." Harry laughed at Severus' serious tone before sobering again. He clutched tightly at the back of Severus' robes, burying his head in his mate's shoulder and kissing the crook of his neck lightly.
"I think I can deal with that after all of this excitement." Harry murmured. And for the first time since returning, he felt right at home.
A/N: Woo! So Harry's returned to the land of the living with his new little cub, and has reunited with his mate! But has the raid been a win? A loss? Is George really ok? Well, here's some answers in a random order. No, yes, yes. You'll find out the true order in this chapter. We also get to see some real in character stuff! (And sorry for those of you who wanted really really good smut…Gonna have to save that for later on.)
Also, this part of Pet is slowly drawing to a close. And by slowly, I mean only two more chapters, including this one. Do not worry though, because there will be a sequel, the next part titled A Dangerous Mind.(named loosely for the song A Dangerous Mind by Within Temptation, but mainly to follow what the main training structure of Pet was, which was Harry training in his dreams with Tom, and deals with…well I can't tell you that yet!) Which will start right where the last chapter of Pet leaves off, if not a few days later. I already know how it will end and how A Dangerous Mind will begin.
Harry walked slowly next to Severus as they made their way back to the others, worry coming from him in waves. "What if they don't want me back Sev? Tom accepted me back but-"
"You've seen Tom?" Severus cut him off. He was leaning heavily on Harry, trying not to flinch every time something so much as brushed against his broken hand.
"I had to stop by the manor. I had no idea you were out leading a raid with my best Death Eaters. I saw him, a hurt George, a crying Draco, Fred comforting him, and quite a few others. I haven't seen the rest of who you took with you though." Harry explained. "So…I've really been dead for a month then?"
"Yes. A solid month. Tom told me I'd lead a raid today to get revenge. Seems like it backfired though and I almost joined you in death." Severus admitted. Even the thought of leaving now though, scared him. But not as much as this just being a dream. He worried that he would wake up curled around Calix, all of this being a dream. The pain though, told him it wasn't. Not even when training in dreams did the pain get to be this much.
"We need to get your hand healed." Severus felt Harry's gentle hands holding his wrist gingerly, inspecting the wounds. "Before infection sets in." Glowing green eyes met dull onyx as he spoke, the connection reestablishing itself between them. Harry's magic reached out, twining with Severus' as easily as their tails would in their animagus forms. The bond, a month broken, now healing. It was all the reassurance they both needed to know that it wasn't a dream. For now, at least.
"Severus! We did it! We won!" Lily's excited voice broke their locked gazes. "We beat them! We-" The excited mother stopped, skidding to a halt mid-run as she noticed there was another with Severus. "H-Harry?" She stared in disbelief and shock as he turned around, the lightning bolt scar and green eyes hidden behind round glasses giving him away. It was Harry. "wha-…bu-but how? We saw you d-die…Is…is it really you?"
Harry smiled softly, leaving Severus' side for a second to walk closer to his mother. "It's me." He said.
"Oh my baby!" Lily pulled him into a tight hug as the others began to gather around them, hearing their conversation.
"Harry?"
"Cub!" Remus and Sirius were the first to break the silence that had followed, making their way over to trap Harry in a hug of their own. Blaise smirked as he and Narcissa helped Severus over to the gathering. The boy-who-lived laughed as everyone crowded around, wondering if he was truly alive or just a ghost. As he finally made his way out of all of the hugs, he took Blaise's spot next to his mate, snuggling into Severus' side.
"Listen, guys, it really is me. I have the scars to prove it. We'll talk later, but for now we need to get back to the manor."
Hermione gasped as she finally remembered what had happened. "George!"
"He's fine." Harry said. "I saw him." Nagini, finally seeing her chance, wrapped herself tightly around the Gryffindor, being gentle around Severus but hissing at Harry.
"Harry James Potter! You had us all worried to death ourselves! You were dead!" The snake hissed. "Snakeling you are grounded until you are married off to your mate, and then he can punish you for this!"
"Was I not punished enough? I truly was dead, but I'm back now. And with some pretty cool powers of my own." Harry hissed back, pressing a light kiss to the top of the snake's head. "I missed everyone and worried for them too…although I didn't miss your sharp tongue!" He joked. "Let's get going now! Before more of the Order and Light side come. We won't stand a chance if there are many injuries." The prince took charge quickly, falling right into his place as leader. Severus was glad to let him, the battle finally catching up fully to him and making him drowsy from pain and blood loss. He felt like he could sleep for a month, or maybe two. He was grateful when, instead of apparating, Harry pulled out a Portkey in the form of one red-tipped black feather. Once everyone had a hold of the feather, he spoke the password for it, "Home." And they soon left for the manor.
spacespacespace~
"Alright! Everyone not to badly hurt move to the kitchen, everyone else to the living room!" Narcissa snapped the order as the Portkey dropped everyone into the doorway of the manor. "And don't wake George!"
"Come on Sev, we'll get your hand fixed up first." Harry said, leading the older man into the living room. True to Narcissa's words, George was fast asleep on the couch, buried under the familiar fur of a lion and wolf. Both working better to keep him warm than any blanket or spell could. Harry led Severus past the couch though, and over to a more secluded part of the living room where Calix was asleep, curled up under an unfamiliar lion's paw.
Harry noticed the questioning and guarded glance of his mate. "I'll tell you soon. I promise Sev. Let's focus on your hand first." The prince grabbed his wand, performing a few healing charms before setting the bones back into place. Severus bit his lip, trying not to make a single sound of pain. It hurt a whole lot though to have every bone reset into place like that, but it was the quickest way. "Her name's Stephanie." Harry murmured, eyes narrowed in concentration as he worked on fixing his mate's hand. "When I was…dead, Willow came back. Said I had to get through nine trials, reflecting the nine lives I have now. She's one of them. Protection."
"Wait, nine lives?" Severus looked at Harry, wincing in pain as he put the last bone into place before a healing spell wound around his hand, his other one holding a pain potion that he quickly downed.
"Something about being the winged prince and winning the war." Was Harry's explanation for the question. "Sev, I'll answer everything tomorrow, right now let's follow our kit's example and sleep. Just don't move your hand around a lot for a few days and you'll be ok. As for the rest of the injuries, I'll keep an eye on them to make sure none get infected."
Severus nodded, agreeing that sleep did sound good. Especially after everything that happened. And sleeping next to his mate again, maybe he could get a full night's rest.
'Or a full day's rest…' He thought as the sun slowly started to appear to the East. Severus shook his head, grabbing Harry's hand and leading him out of the room, past the curious eyes of everyone who were probably wondering the same things he was, and into the master bedroom. The room rightfully belonged to Harry, being the Potter heir, which meant no one used it once they came to the manor. Lily especially kept far away from it. Padfoot and Calix only gave the room curious sniffs, but never went inside. Harry opened the door slowly, blinking at what he found. A king size bed, two nightstands on either side of it, and a beautiful window overlooking most of the front of the manor. But what surprised them the most, was the color.
"Slytherin green…and Gryffindor red…" Harry looked around, the bed was mostly green, the walls red. "Either there were Slytherins in the Potter line or my dear dead father is channeling the manor from his grave and making things different."
Severus snorted in laughter. "Is it wrong to believe that the second one is probably the true answer?" Harry flashed his mate a grin before wrapping his arms around Severus, standing on his toes to be almost equal height with him.
"I don't find it wrong…is it wrong to want to snuggle right now after thinking that it could possibly my dad that set this up?" Harry asked innocently, purring in contentment as the response he received in the form of a light kiss. The Gryffindor smiled as Severus slowly began to push him backwards towards the bed, the kisses increasing in intensity as they went. Harry squeaked in surprise as his legs hit the bed, sending both of them falling onto the soft blanket that covered it.
"Are you going to explain how it is you are alive now?" Severus asked as he moved to attack the smaller's neck, nipping and kissing at the soft pale skin.
"I…" Harry held back a moan. "Willow said that I had to complete nine trails, I had -ah…- no idea what would happen once I completed them…"
Severus kept up his attack on Harry's neck, pinning him further onto the bed. "That's it?"
"No, I," A strangled moan escaped Harry as Severus grinded their hips together. "I found out a lot that could help us win the war… such as the truth about who I truly am, the truth about the light and dark side…the reason why we couldn't have sex before."
That caught the older's full interest as he looked up at Harry, his gaze locking with the prince's. It was then that he noticed even the slight differences. The scars that had marred his lover before were now gone, leaving only the lighting bolt one that marked him as Tom's equal. Harry's glasses, broken and long forgotten in the bottom of Lake Mingo, were no long holding back the intense gaze that was now slightly glazed with lust. The familiar green gaze now held flecks of gold within it, the amber ring around the center of his eyes was as vibrant as the other two colors. The only thing that seemed to be the same, was the unruly deep brown mop that the boy dared to call hair. It still seemed as unmanageable as the day before his death. "And the reason for that is…?"
Harry gave Severus a grin before flipping their positions in a strong show of power. Straddling his mate's hips, the grin stayed right in place. "You tried to top first. Winged Cats, by nature, are not bottoms. Fira wasn't, Merlin wasn't, and I sure as hell am not."
"Merlin was a winged cat?" The statement of that caught Severus off guard, not as much as the power change though. Since when was Harry able to just overpower him so simply? "And I don't bottom either!"
"Well, I actually only meant for the first time. It's always the first mating that the winged cat is strictly top. After that, it's fair game on however hormones and need and want plays out." Harry purred, taking his chance to nip at Severus' neck. The Potion's Master held back a moan, not wanting to give Harry the satisfaction. He wasn't pleased with this new information and he was determined to show it. Harry growled lightly at the lack of noise and bit down a bit harsher, grinding his hips down against Severus' at the same time. The only thing that gave Harry confirmation that he was winning this was the light whine from his mate. Biting down on Severus' neck once more, he reached for his wand. Snarling when he couldn't find it, he used wandless magic to get rid of the only thing standing between him and his mate. Their clothes. It wasn't a loving affair, but something raw with need. The need to know that they were both alive. After a few passionate kisses, Severus' resolve finally broke down. Moaning into the kiss, he thrusted his hips upward to meet Harry's. Harry groaned softly at the friction.
~spacespacespace~
Meanwhile, down the hall, everyone was thankful for magic. Even more thankful that at least one of them knew what was going to happen that night and was quick enough to cast a silencing spell so that the children could not hear what was going on.
"…Five Galleons says that Harry tops." Fred finally broke the silence of the room.
Fenrir snorted. "Ten that he doesn't. No way will Snape just give up control, not even to prove that his mate's alive."
"Honestly boys! That is my son you are talking about!" Lily yelled. "…And I have twenty galleons saying that Fred is right."
The whole room broke into laughter. Calix lifted his head from Stephanie's shoulder and yawned, being woken up from the noise. The young winged cat stretched out, his tail and paws quivering with the effort. He shook his head before running to 'Uncle Tom'. The movement woke up Stephanie as well as the lion cub looked sleepily at everyone in the room. She grumbled before laying her head back down on Alice's back. The fawn had joined the small pile up soon after the raiding party had returned and her daddy was deemed safe.
"And what is it you want, runt?" Tom asked, looking down at Calix. The term wasn't cruel, rather a little pet name for the cub. Calix smiled and jumped up onto Tom's lap before transforming. Clapping his hands and laughing, he looked up at Tom's ruby eyes, his own blue-green ones locking their gazes as he showed Tom a picture of his fathers laughing together. Tom knew the picture to be the very same one in Harry's bedroom. "It still amazes everyone that you have the exact opposite magic of your father…But yes, Harry is back. You know this." He set the child more securely in his lap to avoid a fall.
"Dada." The whole room froze as the word left Calix's mouth. "Dada!"
"His first word…" Lily whispered.
"Does he mean Harry or Snape though?" Fred asked. Tom looked up at everyone.
"He means Harry, he found a picture of Harry and Severus together and wondered if he was really back." The Dark Lord explained. Calix laughed again and clapped his hands. His dada was back, and that was all he wanted. The other winged cat said he would be back, and he was. She said he would come with a surprise too. Calix wondered what the surprise could be. He hoped it was a good one. Stephanie was a good surprise, but not the one she told him of. Maybe the surprise would take a while to get there.
"Huh…Figures he'd be talking about Harry first. Harry did the same. His first word was stag." Lily said. "Of course…his second one, which came suspiciously close after his first word, was party…" She gave a pointed glare to Sirius, who looked away sheepishly.
"Sorry Lils…Didn't mean for him to hear that." He laughed awkwardly. Lily just rolled her eyes. "Hey! His third word was snake! Of course James was trying to get him to say Snape because the greasy git was coming over that day."
The redhead sighed. Sometimes the mutt was just impossible.
It was well into the morning before Harry and Severus finally made an appearance to the rest of the group that was staying in Potter Manor. Nothing with them gave any indication that anything had happened yesterday, except the certain glow that the women could see around the two. Draco unfortunately, was grouped into the ones who could see it, much to his dismay. Harry simply shook it off with a blush before walking over to his two cubs, counting Stephanie as one because after the month they had went through together, who wouldn't get attached to her? He scooped them both up into his arms, hading Calix over to Severus. "You have explanations you owe everyone. Now." Severus reminded him. Harry sighed.
"And here I thought I did a good job of distracting you from that with fuc-"
"Finish that sentence and the only thing you'll be doing a good job on is keeping the couch warm." Severus snarled. The others looked on in confusion, Fenrir grumbled though and handed over ten galleons to Lily and Fred. The three knew how Harry was going to end that sentence.
"Someone has a bad temper today." Tom commented. "But I do agree Harry, you need to explain a lot, including who that little cub is."
Harry nodded, waking up Stephanie so the girl could transform. Everyone gasped when they saw the nine year old in Harry's arms. She looked like a mini-copy of Severus, except for the green flecks in her eyes.
"Merlin Harry, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you and Snape were keeping secrets from us!" Blaise said jokingly. "That one looks like Snape, and Calix looks like you!"
"I can promise you Zabini, Stephanie is not ours. I would've had to have her when I was six if she was." Harry laughed. "But I am her protector." Harry sat down in a char next to Severus and Calix and began to tell everyone about his time dead. Beginning with meeting up with Willow, seeing his father, the trouble with the trails, and ending with the final trial.
"I thought my legs were going to break under the spell." During his explanations, his hand had found Severus' for comfort. Severus gave his hand a light squeeze, telling him to continue. "Stephanie was on my back at the time, but she wasn't affected. I beat it though. And the last trial, was Life and Death. I had a choice. To submit and stay dead, or come back and finish what I needed to." Harry smiled softly. "You know what I chose. After I beat the last trail, I just ran. And after a while, my heart picked back up. It was gone because of there being no need for it in death. My lungs were burning, my paws screamed for me to stop, but I didn't. Because I had something, someone to live for." His gaze traveled to Severus. "I had a mate, and a kit. I couldn't just leave them like that. I was sent back, but not without something special."
"What is it?" Tom asked.
"Nine lives. The mark of the Winged Cat Prince." Harry answered proudly. "The mark's more visible in my leopard form though. But I do have the nine lives. They show the nine trials that I passed. They're the key to winning the war."
Hermione gasped. "I read about those!" At the glances she received, she continued. "I didn't say anything because I didn't know them to be true or not. It said that Fira was the only one to have nine lives, because she had the Deathly Hallows and a reason for the lives. It was in World War Two, she openly defied her government. She was born, raised, and resided in Germany. Grendlewald was said to be a huge supporter of Hitler, and tried to recruit Fira. She said no. So to help her, magic gave her the nine lives. And she used each and every one in the war. Her last show of diffidence though, was the birth of her son."
"Huh…so I'm even more different then…brilliant." Harry said sarcastically. "What's next?"
"For now, nothing." Tom said. He had listened to everything quietly up until the question of Harry's nine lives. "We lay low, let Dumbledore and the Ministry think that we're recovering from the raid. I don't want to see any of you outside. Harry, Severus, George, none of you are to do anything that could reopen your worst wounds. The last thing we need is for someone to lose a hand or an ear, or Merlin forbid a life!" Harry and George opened their mouths to protest before being silenced by a glare from Lily.
"No arguing. Harry be glad you are not on bed rest like George is! Now I want you to lie down so I can perform a medical examination. You were dead for a month, I'd be amazed if there was nothing wrong."
Harry sighed, setting Stephanie down. "She's right though." The girl said. "And I was dead for way longer."
"You need to lay down too." Lily said to Stephanie. "You both need the examination." Stephanie nodded. Soon enough, both she and Harry were lying down on the two couches in the room, Narcissa performing the examination for Stephanie, while Lily did Harry's.
"Be amazed, Lily. Stephanie's is clean except for a few minor bumps and scrapes. There's not even a scar from her death." Narcissa looked at the small scroll that held the information for Stephanie. It showed a very short list, only the bumps and scrapes that Narcissa said were on there. Along with a small case of malnourishment, that could easily be taken care of once Harry began cooking again. Even without knowing the boy for long, Narcissa heard from the younger Death Eaters that he could go a bit over board with making everything.
Lily frowned. Stephanie's was ok, but Harry's seemed to be a mile long. Even with everything in blue, signaling that it was fixed, the length alone was troubling. "Cracked ribs, poisoning, broken arm, death, death again…and death again…" Her eyes were glued at the parchment as Harry avoided the questioning gaze of his mate.
"I escaped with the invisibility cloak…I died, but Death didn't find me." Harry whispered. Severus sighed, hugging his small mate. He looked at the scroll of parchment that Lily held, worry apparent in his eyes.
"What about the text in black?"
"Well," Lily looked at the bottom of the list. "Death, again. Scarring from the fight, quite a few cracks in his bones from the trails, cuts from the fight, and poor eyesight still. Other than that, I see no need for bed rest. There is something though…a few, deep scratches on his back."
Severus tensed at the mention of the scratches, remembering the night before. "They're healing…" He muttered, fighting off a slight blush.
Lily's eyes were light with amusement. "Don't bruise up my baby too much Sevvie. Though I'm sure that would make for a hilarious story. Losing a life during sex due to scratch marks on your back."
"Mother! Children are present!" Harry yelped. He tried to cover Stephanie's ears and Calix's at the same time. Lily just laughed.
"Oh alright, I'll stop." She finally said after Harry glared daggers at her. "Sev, are you ok?"
As the two Potters were arguing, Severus stared at the ground silently. He shook his head at Lily's question, getting up and running out of the room. Harry and Lily shared a worried glance.
"That doesn't seem good." Harry muttered.
"You two didn't do anything that could make him sick, did you?" Lily asked.
Harry shook his head. "No, unless sex can do that. We weren't out in the cold, he didn't have any wounds that could get infected. I made sure of it." Harry thought back though, trying to remember if anything could have caused it. "It's probably just a touch of the stomach flu. He seemed a bit feverish when he woke up. Or maybe it's nerves."
"Maybe…Let's go check on him." They both got up and walked out of the room, each worrying over what could be wrong with the Potion's Master, but neither knowing exactly what it could be.