A/N: Thank you for your wonderful response!

CHAPTER - 4

Harry tapped his fingers on his knees as he waited in Albus' office. Snape had left a while ago, saying he had to take care of a potion that was brewing. He had assured Harry in a very shifty way that all his questions would be answered by Dumbledore. So, Harry was now waiting, quite impatiently. The door to the office opened, and Dumbledore entered.

"Harry!" he greeted the boy warmly, his blue eyes twinkling behind his half-moon glasses.

"Sir," Harry nodded at the man who took a seat behind the desk. Dumbledore's eyes saddened as he saw the red angry handprint on Harry's cheek and the swollen eye.

"Tea?" he asked softly.

"Sure."

Albus tapped his desk, and two cups of tea appeared, accompanied by a plate of biscuits. "Sir, why am I here?" Harry asked as he took a cup.

"Harry, when Professor Snape and I visited your house two days ago, we noticed some things which…unsettled us."

Harry gave him a puzzled look. "But, sir, for all these years, the Dursleys have been like this. And you knew it. Why now?"

"Harry, I am sorry to have put you with them for so long," Albus said sadly. "I knew things were difficult for you there, but I wasn't aware of the extent. I did not know Petunia was capable of such cruelty. You must understand, I didn't have an alternative choice, my boy."

Harry didn't respond and looked into his cup. He felt like rolling his eyes. It was always the same with Dumbledore: 'Sorry,' 'I didn't know,' etc. Harry did not feel a single emotion inside him at this moment. And that unsettled him.

"I know… plus the wards… it's always about the wards," Harry said shortly, his voice edged with frustration.

"I believe you would like to be set up in the Gryffindor Common Room?" Albus asked him, choosing not to reply to Harry's comment.

A small smile took over Harry's features. "Yes, sir. I would like that very much."

"Very well." Dumbledore nodded, his eyes still sad but filled with determination.

"Sir, will I be able to do magic here?" Harry asked curiously, a spark of hope in his voice.

"Of course," Albus said, his tone warm. "Professor Snape and I shall be in the castle for the duration of the holidays. If Severus wishes to take off, I shall still be here, Harry."

"Alright, sir." Harry wondered where Snape would go. Surely, the man would have a house. But why was he in the castle then? For Harry? The thought itself was comical.

"You can visit the library or go anywhere on the grounds. I would have to ask you not to leave the premises, though. If you wish to go to Hogsmeade, just let me or Severus know about your plans before you go."

Harry nodded. Thank God, at least he could go to Hogsmeade.

"You can dine in the common room. Although on some Saturdays, we eat dinner together in the Great Hall. You might want to join us?"

Harry nodded before frowning. 'Together?' Dinner with Dumbledore and Snape? No, thank you.

"Well, if you have any questions, feel free to come to me or Severus," Albus said, standing up, Harry following suit. "I apologize again, Harry," Albus said, putting his hand on Harry's shoulder.

"Sir, you didn't answer my question," Harry said, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Why now? What happened this time that you took me away from the Dursleys?"

Albus smiled, his eyes twinkling mysteriously. "Professor Snape happened."

Harry couldn't understand the answer, but he figured this was all he was going to get out of Albus Dumbledore. He sighed before taking his leave.

Hogwarts looked very eerie without students. The castle was quiet, and Harry liked it. He liked the freedom he knew he was going to get here. He could finally enjoy his holidays, get his homework done on time and with focus, and explore the castle without interruption. This was bliss.

He gave the Gryffindor portrait the old password, and it opened for him. He saw that a lunch tray was already waiting for him on the table. He went into his dorm and took out the minimized trunk before enlarging it. Opening the trunk, he put his parents' photo and album on the bedside table where he always kept them.

"I miss you a hell lot," Harry said as he gazed at the photo of his parents dancing. He sighed before going to the bathroom to keep his toiletries. He found a small bottle of salve kept near the sink with a small note written on it: "Apply twice a day."

Harry snorted. He could recognize the spidery handwriting anywhere. He took a small amount of cream and gently spread it over his cheek and his eye. Instant relief washed through him as the pain and burning lessened. His stomach grumbled, and he realized he was starving. Rushing down the stairs, he ate his lunch while reading a magazine left by some student in the common room.

All in all, Harry was a very happy lark right now. He hadn't slept properly for the past few weeks. Without any fear of missing his bathroom time and with a full stomach, Harry decided he would take a small nap. He settled on the couch in the common room, and slowly, his eyes started to drift shut on their own accord, a sense of peace enveloping him like a warm blanket.

/

"Dad, when can I meet him?"

Severus Snape was ready to pull his hair out. It was the seventh time Elle had asked him about Harry.

"Elle, I told you, let Mr. Potter settle down a bit. You can meet him then."

The little girl huffed, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting. The duo was sitting in their quarters' living room. Severus had told his daughter about Harry coming to live in the castle. While he enjoyed the excited look on his little girl's face, he regretted the reason for it.

He had thought a lot about what to do with Potter. He knew the boy couldn't be left alone with those Muggles. After seeing that handprint, he knew he had made the right decision.

Elle was extremely happy to have someone to play with this summer. She had playdates with the kids at her school, but in summer, Severus wanted to spend as much time as he could with her.

He had thought of not telling Elle about Harry's stay at Hogwarts at all. It was a huge castle with just four people in it. The chances of Elle running into Potter were quite slim, especially with Severus always on guard.

With the Dark Lord's return, Severus feared for his and Elle's safety. He had kept her a secret for all these years; he couldn't risk that. Revealing her to Potter created a risk since Voldemort could access the boy's mind.

If revealing Elle to Potter was inevitable, Severus thought it best if Potter learned Occlumency before meeting her. But on second thought, he knew the boy was hopeless in that skill. Hence, he wasn't sure what to do now.

Elle, of course, was currently throwing a tantrum. And as expected of a child, she didn't understand the gravity of the situation; she wanted to meet Harry right now.

"He's way older than you, as it is. If you meet him, he might decide that he doesn't want to play with you. And you need to be okay with that," Snape said carefully. It was true. While Potter had a reputation for being nice to juniors, he wasn't sure the boy would want to hang around with his seven-year-old daughter all day long in summer.

Elle didn't answer but looked at him sadly with a small pout. Severus couldn't help but melt under those eyes. She had him wrapped around her little finger.

"Come here," he said, and the girl instantly launched herself at him, climbing onto his lap. Severus held her close. He wasn't sure what the year was going to bring for him and Elle; he just hoped he would be alive to see her get into Hogwarts.

"Daddy, can I ask you a question?"

"You just did," Severus chuckled as Elle rolled her eyes.

"Don't be silly, Daddy," she said before settling herself on his lap so that she was facing him, her little hands playing with his shirt buttons. "Why aren't we going on a vacation like always this summer?"

Severus brushed her black hair, which was very much like his own, with his hand. It was a tradition in their small Snape family. Ever since Elle had turned three, every year during the summer holidays, Snape took her on a trip for a week or two. Somewhere where they could be father and daughter without the fear of Death Eaters or students.

Elle loved those few days with her dad. Exploring new cities, eating new food, and having boundless fun with Severus. He was a stern father, no doubt. He made sure Elle excelled in all her classes and extracurricular activities. Even though he was a teacher and head of house, he always made sure to be a hands-on father and was involved in Elle's life.

But he knew how to have fun, contrary to what people always thought of him. He just needed the right company, like his daughter. He wanted to give her everything he couldn't have: a loving family. It wasn't a secret that Severus' home life was full of troubles. His parents weren't exactly the ones who took their child on vacations every year. The farthest Snape ever got from his house at that time was Hogwarts. Hogwarts was his vacation.

He knew Elle would always miss out on the love of a mother, but he made sure she never missed out on him.

He never kept friends. Not after Lily. The concept never appealed to him. He was happy in his solitary life. When Elle came, Severus realized how much better his life was after having a child. Elle was everything to him. His life.

At first, he had thought about just taking her and fleeing the country, away from all of these people. But he knew he had made many promises which kept him in Britain rather than doing that. One of the major ones was to protect the Boy-Who-Lived.

Severus wasn't a big fan of Harry Potter, of course, but he could never tolerate child abuse. All his past feelings of animosity towards the boy weren't gone, but a little empathy had overpowered them after he had visited the Dursleys.

After becoming a father, many things changed. His heart had a soft spot for students after Elle. He was cruel, in their words, but he always made sure no child suffered.

"Dad?" Severus snapped out of his thoughts as Elle's big hazel eyes gazed at him.

"You know why, Elle," he said, eyeing her.

"Because of the bad man who will hurt me if he sees me?" Elle's voice shook a little. Severus nodded. He didn't want to tell her about Voldemort at such a young age. Maybe when she was 11 or 12.

"I don't like it," she said with a pout.

"You have Hogwarts," Severus said, trying to make her feel better. "Can you imagine such a huge backyard to play in?"

"There's also a Quidditch pitch, Daddy!" Elle said in excitement, all feelings of sadness immediately vanishing. Severus felt a small smile taking over his face as he succeeded. "Will you teach me how to fly?"

Severus snorted as he stood up with Elle at his hip. "Not a chance," he spoke firmly.

"But you promised!"

"I did no such thing," Severus said as he carried her to the kitchen where he put a kettle on the stove and sat her on the countertop beside him.

"Didn't you?" Elle's mischievous eyes met his, and he tickled her. She squealed and giggled.

"Little brat!" he said playfully, and they went about their merry day.

/

Harry was having the time of his life. An empty Gryffindor common room with no snogging couples or loud cheers was heaven. He had unpacked his trunk and kept his books on the table. He was currently writing an order letter for all the books he needed for the upcoming semester.

Back at the Dursleys, he always had to wait until the end of the holidays to get books from Diagon Alley and had to write some shabby essays by copying from Hermione or Ron.

But this semester, he had decided he would give his best. At last, what else was there to do?

He surely wasn't going to hang out with Snape and Dumbledore all day talking about potions and candy. He shuddered at the thought.

He quickly wrote his requirements and put them in a letter before getting up. He put on his shoes and started heading out toward the Owlery. Hedwig would have reached by now. While pocketing some owl treats, his eyes fell on the box of cigarettes. Hogwarts hadn't detected it, he guessed. He shrugged and put the box and lighter in his pocket too.

Hogwarts looked eerie without any students, but Harry wasn't affected by it. He was happy with his own company. Hogwarts had always welcomed him warmly. It wasn't so much about the place, but the magic. Harry always felt that when he entered Hogwarts, the castle's magic wrapped around him like a mother embracing her infant. That's why it felt like home to him.

The corridors, while eerie, still gave a sense of calm to Harry. He liked being solitary. He quickly took the usual routes and reached the Owlery. Hedwig was already there, waiting for him.

"Hey girl," Harry said fondly as he fed her the treats. The view was amazing as usual from the Owlery. The summer made everything look brilliant. Even the Forbidden Forest seemed welcoming. Harry lit a cigarette as he enjoyed the summer breeze.

He saw the Quidditch pitch and made a mental note to practice every other day for the next semester. Now that he had all the time and freedom in Hogwarts, he was set on creating a routine for himself. That was the only way he could be strong enough to defeat Voldemort.

"How has life turned, hasn't it, Hedwig?" Harry asked as Hedwig hooted and nestled against his finger.

"It's a good change though," Harry said to himself as he smoked. "Maybe it's a new start."

/

After dinner, Harry decided that seven was too early to settle down for the night. He took a walk around the castle and stood in front of the stairs that led to the dungeons.

He felt a weird sensation in his stomach. He wanted to go down. He practically retched at the idea. The dungeons were the last place Harry had ever wanted to go, except for Potions class.

But today, he felt he needed to thank Snape. For whatever he had done for Harry. Snape would probably just hit him with a few sarcastic remarks, but Harry figured it was nothing new.

He bit his lip before making a decision and heading down the stairs. He stopped midway. Would Snape be in his office? He probably had a place to stay.

In the dungeons? But where?

Harry sighed. He could just check out the office, and if Snape wasn't there… well, he tried.

With renewed vigour, Harry made his way to Snape's office. There was no light under the door, which dropped Harry's confidence a little.

He stood in front of it and thought if he should still knock.

"Well, it shows I tried," he whispered to himself before giving a soft knock. He waited two seconds before turning on his heels.

Just as he was making his way back, the light under the door turned on, and Harry heard clatter inside. He closed his eyes in defeat. Well, no turning back now. He heard the door opening and slowly turned back.

"Potter?" Snape asked. His hair was a little dishevelled, and he was wearing light grey trousers and a white shirt with sleeves rolled up. His Dark Mark was concealed by something and wasn't visible. Harry realized that the past few days were probably the first time he had seen the man wearing something other than his black teaching robes. It was clear that Snape was in the middle of some work, and Harry wondered what the man must be doing.

Harry cleared his throat and stood straight.

"Good evening, Professor," he said confidently.

"To what do I owe this… visit?" Snape said.

"I… um." Harry gulped, unable to form a sentence. Contrary to anything said about this situation, it was pretty difficult to express gratitude to a teacher who had hated you for so many years and probably didn't care about you even now.

Snape rubbed a hand over his face before opening the door wider. "Come in."

With hesitant steps, Harry entered the office, which held a ton of bad memories for him. He looked beside the doorframe where there was still a small chip mark from when Snape had thrown a jar of cockroaches at his head last year.

"Reminiscing?" Snape asked snidely, indicating Harry to take a seat opposite him. Harry went to the table but didn't sit.

"This won't take long," Harry said shortly.

"Good for me," Snape raised an eyebrow at him and stood near his chair.

Harry pursed his lips in irritation and suddenly caught sight of a small part of paper on Snape's desk, which had… a drawing? It was definitely done by a kid. The small part that showed out from under many papers was just a hand with black robes and part of a castle, which definitely looked like a crooked Hogwarts.

Snape caught Harry's line of sight and quickly banished the papers away.

"I haven't got all night, Potter. Is something the matter?" Irritation crept into his voice.

Harry shook his head and looked at the man.

"I just came down to express my gratitude—"

"No need," Snape said instantly.

"But—"

Snape took hold of his arm and steered him out of the office.

"I suggest you desist your irksome habit of roaming around the castle at night. Good night, Potter." Harry blinked as the office door slammed shut in his face, and the light under the door went out.

Wow, that was rude. He narrowed his eyes at the door before breathing out an angry huff. What was he expecting? Of course, Snape was going to be Snape.

He scratched the back of his head before making his way back to the common room.

He reached his dorm and had an urgent urge to smoke. He opened the dorm window, letting the cool breeze of the night come in, and sat on the sill with his cigarettes. He had ten more with him. Hogsmeade could have a shop. He was sure he had seen a few students sneak off.

He lit his cigarette and instantly felt calm wash over him.

Fuck Snape.

Fuck Dumbledore.

Maybe he was wrong… maybe it won't be that pleasant here at Hogwarts with Snape. But Harry didn't care. All he cared about was getting strong enough to defeat Voldemort, and that's what he was going to work on starting tomorrow.

He went to sleep early that night, never even thinking why Hogwarts never alerted anyone when he smoked in the castle.

/

Severus Snape closed the door to his office with a loud, final bang. He leaned against the heavy wooden door, letting out a slow breath. His hand was still on the doorknob, gripping it tightly. He could still see the puzzled look on Potter's face, the boy's gratitude hanging awkwardly in the air.

"Gratitude," Snape muttered to himself, shaking his head as he moved back to his desk. It was not something he was used to receiving, especially not from Harry Potter. The boy's presence in the dungeons, offering thanks, had stirred an uncomfortable mix of emotions in Snape. He was used to their antagonism, the easy hostility that defined their interactions. This—this was different, unsettling.

He reached for the drawing he had banished in his desk, pulling it out from under the pile of papers in the drawer. It was Elle's, a colourful and slightly crooked depiction of Hogwarts. Her small hand had carefully drawn the castle's turrets and windows, and in the corner, a figure in black robes stood with his hand raised as if casting a spell. Her artwork was a constant reminder of the light in his life.

Elle. Snape's heart softened as he thought of his daughter. She was the reason he had to be cautious. He couldn't risk her safety by getting too involved in the affairs of the Boy-Who-Lived.

With a sigh, Snape placed the drawing back on the desk and straightened the papers around it. He glanced at the small clock on the wall. It was late, and he still had work to do. Potion ingredients to inventory, lesson plans to finalize.

Snape rubbed his temples, trying to dispel the tension as he sat in his office. He couldn't afford to be distracted. Not now when Voldemort was back. Every moment counted in the fight against him.

The door leading to his quarters opened and Severus stood up instantly, his thoughts diverting towards Elle.

"Daddy?" Elle's voice was small, her hands clutching a stuffed dragon. "I had a bad dream."

Snape's heart clenched at the sight of her. He scooped her up in his arms, holding her close. "It's alright, Elle. I'm here."

He carried her back to their quarters, her head resting on his shoulder. He tucked her into bed and brushed a strand of hair from her forehead, his thoughts a tumultuous mix of worry and determination.

"Daddy?" Elle's voice was drowsy as she looked up at him. "Will everything be okay?"

Snape smiled softly, leaning down to kiss her forehead. "Yes, Elle. Everything will be okay. I promise."

As he watched her drift off to sleep, Snape knew he had to keep that promise. For Elle and for the world they were all fighting to protect. He couldn't afford to let his guard down now. But he knew he had many roles to play in this fight. He also knew that however much he protected Elle, somewhere she will be put into the spotlight. It wasn't her fault she was the daughter of a double agent, the person who was smack in the middle of the war.

With a final glance at his sleeping daughter, Snape returned to his desk. There was still much to do, but he felt a renewed sense of purpose. He would protect her, no matter the cost. For Elle, and for the future they all deserved.

A/N: Please leave a review and let me know what you think!