AN: im really hoping to finish this by the end of the year so bear with me

December 2005

Severus and Harry had been on guard the past few months since Severus' coworkers had found out about his HIV and pieced together his relationship with Harry. Mostly they dealt with dirty looks and "accidental" shoves in the street. Once Harry had felt someone watching him while he and Teddy were in the park. He had gotten so spooked, reliving the terror of the war that he had grabbed the boy and apparated home.

However, today Harry had bought a new truck and wanted to celebrate. He had taken Severus, Andromeda and Teddy to the slightly bigger town an hour and half away to eat a special dinner and to see how the truck held up to a longer drive. They had a good meal and were joking around during the drive home, Teddy having fallen asleep not long after being tucked into his booster seat.

They turned up the driveway and saw smoke. Harry glanced at Severus and Andromeda, before hurrying down the gravel path. When they reached the house, their mouths fell open in horror. Some mean son of a bitch had set their beautiful house on fire. Their home was burning and had been burning for some time. Only the corner beams and the porch still stood.

Harry was angry. His fingertips sparked lightning against the wheel where he gripped so tight the leather creaked. Severus, being sadly used to crime scenes from his past, took some deep breaths and pulled out a blocky cell phone. He called emergency services and then they sat in the truck waiting for fire trucks and police.

Harry grabbed Severus' hand and held it with all his heart.

"What do we do now?"

"We move on as best we can."