Severus's first thought, upon seeing the boy, was that he'd been hiding since the deaths of his muggle relatives had occurred. Wasn't fight or flight a typical reaction? Having seen his aunt and uncle collapse out of nowhere, with no known enemy in sight, he'd taken off.
Then, Severus frowned at the unsatisfactory answer. Why hide in a closet? Would it not make more sense to flee outside, and preferably enlist the help of neighbors?
Severus was about to speak to the Potter spawn when he saw the contents of the closet. He felt his eyebrows raise of their own accord. This closet wasn't simply a hiding place for a frightened child. There was a bed...there were clothes strewn in a pile. By the looks of it, clothes around the same size as what he had on at the moment. Not that Severus could make a clear assessment. The boy himself was balled up in a corner, as though attempting to take up as little space as possible. Given the size of the room, this was reasonable enough, but in light of the fact that someone clearly slept there, Severus's instincts told him there was more to the story than just that.
The boy wasn't looking at him. No, that wasn't accurate. His eyes were shut tight, and as much as Severus considered him the Potter spawn, child of his long dead enemy, he was loathe to reach out and scare him.
His instincts suddenly urged him to look at the inside of the door. A glance at it told him that it could only lock from the outside. He drew in a breath. The boy hadn't been hiding. He'd been locked inside this room-this closet-for an indefinite amount of time. Hours? A day? Longer?
A glance upwards told Severus that Dumbledore was standing to the side of the room. He nodded at the interior of the door, and the older man drew in a breath. Good. He'd seen it, too. Without as much as speaking to the boy, Severus knew that his preconceived notions of a pampered prince raised by doting muggle grandparents were as false as the idea that Lily might one day forgive him. It was all right in front of Severus. Harry had been neglected, had been locked in a closet as his room for Merlin knew how long, and it was only due to the combination of the broken magical barriers and spike in his own magic that he was still alive.
"Harry." He spoke as gently as he knew how. The way he did when one of his Slytherin students came to him with evidence of abuse. "You're all right. Gather your belongings, and come with us."
Severus suddenly realized that his words were wrong, that all children were told not to go off with strangers. For all the boy knew, his relatives (foul scum that they were) were still alive, and he was a robber and kidnapper.
But the boy's eyes opened, and he carefully rose to standing position. The ceiling was low, but not so low that he couldn't stand upright.
"W-who are you?" he whispered.
"I'm Professor Snape, and that is Professor Dumbledore," Severus answered, keeping his voice low and reassuring. "We knew your parents. This house is no longer safe, and you must come with us."
The boy's eyes widened, but he made no move to come forward.
"Harry," Albus put in, "your aunt and uncle just died. Come with us, you can see. It was poison-oh, no one killed them," he added, quickly, "but it is still in the house. That's why we have bubbles around our head."
Harry took a single step forward, then another. He moved far too slowly for Severus's liking, but the effort of staying so small and, perhaps, going without food for some time had to have some effect on a small boy.
He was tiny, too. Severus had visited the Malfoy family on occasion, and Harry was almost a head shorter than Draco. Not that this meant much in and of itself, but combined with the other things Severus had seen, it was clear that Harry was not getting enough to eat.
Once out of the closet, and holding onto his very meager collection of belongings, all clothes, Albus first pointed out the dead bodies to Harry, who stared for several moments before looking away. After he turned his gaze back to the adults, Albus led the way to the kitchen. He checked the shelves for food, then used his wand to retrieve everything. After placing the items in a bag which contained an Extension Charm, he did the same with the refrigerator and freezer.
Harry watched in fascination.
"We've stayed here long enough," the headmaster informed them. "You should receive attention from our matron to ensure that you have not been harmed by the gas which killed your aunt and uncle. But," he added, pointing to the bag, "there is no sense in letting good food go to waste."
The child looked at the bag with evident hunger, but only nodded. Severus found himself placing a hand on his shoulder. Lightly.
"Are you hungry?" he asked, knowing that if there was ever a time to be gentle, now was it.
Harry's eyes-while looked exactly like his mother's-darted from Severus to Albus. He nodded, ever so slightly, then fixed his gaze on the floor.
"We'll have lunch as soon as we are back at the castle," Albus promised, his voice not entirely his usual tenure. "It will be but a few moments, Harry."
Harry nodded again. "Y-yes, sir," he whispered.
Dumbledore nodded, reached into his pocket, and removed a glove. Upon placing it on his hand, he reached for the Portkey, then placed it on the table, after which he removed his glove.
"All of you must touch this on the count of three. Harry, you too," he added. "Ready, then? One...two...three!"
Certain methods of magical travel are initially more pleasant than others. Few witches or wizards dislike broomsticks, even if the fastest model is infinitely more slow than a Portkey or Apparition. Portkeys and Apparition vary in travel time by milliseconds, but one must be seventeen to Apparate legally-and there is always some risk of splinching. These travel methods take getting used to, and while Severus and Albus had well over a decade of each, it was Harry's first time.
He threw up immediately afterwards, then began to shake violently.
Once again, it was Severus who acted first. Ignoring the boy's physical resemblance to his nemesis, and focusing on the fact that the child had likely been abused and evidently neglected, he acted and spoke as he would to a first year Slytherin whose parents had committed heinous acts of abuse.
Crouching down to the boy's level, he placed his hands on his shoulders.
"I know, that wasn't very pleasant," he murmured, "but it's all over, and you won't have to experience it again today."
Harry nodded, still trying to catch his breath, and a few tears escaped his eyes. Feeling that Albus would never tell anyone about what he was about to do, Severus pulled Harry into his arms, hugging him. Harry stiffened at first, but then seemed to melt in his arms. Severus felt the boy's arms around him, clinging onto his robes, as though Severus would let go before he was ready. His face buried itself into Severus's robes.
Something in Severus, perhaps memories from being with his mother, told him to let Harry break contact first. And the boy did, although his breaths were still hitching. Even then, the child remained by Severus's side as they walked the halls to the sick wing. While they waited for Madam Pomfrey, Albus opened the bag of food, and placed some selections before Harry. After a moment, he chose an apple, and the only sound that could be heard was the boy's munching.
The matron's eyes widened when she saw Harry, but before she could speak, Albus intervened.
"Poppy, this is Harry Potter. His aunt and uncle just died from carbon monoxide poisoning. Harry's magic appears to have protected him, but I was hoping you could determine this for certain." Before Poppy could do more than open her mouth, he continued, "He will need a full physical examination shortly, but the pressing concern today is detecting poison."
She nodded, all business. "Certainly. That won't take long. Harry, dear, if you could sit up straight, I'll perform some detection charms. It won't hurt a bit."
"Yes, ma'am," he answered, softly.
With a smile, she began muttering incantations under her breath, waving her wand around Harry in varying directions. The child, to his credit, remained still, and once it was finished, Madam Pomfrey's face relaxed.
"Well, Harry, you're very fortunate. The poison that killed your muggle relatives had no ill effects on you or your magic. You will need a formal health examination, to determine whether you are otherwise in good health, but you're in no immediate danger," she determined, gently placing a hand on one of his. "Albus, will he be staying at the castle?"
"He'll be staying with Severus, for the time being." Albus smiled genially at Severus.
Severus bit hard on his tongue to keep from swearing at the meddling headmaster.
Author's note:
Albus should have asked Sev first, huh?
Maybe the hugging was too sudden, but I hope I justify its occurrence by showing the circumstances around it. After all, Severus sees firsthand at least some of the notorious neglect, and he's making an effort to treat Harry like a first year Slytherin.
Besides, Harry's not even eight, and looks closer to six. In this fic, Severus has a heart-and it's showing a bit earlier than he would like.
That doesn't mean he's happy about the "Potter spawn" spending the summer-HIS summer holidays-with him!
I'm floored by all of the favorites and follows so far. If you have anything to say, though, please leave a review. :)