Harry felt terrible! He'd woken up feeling so hot. He hadn't been hot since he'd come into his creature powers usually fighting to stay warm instead. Now, he was burning up and achy and irritable, and there was a pain in his lower back that just wouldn't go away. Kreacher was almost tiptoeing on eggshells as Harry's emotions over the last week had went from perfectly calm to crying to angry in minutes.
"How do women do this for nine-months?" He asked while dabbing at the tears on his cheeks after seeing a picture of a crup puppy in the morning paper.
"Mistress Walburga didn't have to go through everything as condensed as the master. It was longer, but also easier to get used to, I would imagine," the elf explained kindly while stirring a pan on the stove.
Harry whimpered and rubbed the spot on his back. "This pain, it keeps getting worse…"
"Um…master…" Kreacher's eyes got wide as he stopped dishing up the oatmeal he'd been putting into a bowl for Harry. "How long have you had the pain…?"
"Since last night, but it was longer between when it flared up then," Harry groaned, still rubbing his back.
"Like…contractions?" Kreacher commented with a raise of his eyebrow.
Harry stared at the elf as realization dawned in his eyes. "No…I have more time! It's early," he breathed out in a panicked tone.
Kreacher sat the pan back on the stove and took one of his master's hands in both of his. "Breathe Master Harry…we knew it could be a little early," he tried to reason.
"But…I still don't know how it's going to get out…" he looked at the elf with scared eyes and a pleading tone.
Kreacher winced, already having guessed what would probably need to happen when Harry had finally translated Fawkes's part of their conversation. He just really hadn't wanted to tell the teen his suspicions. "Master…the phoenix…he said this normally triggers a burning day…"
"Yeah, I've done that before, but I was hit with the killing curse then," Harry couldn't help the groan that came from his throat as another wave of pain hit him.
Kreacher tried to put it as delicately as possible, something he'd never been particularly skilled at. "Master…I don't think your body is made to do this…what I mean is…I don't think you can survive it…"
"What?!" Harry gasped in fear and clutched onto the elf's arms. "I'm going to die?!"
"No…well yes, burn out, like the phoenix said," Kreacher mimed for him to take in some deep breaths, hoping to calm down the man. "Kreacher thinks…the master's body will just give up eventually, and it will have to burn, leaving the egg outside your body."
"Bloody hell!" He yelled, followed by a groan. "Great! I'm going to slowly die before burning out. You better just completely skip over the terrible twos and be a very understanding teenager!" Harry ordered his stomach.
"Come Master Harry, Kreacher will take you to your room," the elf did his best to help Harry to his feet and towards the stairs.
"I shouldn't have come down this morning," Harry remarked as both men looked up at what seemed an impossible feat to climb the stairs.
They did eventually make it up the stairs and into Harry's room, thanks to more than a little elf magic. Harry protested the bed in favor of curling up on the floor since it seemed to help his back some, and he didn't really want to set his bed on fire either. "Master would be more comfortable in the bed," Kreacher wrung his hands in his inability to do anything to help the situation.
"No, it feels better this way," Harry protested between screams now. "Kreacher, why don't you go somewhere? Go shopping or to the beach or something today…you shouldn't have to stay here and watch me slowly die before burning out."
"Kreacher can't leave the master! He needs his Kreacher!" The elf almost wailed along with Harry.
Harry was sweating now and trying to take off the thin t-shirt he'd slipped on that morning. It took Kreacher's help to finally struggle out of it, his large stomach now feeling like it was being ripped open from the inside. "Nothing you can do," Harry groaned, still trying to get the elf to leave him. He didn't want Kreacher to see this, he didn't want anyone to see this.
"A healer…"
"Kreacher, I'll order you to leave if you mention a healer again," Harry groaned. He knew he could have ordered Kreacher away already, but that just wasn't something he would do if at all possible. "I'm dying…there isn't anything they can do. And how would I explain burning out and coming back alive again?"
The elf finally sat cross-legged on the floor in front of Harry and took one of Harry's hands in both of his. "Then you's just squeeze Kreacher's hand, and he'll be here. Kreacher will not leave his master," the elf sniffed tears away. "We's going to have a baby, Master."
"It bloody well needs to hurry up!" Harry screamed and squeezed the elf's hands, hoping Kreacher's bones were stronger than they looked.
Maybe a normal phoenix was more capable to handle the birth of its egg, but Harry's body was just not made for what it was going through. It was a long, slow process of his magic trying to keep him together, but his body failing. It took most of the day before Harry screamed one long, hoarse shriek that could probably be heard outside of the house, and then stopped breathing. Kreacher wailed before shuffling away from the body slowly, praying the burning was coming…it had to…his master had to live.
Kreacher jumped and gasped as flames shot up around his master engulfing the body. He had to immediately cast containment wards when the rug caught fire and the curtains were dangerously close. The fire seemed to last much longer than the elf thought it would before it just blinked out, leaving a pile of ash with his master, naked and curled in around a large egg that was about a foot from its top to the bottom. Kreacher's eyes watered as he looked at the precious gemstone that made up the egg. It was emerald green and gorgeous with facets that caught the light around it. Substantial heat was still radiating from Harry and surrounding the egg, so Kreacher disregarded his thought of throwing a blanket over the both of them and instead settled in to wait, leaning against the wall across from them and watching over them protectively. He had to admit…this was probably the strangest thing he'd seen in his life so far…the strangest and the most horrible and the best all rolled into one.
After day one of his master curled unconscious on the floor, Kreacher was getting concerned again. The master had gotten three owls, one from St. Mungo's, one from the master's Granger, and one from a Percy Weasley. He put the letters aside and checked on the master and the egg. Harry was still radiating too much heat to risk throwing a blanket over him, but thankfully he seemed to look slightly better. He was thin again…too thin. It seemed all the weight he'd gained and a little more was gone, his spine clearly visible from where he was curled around the egg, and he was ghostly pale, causing his green scales to shine in comparison. Kreacher looked over his master carefully. It didn't seem that he'd developed any type of pouch to carry the egg, so Kreacher settled on the floor with some scraps of leather and soft fabric to start making a bag to put the egg in.
Day two of Harry being unconscious, and Kreacher decided to open the letters to make sure they were not important. Granger's letter was just an update. They had found her parents who were being treated at the wizarding hospital in Sydney to retrieve their memories. Weasley's letter just asked if they could meet sometime soon. Kreacher figured that was going to have to wait a long while knowing his master's thoughts on the matter. The letter from the hospital was an update on when the potion master would be released, which was a little less than a week away. It didn't ask for a response, so Kreacher set it aside and went back to his master's room to continue to sew on the bag.
Day three and Harry looked less pale, but the same besides that. He also started making small whimpering sounds occasionally that Kreacher wasn't sure what they meant. The elf decided his master was probably in pain and went out to collect several pain potions that he lined up on the nightstand for when the master finally awoke. He was very proud of the bag he'd sewn together. It looked fashionable, manly, and could easily be carried on his master's shoulder.
Day four and Harry started radiating less heat. Kreacher began to try to move the teen to the bed, but Harry let out a plaintive cry at Kreacher's lightest touch. The little elf wrung his hands and finally just put a blanket over the boy and the egg. The master was stirring slightly now, and Kreacher was hopeful that meant he would wake up soon. He felt completely helpless in caring for the man and didn't know how to reach out to the phoenix to help him either.
Harry felt raw and like he had gaping wounds all over his body. He felt like he'd survived a dozen cruciatus curses and several cutting curses as he slowly started to regain consciousness. He groaned and curled in closer to the precious object laying in the center of his body. He couldn't process what it was currently, but he knew it was vitally important and must be protected at all costs. A light blanket shifted on top of him and he wondered what he was doing naked and lying on the floor.
"Master! You's awake!" Kreacher's large eyes appeared right in front of Harry's face, causing him to flinch back with a groan.
"Am I bleeding? I must be bleeding," Harry rasped as he looked down at his body but didn't see the wounds he expected to be there.
"No master. Kreacher got you pain potions," the elf handed a vial to the grateful man who drank it and winced at the liquid hitting his sore throat.
Everything was slightly dulled and more manageable within seconds. "What happened?" Harry tried to remember what led to all this even as his hand caressed the shining green egg he was curled around.
"We's had a baby, Master!" Kreacher grinned widely and pointed to the egg with adoration in his eyes.
"Oh," Harry stared and stared as it sunk in…he was a father…well, the baby wasn't exactly out in the world yet, but it was outside of him and beautiful. "Wow," he ran a loving finger down the hard, emerald shell.
"Master should call the phoenix. He's said to call him when the egg was born."
"Kreacher, I don't know that I can produce a patronus right now," Harry struggled to sit up with more than a little help from the elf. "Everything just seems so difficult."
"Right, Kreacher will help the master to the bed, and you's rest before anything else. Kreacher will bring you food," he said, trying to help Harry stand, who wasn't letting go of the egg.
Kreacher reached out to help pick up the egg, but Harry frantically shifted back. "Don't touch it!" He hoarsely shrieked, some instinct flaring in his eyes that was definitely not human.
Kreacher held up both hands and backed off slightly. "Kreacher will not touch your egg, Master," he said slowly, not having realized it was going to be a problem, but understanding it nonetheless.
"Sorry, Kreacher. I don't know where that came from," Harry sighed and still pulled the egg closer to himself. "I just can't…I can't let anyone else touch it…"
"Kreacher understands," the elf patted his shoulder. "Many creatures have strong protective instincts for their young. If Master doesn't want anyone to touch the egg, then Kreacher will make sure that doesn't happen."
"Thanks," he mumbled as the house elf awkwardly helped him up by one arm while he held onto the egg that was fairly heavy with his other.
It was a relief to sink into the bed as Kreacher pulled the covers over Harry who'd already curled around the egg again. "How long was I out, Kreacher?"
"Master Harry burned out five days ago," Kreacher said, his anxiety creeping into his voice.
Harry breathed out a sigh. "I'm sorry, Kreacher. I know you were probably worried."
"Kreacher kept busy," the elf walked over to the dresser where he picked up the bag he'd made. "Kreacher made this for master's egg. It will needs some warming charms, but I's figured you'd want to do them yourself."
Harry teared up; apparently the hormones weren't completely out of his system. "It's beautiful Kreacher!" He exclaimed as he examined the skilled workmanship of the leather messenger bag that was wide and deep enough to accommodate the egg easily. "It's so soft on the inside too," he felt the soft fabric, already knowing he'd be casting all kinds of cushioning and protective wards on the bag as well as warming charms.
"Only the bests for our baby," Kreacher almost purred in pleasure.
"Did I miss anything important while I was out?" Harry put the bag aside to cast the spells later when he felt more up to doing anything besides attempting to breathe.
The house elf snapped his fingers and three letters appeared. "Kreacher opened them. He wasn't sure when master would wake up," he handed them to Harry and began to clean the ash off the floor that'd been under Harry and he couldn't get to earlier.
"Oh wow, they found Hermione's parents," Harry smiled as he read the letter, feeling like it'd been years since his friends left for Australia instead of weeks. "Hmm, Percy is a bit persistent. I guess I'll have to get back to him eventually…" he trailed off after glancing through the second letter.
"What's this?" He asked as he looked through the one from St. Mungo's.
"Potion Master Snape is being released in a couple days," Kreacher remarked with a shrug.
"But…he's not well yet," Harry frowned. He'd been out for five days, but he didn't think that length of time would make a significant difference in the man's recovery. He was still having a hard time getting around and on restricted use of magic when Harry had seen him last. "Why did they contact me anyway?"
"Master Harry said you's marked as his next of kin," Kreacher suggested as an answer.
"Yeah…that could be it," he shook his head. "I hope Snape isn't planning on going off on his own. At his trial, the aurors mentioned that they'd searched his house, and it wasn't in very good shape…no dark artifacts though," Harry snorted. "As if the man would be stupid enough to leave anything lying around for aurors to find. However, knowing him, he'll go right back on his aging potions and blood replenishers too if no one's there to stop him. I completely understand wanting to hide you're a creature with all the prejudice, but he can't be allowed to poison himself again! Vampires cannot be on aging potions for that long, and he needs to actually drink blood instead of replacements!"
"We's have guest rooms," Kreacher offered, raising an eyebrow at his master's rant. "Potion Master Snape wasn't hard to care for when the Order was here. He was more respectful to Kreacher than many others. I's can get plenty of blood for him from the butcher in Knockturn Alley to keep him away from the potions too."
Harry knew Sirius had been on that list of disrespectful people and he felt really bad about it, but definitely wasn't going to bring it up when they'd formed a tentative peace in their relationship. "That might work. What about this though?" He motioned to the egg.
Kreacher considered. "We's make it clear Potion Master Snape isn't allowed in the master's bedroom, and the egg is in the bag when you leave the room."
"I'm going to look so strange carrying a bag around in my own house," Harry groaned, but pulled the egg closer to him. Instinctually, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he wouldn't be able to take more than a couple steps from the egg without freaking out. It was only part his creature but also a heavy dose of trauma from losing so many people to the war. He knew he was going to look strange regardless, and it might be good practice in making up excuses for Hogwarts.
"The master is already strange," Kreacher smirked unhelpfully. Harry snorted but nodded in agreement as the elf went to get him some food.
Harry moved as smoothly as he could through the halls of St. Mungo's, keeping the pain off his features to the best of his ability. It would just be his luck that some over-zealous healer would take one look at him and try to admit him. Snape was being released today though, and Harry knew that if he wasn't there, the man would run off on his own and set his healing back several steps by never asking for help. Luckily, Harry had Kreacher to care for Snape because right now, he was having a hard time caring for himself. Burning out really didn't heal enough of him in his expert opinion.
Harry was moving with the entirely wishful thinking that he'd walk into Snape's room and find Draco Malfoy ready to cart off their professor to his manor to care for. He was fairly certain that was delusional thinking though. Malfoy didn't seem the type to even consider that Snape might need help, and Snape would never ask, especially now that Draco knew his godfather was a vampire…hopefully that had gone well, Harry was a little afraid to ask. Besides, Harry already had one houseguest. Fawkes had shown up the day after Harry awoke when he'd finally felt up to sending off a patronus. The phoenix had cooed over the egg all day and hadn't left since. So, he already had a grumpy bird on his hands, he didn't really want to add a grumpy potions master as well.
Harry shifted the bag that was oozing with protection, warming, cushioning, and lightening charms more securely on his shoulder as he came level with his professor's room. With a sigh and a quick knock, Harry pushed open the door. "Hello, Professor," he commented, hopes dying when he saw that there was no Draco Malfoy in attendance. It seemed he'd be adopting a grumpy potion master after all.
"Potter…it's been a week since you were last here," Snape commented with a glare that barely covered the anxiety on his features. Either Harry was getting better at reading the man's expressions or he was getting worse at covering them, Harry thought. It was probably at least partially attributed to not being constantly in pain and on a continuous overdose of potions that was making him more expressive.
"You said you might be absent for a couple days, not an entire week…explain."
Harry painfully shuffled into the room, still feeling like there should be open wounds all over his body and sank into the armchair suppressing a groan of relief. "I'm sorry…everything took a bit longer than expected," he said vaguely.
"You look worse than the last time I saw you," Snape commented thinly, getting back to their tradition of him remarking on Harry's appearance. "You're thinner and seem to be in pain…you are obviously unwell."
"I was unwell, now I'm fine," Harry sighed tiredly. "It's nothing you should concern yourself with."
Snape snorted, clearly communicating he would never be concerned for one such as Potter even though his words and actions had been saying otherwise. Harry pulled the bag closer to him on his lap and settled in to wait for whenever Snape was going to be discharged.
"I'm leaving today, Potter. There is no need for you to return here anymore," the man remarked tersely.
Snape was already wearing robes he must have had Malfoy pick up for him because they weren't the ones he'd been wearing when attacked during the battle or the fancy silk pajamas Malfoy had provided for while he was recovering. As he talked, he tried to pull on a shoe but was largely unsuccessful as he grimaced in pain when he bent over. Harry felt his pain and some as he watched.
"Mr. Snape," Healer Morris bustled into the room with a chart in his hands. "I take it you are ready to leave. I told you that I cannot release you if you do not have someone here for me to release you into their care. You will need significant help for several days at least and can absolutely not take any aging potions or glamour yourself if you need to go out in public."
Harry cleared his throat and Snape looked at the teen, startled. "I think that's why I'm here, Healer Morris," he commented. "I got your letter a few days ago."
"What letter?" Snape growled at the healer in anger.
"It was a standard communication to your next of kin about when you would be released," the healer sternly stared Snape down, more than a match for the ornery vampire.
"He's not my next of kin," Snape pointed accusingly at Harry.
"Then you should have changed it when you woke up," Harry shrugged, not caring if he was irritated at all. "Besides, your healer said that you can't leave on your own. Kreacher and I are both good cooks and Kreacher already offered to help you out as much as possible when you need him."
"Potter, I'm a vampire! You can't just invite a vampire into your home," Snape said in exasperation. "It's not done! Especially not the Savior of the Wizarding World!"
"Why not?" Harry glared at him challengingly. "It's not like you're going to try to hurt me after almost killing yourself to keep me alive for so long. Plus, I already have a house elf and a phoenix living with me, what's one more magical creature?"
"Is this Kreacher a house elf?" The healer asked with a raise of an eyebrow.
"Yes, sir," Harry nodded.
"Excellent! Elf magic is a wonderful help in times of physical need. This should work out well."
The healer immediately handed a ream of parchment from the chart he'd been carrying to Harry. It was the diet plan they had put together for Snape to be on, the physical rehabilitation exercises he should do every day, his appointment schedule for healers and the physical therapist, and a list of the potions he was taking and when he should take them. Snape protested all of this being given to Harry, especially the potion schedule since he was a potion master himself, but the healer ignored the man through it all. "Do you understand all of this? Any questions?" He asked.
Harry nodded as he looked through it. He had a suspicion that though Snape understood and knew about everything on the parchment, it would be Harry and Kreacher that would be making him stick to it. "What form of transportation is best for him? I would think floo might be a little taxing, would apparition or the Knight Bus be better for me to get him home?"
"For now, I'd call your elf to take him home. Their apparition is much smoother than ours. He should be fine for the bus in a few days and the floo next week," the healer explained. "I'd like him to keep his use of magic to a minimum for another two weeks though as his body is still recovering from everything. And absolutely no aging potions or charms!" He added sternly to the man.
"I'm sitting right here," Snape sneered at them both. "I'm not a child no matter how ridiculously young I look now!"
"And you got yourself into most of this mess by not sleeping or eating as you should as well as your ridiculous self-imposed potion regimen and not getting medical help after being tortured multiple times," the healer glared at him.
"It was the middle of a war! What was I supposed to do?!" Snape threw his hands up in exasperation. It was more emotion than Harry had seen from him in a very long time. "What about him? He looks terrible!"
The healer followed Snape's finger to Harry who really did look terrible. "He has a point there, Mr. Potter," Healer Morris looked him over calculatingly.
"I'm fine…" Harry cut off as the healer cast a diagnostic wave of magic at him before he could even protest. His eyes turned fearful just as the healer's narrowed.
"Son…please put your bag on the floor for a minute," the man looked at the bag suspiciously.
"I do not want to be scanned," Harry narrowed his eyes, instincts rising in him. He knew he wasn't actually being threatened, but it was starting to feel like he and his egg were. Logically, he knew Healer Morris was a good healer and person after spending so much time with him, but instinctually, he was definitely feeling cornered.
"Mr. Potter, you will listen to the healer," Snape cut in, turning sharp eyes on Harry and looking much sterner than his young face allowed. "You have looked steadily worse and worse every time I have seen you, not better. Having died already, it is only reasonable for you to be seen to."
"What?!" The healer's eyes widened. "What does he mean that you died?!"
Harry shrugged. "Got hit with another killing curse during the battle," he said simply. "Didn't take…"
"Mr. Potter…son…please put the bag on the ground for one minute while I scan you," the healer's eyes softened and worry rose in them. "I promise, as your healer now as well…I cannot tell anyone what I may find, but someone needs to take a look at you. You know better than most that I take my oaths seriously and would never betray your trust."
"You promise you can't tell anyone…not even him," Harry motioned to the sneering man in the bed.
"If you don't wish it, then no," the older man nodded emphatically.
Harry slowly placed the egg on the floor between his feet, not willing to put it any farther from himself than that. "Ok…but we talk in private…right?"
"Right," the grey-haired man nodded before casting the diagnostic spell again. As the magic settled around Harry, he saw the healer's brow furrow and his lips purse. "I don't understand…" he finally commented as the spell dissipated.
"Talk in private…" Harry motioned to the door.
"Yes," the healer instead cast a strong privacy ward around them both so that Snape couldn't hear. Harry could see the glare Snape was giving the healer from the other side of the ward. "I'm not really sure I want you up and walking around…what happened to you, Mr. Potter?"
"Er…" Harry wasn't really sure where to start. "Can you tell that I'm part…or rather mostly creature now…?"
The healer's eyes widened in his kind face. "Ah, yes, that does explain some…the bag there…there's something alive in it too, isn't there? As for you, internally…you're a mess. Your magic is working to repair significant distress and your health is very concerning overall. Also…are you venomous?! Can you please explain any of this?"
Harry rubbed the back of his neck. "Um, well…I died again several days ago…I'm part phoenix you see…"
The healer breathed in a shocked breath of air. "I didn't know that was a possibility!"
"Er, it was a very…unique circumstance. I'm part basilisk too…" he trailed off with a wince at having to come clean to someone.
Healer Morris shook his head, nonverbally saying that he'd never seen the like in all his many years treating patients. "That would explain the venom…Please explain how you died several days ago then."
Harry motioned to the bag. "Phoenixes can reproduce asexually," he commented with a bit of a wince at the remembered pain. "That's my egg."
"Oh," the healer's eyes widened again as it sank in. "Oh! Wow…alright…"
"Well, I'm not a full phoenix, so I don't completely regenerate," Harry explained with a shrug. "I have some pain potions to help as I heal up, but do you think you might have something to help as well with the internal damage? My house elf said there's a good salve for stretch marks, and mine are bloody awful if you could give me a prescription for that too it'd be much appreciated."
The healer immediately started scribbling away on some parchment. "These are orders for pain potions, nutrition potions, potions to heal internal damage, your stretch mark salve, and a potion to help boost your immune system since yours is very low right now. You can give this list to your elf with Mr. Snape's, and you need to take them all. You will also come see me in one week's time for me to see how you are progressing. If your creature side has any interaction with the potions before then, stop taking them immediately and send me an owl," the healer ordered as he thought through the best plan for them to follow.
"Now…when is your baby due to hatch? I'm not a pediatrician…or a healer specializing in creatures though I've had a crash course with Mr. Snape there, but you will need to get the little one checked out by someone too. I know you do not have a lot of trust in healers right now, but I can suggest some very reliable and discreet pediatricians I know."
"He or she isn't due to hatch for almost a year. We have plenty of time," Harry smiled lovingly at the bag while he picked it up and hugged it in his lap again.
"I'm writing out a list of parenting books you may find useful then too," the healer pulled another piece of parchment and began writing. "My wife found them helpful anyway and made me read them with our youngest…they're at least informative if nothing else."
Harry smiled as he took both sheets of parchment, surprisingly relieved that a healer knew what was going on and seemed to want to help without judgment. "You won't tell anyone…?"
"I'd lose my job and my license if I did, plus you already made me swear on my magic to secrecy," the man told him firmly. "Unlike some here, I take my healer vows seriously, as you well know since you chose me to be Mr. Snape's healer." With a wave of his wand the silencing ward fell. "I scheduled your appointment for right after Mr. Snape's next week, so you only have to make one trip. I'll see you both then."
"That looked…concerning," Snape raised an eyebrow at Harry after the healer left, having seen the whole interaction and not sure what to make of the healer's shocked and worried expressions.
"Yeah well, now I have to take a whole list of potions too, thanks for that," Harry grumbled but looked surprisingly a little fondly at the man. "You ready to go? I'll call Kreacher to take you."
"I'll not be going to that hovel the mutt left you. I'll be heading to Spinner's End," Snape glared and finally got his shoe on successfully.
"Yeah…right. The aurors who searched your place said it didn't look so good. I think they probably did most of the damage," Harry winced, knowing it was most definitely true. Snape closed his eyes and took in a deep calming breath. That seemed to have hurt him more than Harry thought it would.
"Besides, Kreacher and I have been cleaning, and he's already set up a room for you. Turns out, he actually kind-of likes you a bit, go figure," Harry shrugged and slowly stood, adjusting his bag on his shoulder once more. "He's already stocked up on plenty of blood from the butcher's as well, so it'd just be rude to go somewhere else now."
"Well…when he only has a dunderhead like you for company…"
Harry was amazed that it seemed the man was actually teasing him, and he stood open mouthed in shock. He wondered not for the first time if maybe Snape wasn't quite the git his spying persona made him play. "Er…Kreacher!" He eventually called out, not even able to respond.
"Master Harry," the elf immediately popped in.
"Could you take Professor Snape and get him settled in his room?" Harry asked. "I'll floo on over."
The elf put his hands on his little hips and glared his master down. "The master will wait right here, and Kreacher will come back and collect him. Master Harry will not be flooing until Kreacher says so!"
Snape smirked over at Harry as Kreacher grabbed onto his hand and they both popped out. "We're outnumbered by grumpy gits, baby," he said lovingly down at his bag. "Don't worry…they aren't bad people though…we'll be fine," he tried to assure himself more than the egg.
Up Next: Snape's Thoughts...