Severus studied several jars of herbs on the many shelves in the Apothecary. He needed to stock up on supplied before the new school year began, as well as pick up Harry's supplies for the upcoming year. Speaking of his son, Severus glanced at the entrance when a small bell above the door rang as it was opened. Harry paused in the entryway, scanning the store before he saw Severus in the back, and he made his way over to his father.
"How was your visit with Black?" Severus asked as his son paused next to him.
"It was okay," Harry said with a shrug. "We talked a lot about my parents and when they were in school. Then about the upcoming school year. He wanted to know what electives I'd be taking and if I was planning to sign up for any extracurriculars. When I said probably Quidditch, he mentioned the World Cup was being hosted locally this year. Sounded kind of cool."
"Indeed," Severus commented. "It has been quite a few years since Great Britain hosted the World Cup. You had no trouble with the floo and arriving safely to the Leaky Cauldron after your visit?"
"No, sir."
"Very good. When I am finished here, we will gather your school supplies before going home."
"I haven't even gotten my letter yet."
"Then it's a good thing I know exactly what you'll need this curriculum, isn't it?" Severus said with a small smirk.
"How lucky am I?" Harry asked with a roll of his eyes.
"Very lucky, for the sooner you have everything, the sooner you can do some prerequisite reading." Severus picked up a few jars and settled them in his basket where he had a small collection of other ingredients. "Wait for me in the front while I finish collecting a few more items and then we'll head to Flourish and Blotts."
"Can we stop at the Quidditch store first?" Harry asked. "Maybe there's merchandise for the World Cup?"
"A trivial matter," Severus said with a shake of his head. At Harry's disappointed look, Severus sighed and added, "After we grab everything else on our list, we will see if there is time to make a quick stop at the Quidditch store."
Harry's face brightened and Severus directed him to the front of the store while he carried on toward the back where the cashier waited to check them out. Severus picked up a few more jars, bottles, and vials as he made his way to the counter for check out. He settled his basket down on the counter and took everything out helpfully while the cashier priced everything and tallied the total up.
"I noticed," Severus began as he pulled the last few items out of his basket, "that you had a new shipment of Hellebore Ebbers in the back of your store. What in Merlin's name are you doing with a plant like that?"
"Special request," the cashier said. "Old potioneer is looking to make a cancer killer out of the bulbs and roots."
"Seeing as the rest of the plant is highly toxic, I would hope that he'd only use the bulbs and roots. I'm assuming this is a last-ditch effort on the potioneer's part?"
"The daughter is sick," the cashier said. "Stage four cancer, if I recall correctly. The plant has only ever been used in one other potion—youth restorer. My guess is he wants to try and revert the cancer back as far as he can to give himself time to find a cure."
"Good luck to him," Severus said. "If I may, would it be possible to purchase one of the plants for myself? The bulbs and roots are rather useful in creating potent healing potions. Of course, studying the rest of the plant is an added bonus."
"Have you ever dealt with these flowers, sir?"
"No. But I've handled many magical plants in the past, I'm sure this one won't be too challenging to figure out."
"I'll trust your word. Just don't make the plant angry." The cashier tapped his chin before saying, "I suppose I could sacrifice one of the smaller pots for you—if you were willing to pay double what the other bloke is offering?"
"I believe my teaching allowance will cover that," Severus said, counting out a few extra galleons. The cashier smiled and left to grab a smaller pot with a single blooming flower. He paid for his supplies along with the owl delivery fee to have them shipped to Hogwarts where he knew the house elves would unpack and stock everything for him. He asked about taking the flower home, which the cashier then wrapped the flower and its pot in a loose paper bag, tying off different ends before summoning a small chip.
"Here, tap this chip while imagining your house, preferably, the place in your house you would like the plant to go. These coins create brief portkeys for small item transportation. Far safer than asking an owl or house elf to try relocating it."
Severus did as the man said, and the coin shimmered before swallowing the flower pot, both disappearing. Severus found the precautions odd but said nothing against it. Once he was finished, he headed back to the front of the store, glancing around for Harry, and Harry bit back a growl when he noticed his son was nowhere in the front of the store.
"Mr. Potter!" Severus snapped loudly, being mindful of other parents or students who might be shopping in Diagon Alley as well.
There was a scuffle somewhere in the store before Harry came running over to Severus, coughing so harshly into his arm that tears were welling in his eyes.
"What did you do?" Severus asked, crossing his arms and raising a brow.
"Nothing," Harry said, catching his breath at last and lowering his arm. "I was just looking at some things and accidentally knocked into a shelf. Nothing fell, just a lot of dust."
"Well, let's leave before you break something I'll have to pay for." Severus said, gesturing to the door.
"You know, I could pay for it, too."
"Oh, your scrawny backside most certainly would pay for it. Let's finish gathering our supplies so we can head home in time for lunch."
After a long late morning spent in Diagon Alley, Harry proudly hung up a moving World Cup Nineteen Ninety-Four poster in his bedroom while Severus made an easy meal of chicken salad. After lunch, Harry was tasked with washing dishes while Severus edited a few lesson plans at the dining table when his tawny owl, Castiel, appeared with the muggle mail. Severus accepted the mail and rewarded the owl with a bit of chicken he had left out in anticipation of Castiel's delivery, and he stared in confusion at one of the envelopes. It was covered in stamps, save for the address in the center, which was actually addressed to the Dursleys and their home on Privet Drive. Severus had spelled all mail regarding Harry that was ever sent to the Dursleys to reroute to his own address, so he knew whatever was in the envelope regarded his son.
"What's that?" Harry asked after drying his hands off. He stepped over to the table and offered Castiel a little more left-over chicken, which the owl happily took.
"I don't know," Severus said, opening the envelope and reading the letter. A smirk slowly grew on his face as he read the letter. Harry walked around his father and read the letter over his shoulder, a smile creeping on his own face.
"She did put enough stamps on, then," Harry said, remarking on where the sender had asked if she had placed enough stamps on the envelope or not.
"That she did," Severus said. The letter was from Molly Weasley who was wondering if she and her husband could escort Harry to the final of the Quidditch World Cup that would be taking place Monday night, and if he could stay for the remainder of the summer holidays.
"Can I go, Dad?" Harry asked. "Please?"
Severus sighed as he reread the letter once more while debating it internally in his head. The Weasleys wanted to pick Harry up Friday evening, probably for travel purposes, arriving early, and settling in was Severus's guess. That was two days away. Harry was practically radiating with excitement behind him, and he relented and nodded his head.
"You may go," he said, "but only for the World Cup. As soon as you return to the Weasley's home, you will floo back here."
"Yes, sir!" Harry wrapped his arms around his father's neck. "Thank you, thank you!"
"Alright, there's no need to strangle me," Severus joked lightly as he pulled his son's arms off him before he pulled his son forward until he was standing directly in front of him. He gave his son a stern look. "You will mind Mr. and Mrs. Weasley while you are in their care. Stay with them at all times, and I better not hear of any misbehavior, is that clear?"
"Like they'd write about any," Harry muttered.
"Is that clear?" Severus repeated.
"Yes, sir."
"I will write back explaining that you will floo to their house rather than they pick you up." Severus summoned a muggle notebook and pen. "And explain that you will not be spending the rest of the summer there as you are wanted back for family time before you are gone for school."
"Oh sure," Harry agreed. "That sounds like something the Dursleys would say about me."
"Go pack," Severus said as he began writing his letter. He ignored his son's snicker as his child ran to his room to start packing for the trip.
After he finished writing the letter and changing the font to resemble a more delicate and flowery script that he imagined Petunia would have, he sent Castiel off with it. He decided to check in on the new plant in his lab.
He did not have much experience with Hellebore Ebbers save for when he bought already harvested bulbs and roots. All he knew was that the plant was highly toxic, very temperamental, and very hard to find in the wild. Severus removed the paper bag hiding the plant, and he stared at its large yellow petals and vibrant orange center. The petals had small orange freckles all over them, and those freckles suddenly started to glow, along with the center of the plant. The flower seemed to rise slightly as the glow brightened, as if staring right back at Severus challengingly.
Severus took a few steps back, and the flower relaxed while the glowing disappeared.
Strange. Severus stepped closer again, and the flower rose up once more, the center and spots glowing again. He waited a few seconds as he watched the plant, but when he heard a small hissing noise, he stepped back once more, and the flower relaxed.
"You like your space," Severus said. "Noted."
Severus walked over to his worktable and flipped open a notebook where he began jotting notes down about the plant.
"Dad," Harry called into the lab hesitantly, waiting by the sliding door for entry.
"Come in, Harry," Severus said.
"I was wondering if we could ask if the Weasleys had one more extra ticket," Harry said as he walked into the lab, moving to stand next to Severus, glancing back curiously at the new plant.
"Why?" Severus asked, frowning slightly at his son.
"Well, I know you wouldn't want to go," Harry quickly said. "But I thought Giovanna might like to go. Quidditch isn't her favorite thing, but she does like to watch it. This would be so cool for her to see, I bet. And she's into competitive sports, she does jumping with her horse."
"Horse sports and quidditch are two very different things." Severus returned to writing down a few notes before he lost his train of thought.
"Yeah, but I still think she'd have fun." Harry walked away from the table, and Severus glanced up for a second to see what he was doing before looking back at his book.
"Stay away from that flower," Severus said.
"What is it?" Harry asked, pausing a few feet away from the new plant.
"A Hellebore Ebber," Severus said. He picked up his journal and leaned back against the table so he could look at the flower once more and draw a quick sketch of it before he started taking it apart. He wasn't sure what he would do with the flower portion of the plant as few potioneers have ever studied using them in any kind of potion. He had always wondered why, especially since the bulb and roots had such great healing and restorative potential. Surely there was a way to change the natural toxins of the plant to something better in a potion.
"Is there a reason it's glowing?" Harry asked.
Severus froze, his head snapping up in time to see the flower lifting ever so slightly, facing Harry directly, its spotted petals and center glowing brightly. Harry had not moved from where he stood a few feet away from the plant, but clearly the plant did not like being stared at either. Severus set his journal down and walked toward his son, ready to yank him away from the flower.
"Harry, move away from—"
All Harry could do was look in Severus's direction before the flower spat out a large cloud of thick pollen that covered Harry completely. Severus jumped back, narrowly avoiding getting any of the pollen on himself, and he stared wide eyed as the pollen swirled around his son like a twister, hiding Harry from sight for several seconds before the pollen fell harmlessly to the ground, its magic exhausted.
However, Harry was no longer . . . well, a teenager.
Now, a small baby, somewhere between seven to ten months old, sat where Harry once stood, surrounded by clothes that were too large and a pair of glasses falling off his nose. Harry sneezed out a bit of pollen, which made the glasses fall off his face. Then, he held out his hands and stared at them for a second before looking down at himself. His lip quivered as he glanced up at Severus.
Severus was speechless and yet, very intrigued. He waved a hand, summoning the paper bag to cover the flower once more while stepping closer to his son. He kneeled in front of Harry, staring down at the small baby that seemed to wait expectantly for Severus to do something.
"How extraordinary," Severus muttered. He picked up the glasses and pocketed them so they were not lost or broken. "The pollen of the plant must act as some kind of defense, and it does so by regressing a potential attacker to a more nonthreatening state of being. Though, I feel if any more of that pollen hit you, you would have shrunk out of existence."
Harry made a small coo as he cocked his head to the side, sounding a bit concerned for himself.
"You seem unharmed otherwise." Severus summoned a blanket and wrapped it around Harry as he freed his son from the mess of clothes on the ground, giving him a quick glance over as he dd so. "No injuries, no cuts, no bruises. Just . . . a baby."
Harry watched his father closely as he was settled on the table. Severus pulled his journal close, staring at Harry a moment longer before writing his observations in it, wanting to document this strange happenstance fully, describing what had happened and the condition his son was in. He paused for a moment to use the end of his quill to gently pry Harry's mouth open, which Harry obliged in slight confusion, allowing Severus to see a normal color on his gums as well as two top teeth. Severus returned to writing in his journal, only pausing again when Harry made a very disgruntled noise. He looked at his son.
Harry was frowning at him, his arms crossed in a clear pout.
"What?" Severus asked.
"Ahh!" Harry said as he waved a hand at the journal.
"I'm making observations," Severus said as he finished writing a few notes down. "It's not everyday one gets the chance to experiment the effects of a highly dangerous plant."
"Mmm," Harry growled, crossing his arms as best he could again.
"You're the one who didn't heed the flower's warning." Severus snapped his journal shut then walked over to his shelves of supplies. "If something starts glowing at you, it might be best to move on, not continue to stare and watch."
"Nah deedee nabada," Harry said firmly.
"Right," Severus said as he opened a lower cabinet and scanned the book spines for a specific tome. He found the one he wanted and pulled it out, flipping through it as he walked back to the table Harry was sitting on.
"Ah," Harry cooed, reaching his hands out toward the book.
"Oh, this doesn't have a cure in it," Severus said, correctly guessing what Harry was excited about. The baby visibly deflated with a pout. Severus snorted before setting the book down, revealing a detailed page about the Hellebore Ebber, a few drawings of the plant scattered around the print. "The Hellebore Ebber is an understudied plant in the field of herbology. It is rare, hides in the darkest forests in small pockets all over the world, and possesses a dark magic few wizards wish to deal with. Very few herbologists and potioneers have attempted to house and grow the plants, and their research remains unknown due to the mysterious disappearances of those very wizards and witches. I suppose we've discovered how they disappeared."
Severus looked at Harry pointedly, who stuck his tongue out at his father.
"The flower remains difficult to find and harvest, though daring adventurers continue to add the plant on their inventory to locate and kill the plant, gathering their bulbs and roots, the only part of the plant that can be safely used in potions without adverse side effects. The bulb carries healing properties, while the roots offer enhanced restorative energy, and together, are useful in the strongest healing potions. The roots alone may also be added to Skele-Gro for a stronger and faster acting brew."
"Wah bu ma," Harry started to say, but Severus held up a finger to shush him.
"While the plant remains widely unknown in average wizarding population due to lack of studies, the few studies performed on rats reveal that the plant carries a strong neurotoxin in its pollen that can be successfully reverted with an antitoxin carefully extracted from the host and purified. While the rats were only fed a small portion of the plant in these studies, none were harmed or needed to be humanely euthanized after, though there may have been a slight change in stature. To date, no other studies have been performed on the Hellebore Ebber."
Harry waited a moment when Severus finished speaking before tilting his head and frowning, creating what Severus would call a questioning coo.
"That's all the information we have to go on," Severus said. "Clearly no one has ever made it past this stage in their studies. My guess is many of them attempted to study the plant solo, not imagining that this may be the outcome. How unfortunate for them."
Severus sent the book flying back to its place in the lower cupboard. He opened a drawer at the table, rifling through for a few items he rarely needed in potion brewing, and prayed he still had on hand. He smiled when he found what he needed and pulled the few items out while simultaneously summoning a cauldron that floated over to the table before careful lowering itself on the burner in the center of the table. Harry watched curiously as he listened to his father.
"I can make an antitoxin to remove the pollen's magic in your system. That won't be difficult. What will be challenging is finding the right combination of ingredients to age you back to your correct age. I suspect a modified Ageing Potion with a touch of Mandrake Restorative Draught. Yes, that should give me the aging factor along with restoring you to your correct age and health. And for insurance, we can use the bulb and root of the very plant that did this to you."
"Ei?" Harry questioned, scrunching his nose at the very thought of having anything to do with the Hellebore Ebber.
"Because, as I just read, those parts of the plant are very powerful healers and restorers. Their addition will ensure the potion is potent and effective. And with a few drops of the antitoxin added in, you'll be good as new. Theoretically." Severus picked up a small instrument, a small light bulb shaped glass vial no bigger than a strawberry, then he grabbed Harry's hand, pulling his arm straight out before he flicked the instrument at Harry's elbow.
Harry gasped as the vial latched onto his arm, a small needle stabbing him in the vein over the joint of his elbow, and the little vial filled quickly with his blood. The vial withdrew the needle once it was full, then picked itself up and hovered in the air while Severus placed a small piece of gauze over the puncture.
Harry met Severus's eyes as his lower lip quivered.
"Don't give me that, you hardly felt it." Severus tried to ignore the small pang of guilt in his chest. Harry was awfully cute right now, and he was pulling on heartstrings Severus didn't even know he had with his small pouts. "The element of surprise made for a less dramatic blood draw than if I had told you what I was going to do and allowed you to work yourself up over it."
Harry sniffled as he watched Severus touch his wand to the gauze, a small yellow flash emitting from the tip, then Severus removed the gauze, revealing healed skin beneath.
"I should be able to create a neurotoxin with what is running through your blood. Now that I have what I need, we should probably find some clothes for you."
Harry looked down at himself, his lower half wrapped up in a small blanket still.
Severus waved his wand at the pile of clothes on the floor, and Harry's blue shirt he had been wearing shrunk and flew over to table. Severus plucked the shirt out of the air and carefully dressed Harry into it. Then, he flicked his wand at the blanket wrapped around Harry, transfiguring it into a white cloth diaper.
"Argg!" Harry growled, glaring at his father after witnessing what the blanket had become.
"You're a baby," Severus said. "I do not think you'll be finding yourself running to the loo anytime soon."
Harry's face turned very red as he pouted at Severus, crossing his arms once more. Severus kept a straight face as he crossed his own arms and stared back, quirking a brow at his son. Harry stuck out his tongue and Severus chuckled, unable to keep the straight face any longer.
"You are still a brat," Severus said. "Now, I want you far away from this table while I work on your potion." He picked up his son and Harry kicked at him stubbornly. Severus rolled his eyes as he set Harry on the floor, waiting until Harry had his feet under him before letting him go. "Very well, let's go."
Severus took a few steps toward the back of his lab, then paused to watch Harry, who had not moved yet, his arms out in front of him for balance.
Harry seemed to take a deep breath before taking a step forward. He wobbled on his feet for nearly ten seconds before falling on his bottom. He whined in frustration, balling his fists and scrunching his face. Severus couldn't help smiling down at his son, finding the situation rather amusing.
"We have two days to fix your situation," Severus said. "Unless you'd like to go to the Weasleys' as a baby and have your best friend change your nappies?"
Harry's wide eyes and pale face spoke enough for the child, and Severus picked up his son once more. He carried his son to the back of his lab, far away from the plant and his table. He transfigured a cauldron into a pewter crib, then summoned a pillow to transfigure into a thin mattress that he sized to fit the crib. He set Harry in it, ignoring his son's annoyed face as he plopped him down on the mattress.
"You'll be safe here while I brew," Severus said. "You'll just be in the way otherwise and I can't in good conscience let you wander the house as you are."
Harry simply pouted, so Severus let him be and walked over to the covered flower responsible for the mess they were in. Without removing the bag, he slashed his wand through the air, chopping the head of the flower off, part of the paper bag ripping and falling with the killed flower. What a waste of a good study, Severus couldn't help but think. He had hoped to play with the petals and pollen in other potion trials, but perhaps it was for the best that this had happened. After all, it could have been him that ended up in Harry's position, and that would have been an awful case scenario.
With the flower disabled, Severus removed the remaining paper bag away from the lower end of the plant, revealing a wilting stem. He dug through the pot and pulled out the bulb and roots, snapping them apart from the rest of the plant and shaking off the dirt as he brought it all to his sink for a wash. He brought the clean bulb and roots to his table, where he summoned several other ingredients: stewed mandrake, newt spleens, bay leaves, standard ingredient, scarab beetles, dittany, billywig stings, and wormwood. Once all his ingredients were laid out, he picked up the small vial of Harry's blood and used his wand to cast a spinning charm on it, and it spun itself on its fragile edge at hyper speed, separating the serum from the blood.
The potion would take a while to brew. Some of the steps were painstakingly slow and others simply required time and patience, but he should be able to finish it by the end of the day, just in time to let it simmer for several hours after.
Before he could perform another step in the process, he heard Harry begin crying, then suddenly stop. Then he cried again before forcefully stopping once more. Severus sighed and walked over to the crib, looking down at his son as he leaned over the rail. Harry had tears streaming down his face that he was furiously rubbing away.
"What is wrong?" Severus asked.
Harry's eyes watered once more as a sob escaped his lips before Harry shoved a hand in his mouth to stop himself.
"Don't fight the baby instincts. I doubt you'll win. Is there some way you can try to tell me what your problem is? Hungry? Tired?"
Harry's face reddened as he sucked on his fingers to keep from crying once more. He made no attempt to give any signals, and Severus was about to just let him cry out the baby urges while he returned to brewing when he caught a rather putrid smell, and his eyes widened as he realized why Harry was beginning to cry.
"Already?" he couldn't help but ask in annoyance.
Harry's face only grew hotter.
Severus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"This is going to be a long two days."
So, author trivia: the storyline of my short novella Regress and Repress was originally set to take place in the Cripple Me universe, in Harry's fourth year after the events of the Graveyard, where the two are struggling to communicate and move on when this unfortunate incident happens, forcing the two to learn to communicate in fewer words. When I decided to change a few things, it eliminated this event, which is why I made it a separate story. Well, I'm struggling to fill in the gaps from right now to where I really want to be at in the story, so we're going to have fun with some deaged Harry chapters.
Also, the last chapter of Regress and Repress was the original ending of Cripple Me. That is how close to canon I had originally planned on keeping this story. Wait till you see what I have planned!