http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2393174/1/The_Protector
http://www.fanfiction.net/u/585265/betsanne
Summary: Harry Potter recieved a necklace the night before graduation. Who gave it to him? Will Harry ever find and if he does, what will he do?
THE PROTECTOR
By Betsanne
Eyes watched as Harry Potter walked down the darkened hallways of Hogwarts. They narrowed thoughtfully as they saw the tears falling down the subdued man's face. Hiding in the shadows the man's hands clenched in frustration. He would've liked nothing more than to hold Harry, and tell him that everything would be ok, but he knew that Harry would never accept comfort from him.
He had watched as the pressure from being the Boy Who Lived had become too much for Harry. He watched as Harry seemed to lose more and more of himself after each attack from Voldemort. He watched as Harry withdrew into himself, going out of his way to avoid his oblivious friends. He noticed that Harry hardly ate, and he could be found wandering through the castle halls at various times of the night.
Silently he followed the young man, watching over him, protecting him from unknown dangers. He followed Harry into the Owlrey where Harry was visiting his owl. He quickly hid in the dark corner of the room, and settled against the wall, his arms crossed as he watched the young man intently.
Harry was petting his owl, leaning against the wall and staring out of the window absently. He sighed mournfully, his gaze sad. "I graduate tomorrow Hedwig, and then I leave here. I'm leaving the only place I've ever thought of as home. I have a flat in Hogsmeade, but it's not a home. It's just a place to sleep at night. I start my training as an Auror next week. I no longer want to be an Auror, but that's all I'm good for. It's what everyone expects of me. Harry Potter, Savior of the Wizarding World," he said bitterly.
The hidden man winced at the pain he heard in Harry's voice. "My friends don't even know I'm there anymore. They're so caught up in their own relationships and lives. I feel like a third wheel when I'm around Ron and Hermione. I wish I had someone to love. I wish I had someone who cared about me, Harry, not Harry Potter or the Boy Who Lived. I'm so weary of living Hedwig, I just want to go to sleep and never wake up," Harry said. He laid his head on his arms and sobbed.
The hidden man's face twisted in pain. He desperately wanted to hold Harry. His fingers itched to touch the soft looking hair. He closed his eyes in resignation. He knew that Harry would never think of him as anything more than a person to dislike, but it didn't stop the feelings of love that were coursing through him.
He watched as Harry fell asleep, his face wet with tears. Walking up to the sleeping man, he pulled out his wand and cast a sleeping spell on Harry, making sure that he would at least get a decent nights rest. He bent down and carefully picked Harry up, savoring the feeling of him in his arms. Silently leaving the Owlrey, he made his way to the Gryffindor dormitory. Reaching the Fat Lady's portrait, he uttered the password and slipped into the Gryffindor common room. He looked around and noticed that all the students were in their rooms, sleeping. He walked up the steps to the dorm room and entered. He looked around and found two beds were unoccupied. Frowning slightly, he realized that one of the empty beds belonged to Ron Weasley. With a grimace he realized the young man was probably with his girlfriend, Miss Granger.
He walked to the very last bed and gently laid Harry down on the bed. Taking out his wand, he transfigured Harry's clothes into a pair of pajamas. He pulled down the blankets and covered the young man up. Once Harry was settled, he sat down on the bed and gazed at the beautiful man's face. His eyes and nose were red from crying and his hair was sticking up all over the place, but he was still beautiful to his watcher. Finally giving into temptation, his hand crept forward and he stroked the longish black hair. It fell like black waves against his hand, and it was very soft to the touch. Harry had allowed his hair to grow out during his seventh year, and it now touched his shoulders. It was often pulled back with a silver clip, but Harry seemed to have forgotten to do that today.
His hand trailed from Harry's hair down to his face. A finger trailed over his cheek and softly touched the soft lips. He could feel Harry gentle breath flow over his fingers and he shuddered with desire. He held back a moan and shakily pulled his hand back. His heart clenched at the thought of hardly seeing the young man after he graduated. He knew once Harry left Hogwarts the chances of seeing him were small. They would see each other at the Order meetings, but other than that there would be no reason to ever see him.
He knew that Harry would be a great Auror if given the chance. He'd had private lessons with Kingsley, Moody, Tonks and him during the end of his sixth year and during his seventh. At first he had hated teaching him, but gradually his feelings changed. First there had been respect, then he began to like the boy and then his feelings changed to love. It hurt to know that nothing would ever come of it.
Harry gave a shuddering breath and moved slightly, bringing the man back from his thoughts. With a small sigh he started to get up from the bed, but he paused a moment. Staring at the boy he made up his mind and withdrew something from his pocket. Gently, he placed it around Harry's head and settled it on his chest. He took out a piece of parchment and placed it on Harry's bed, casting a sticking spell so that Harry wouldn't miss it. Taking one more glance at Harry, he once again gave into temptation. Leaning forward, he placed a soft kiss on Harry's mouth. He held back a gasp of pleasure at the feel of Harry's soft lips touching his. He lightly stroked the lips with his tongue, and moaned softly as Harry's unique flavor exploded in his mouth. Trembling with reaction, he pulled back before he was tempted to do more. With one last soft caress on the cheek, he softly whispered, "I love you, Harry Potter." He got up from the bed and walked to the door.
With a final glance over his shoulder at Harry's bed, Severus Snape swept out of the dorm room.
It was over. Harry Potter had finally defeated Voldemort. Five years after graduating, Harry Potter, tired of all the deaths caused by Voldemort and his Death Eaters, came up with a plan.
Allowing a known spy for Voldemort overhear a conversation with Dumbledore, Harry set up a distraction for the Death Eaters. What they didn't know was that it was a trap. A hundred Aurors and eight-five Order members were waiting to ambush them. While the Aurors and the Order members were busy with the Death Eaters, Harry went to the next part of his plan, a part that no one else knew about. Harry apparated outside of Riddle Manor and challenged Voldemort to a duel. With no Death Eaters to ambush Harry, Voldemort had no choice but to fight. They fought, casting spell after spell, until they were both exhausted.
Voldemort had gotten in one lucky shot and Harry fell to the ground. Voldemort, laughing with malice at the thought of Harry's death, never noticed the Muggle weapon Harry pulled out of the pocket of his robe. Staring at Voldemort in the eye, he gave the Dark Lord a grim smile, raised his hand and shot Voldemort between the eyes, twice. The look of shock would always last forever in Harry's mind. He loved the irony that Voldemort should die by a weapon made by the very people he hated. After Voldemort fell to the ground Harry began the long complicated spell that would obliterate Voldemort's soul. Once the spell was complete and Voldemort's soul was destroyed in a flash of red light, Harry burned the body. He cast a spell that sucked the ash into a large diamond. He took out his shrunken broom and enlarged it, mounted it and flew for several hours out to the ocean where he then dropped the diamond. The diamond fell several thousand feet, landing in a canyon at the bottom of the ocean. Making sure there was no identifying markers, Harry then turned around and flew back home.
He reached Hogwarts and collapsed; exhaustion and pain overwhelming him. He never saw Snape running out of the castle to help him. He never saw the pain, anguish and love that spread over the man's face as he realized the state of the man lying on the ground. He never felt the caress the man gave him on his face, or felt the kiss the man pressed in his hair. He knew nothing but darkness.
Harry moaned and his eyes began to flutter. He slowly opened his eyes and looked around blearily. His gaze landed on the ceiling and he knew where he was. After years of looking at the ceiling he knew it by heart. He barely remembered the flight back to Hogwarts but he was glad he made it.
He heard a noise and his eyes shot over to his right. He was glad he had finally gotten his eyes fixed. It needed to be done if he wanted to be an effective Auror. He saw Poppy messing with some bottles that were sitting on a shelf. He could hear the tinkling of glass as they hit each other while being moved. In a hoarse voice he called out to the woman, "Poppy."
The nurse gasped, dropped an empty bottle which fell to the floor and shattered. She whirled around and her eyes widened in shock for a moment then her eyes filled with tears. She rushed over to his bed and began to fuss over him.
"Mr. Potter, you're awake. Oh Merlin, I need to tell the Headmaster. How are you feeling? Are you in any pain?" she asked with concern.
"Water," he croaked out. She rushed over to the small side table by his bed. She lifted the pitcher and poured Harry a glass of water. She then placed a straw in the glass and walked back over to him. She put an arm under his neck and helped him lift his head so that he could sip the water. After several long sips he was done and she gently laid his head back down on the pillow. Poppy put the glass on the table and smiled at Harry.
"Now, I need to check you over, see if everything is alright. There are many people concerned about you Harry, and they will be very happy to know that you're awake."
"How long have I been out?" Harry asked.
Poppy hesitated then with a sigh of resignation she replied, "Three months."
Harry gaped at her a moment before asking, "Three months? Why?"
Poppy gave him a stern look and said, "I'm not sure what you did Mr. Potter, but you were exhausted physically and magically. Your body went through severe stress from the spells and whatever else you were doing. When you arrived at Hogwarts we weren't sure you were going to live. Your magic was so depleted that another spell would have killed you. It took all these months just for your magic to revive. You're still going to be weak for a while as your body needs to strengthen."
Harry nodded his head in understanding. He knew he had been pushing his body and magic even before the duel with Voldemort, but he had been tired of it. Tired of the deaths, the threats, the visions, the fact that Voldemort wasn't going to stop. He had been just so very tired of it all. He knew somewhere in the back of his mind he had hoped that he wouldn't wake up after he collapsed, but he did. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, he was too much of a coward to kill himself. There had been times though, when life got too lonely or too hard, that he thought about it, but he could never do it.
He was brought out of his thoughts by the humming Poppy was making as she looked him over with her diagnostic spell. He lay there patiently, his eyes flittering around the infirmary. There had been no changed since the last time he had been here five years ago after another Quidditch accident.
Poppy cancelled the spell and took a step back. "Well Mr. Potter, it looks like everything is ok. Your magic is still a little too low, but nothing life threatening. It should be fine in another month or two. You're physically weak as I said you would be. This means that you're unable to go back to work for at least another three months if not more," she said sternly.
Harry nodded his head, not really caring. Now that Voldemort was dead, Harry was free to do what he wanted. He had done his job, he had killed Voldemort. His life was now his to live it how he wanted, regardless of what others said or expected. He had enough money that he would never have to work again. Maybe he should take Neville up on that offer to work at his plant store. He always did well in Herbology and he took very good care of the Dursleys yard.
"I'm going to let the Headmaster know that you're awake. Don't you try to move from that bed, Mr. Potter, you won't like the consequences if you do," Poppy said with a stern frown.
Harry gave her a weak smile and watched as she left the infirmary. Harry gave a large yawn then closed his eyes. He felt himself begin to doze, not really asleep, but not really awake. A few minutes later he heard someone step into the infirmary, but paid it no attention, figuring it was Poppy coming back with the Headmaster.
He heard the footsteps getting closer to his bed and stop. A few seconds later he almost jumped at the feel of someone touching his face gently. The finger trailed down his face and Harry got a whiff of some sort of chemical smell, with an underlying smell of vanilla. Harry's mind froze and he held back a gasp of shock as he felt the small kiss that was placed on his lips. He heard a husky soft male voice whisper, "Oh, Harry love, I wish you would wake up. I can't stand to see you like this. I have to go, but I'll visit you later when I have the chance." With one last caress the man left the side of the bed and Harry could hear the footsteps leave the infirmary.
Harry's eyes flew open and he turned his head quickly, but all he saw was a man in a black cloak leaving the infirmary. Damning the shock that had frozen him, he growled in frustration. His face brightened as he realized that he had a clue to the man who had left the necklace with him five years ago.
He remembered waking up that morning five years ago, surprised at being in his bed. He remembered falling asleep in the Owlrey after crying. He wondered who brought him back. It could have been one of the teachers, one of the many Aurors that had been staying there for the graduation, or even the thirty Order members. Harry Potter was graduating and everyone was tense, sure that Voldemort was going to try something. The Aurors and Order members had been there that whole week for Harry's protection. Dumbledore didn't want to take the chance that something could happen to Harry.
He had sat up in his bed and felt a weight against his chest. Curious, he looked down and gasped in shock. Sitting on his chest was beautiful gold and silver pendant of a snake and a lion. The snake was wrapped around the lion, as if protecting it from harm. Harry could see the lion was leaning against the snake and accepting the protection. Something about the pendant made Harry's breath catch. Wondering where the necklace came from, he looked around the room, but everyone was still asleep. He shifted on the bed and heard a crinkling noise. He looked down and found a piece of parchment lying on his bed. He reached down to pick it up but it wouldn't budge. Realizing there was a sticking spell on his, he grabbed his wand and muttered, "Finite," picked up the paper and began to read.
Harry,
I congratulate you on successfully completing Hogwarts. I have watched you over the years and have come to realize that you are wonderful young man, who has much to live for. I wanted to give you something that would be both practical and personal.
The necklace has been spelled with several protections spells and a spell that lets you know when there is danger near. I hope that this will help you in future forays as an Auror.
On a personal level, I have always seen myself as your protector, whether you knew about me or not. I'm the snake that is protecting you. I know that you don't know who I am, but I want you to know Harry, that there is someone out there who cares about you, who will worry when you go on a mission, who will be concerned when you don't come back on time.
I'll be the person who will pray to the gods that you'll be alright, that you'll live a good life, full of joy and happiness. I'm also the person who knows that even that wish is foolish until Voldemort is dead, but I still wish it for you all the same.
I care for you deeply Harry, more than you'll ever know, and I wanted to give you just a little piece of me to take with you, to watch over you and to give you some protection.
I want you to go out and live, Harry. I hope that you find some measure of peace and know that somewhere, someone cares about you, Harry. Not Harry Potter or The Boy Who Lived, but you.
I'll think of you often and pray for your safety always,
With loving admiration,
Your protector
Harry drew in a shuddery breath and reached up to wipe away his tears. He sniffed and caught a whiff of chemical and an underlying smell of vanilla. Frowning slightly, he lifted the parchment to his nose and sniffed again. The smell was coming from the parchment.
It was the scent of the person who had given him the necklace. Harry sniffed a couple more times and committed the scent to his memory. With a soft smile, he folded the note and caressed the necklace. He jumped out of bed and began to get ready for the day.
Harry never did find out who had given him the necklace, not that he really tried that hard. It meant something to him that someone took the time to give it to him. The necklace had saved his life several times during his time as an Auror. He thanked his protector every time that it had.
Now though, now he knew that his protector was a man. A man who was a Hogwarts, a man who worked with something that smelled like chemicals, a man who identified with a snake. Harry's eyes widened in shock as all the clues came together.
Severus Snape was his protector, the man who had given him the necklace. He stared out into the infirmary absently as he began to unravel the clues. Snape worked with potions, Snape was a Slytherin therefore he would be the snake as the note said, Snape had always protected him since Harry stepped foot into Hogwarts when he was eleven, Snape's attitude had changed towards him when he began to give Harry private lessons. It all made perfect sense, but it still shocked him. He would have never thought of Snape. He remembered the caress and the kiss that Snape had given him earlier. He remembered Snape calling him love. He gasped; Snape was in love with him. Harry froze, how did he feel about that?
Thinking carefully, he realized that though he wasn't in love with Snape, the idea intrigued him. Maybe he would take the time while he was recovering to get to know Snape. Not the teacher, but the man, the protector. With a small smile, Harry closed his eyes and fell asleep. He never heard Dumbledore and Poppy come into the room.
Severus rushed out of his dungeon and headed towards the infirmary. Dumbledore had fire called him to let him know that Harry was awake. Eager to see Harry and to find out what had happened with Voldemort, he hurried to the infirmary. He stopped when he saw the infirmary doors and composed himself. It wouldn't do for everyone to see him emotional, but it was hard to hide his relief and joy at the fact that Harry regained consciousness. He'd been to see Harry every night, after everyone was asleep, or whenever Poppy wasn't in the infirmary. After three months he was ready to look into those large green eyes. He remembered the first time he had seen Harry without his glasses. He had frozen in shock and desire, not even realizing the Lupin had walked into him.
After he calmed down, he walked to the infirmary doors and pushed them open. He stalked into the room and headed over towards Harry's bed. He nodded towards Poppy, Dumbledore, and Lupin. He noted sadly that McGonagall was missing from group. She had been killed two years ago during an attack in Hogsmeade. She had been protecting a group of first years. Though she died, she'd gone down fighting, taking several Death Eaters with her. She would be forever missed, especially by the Headmaster. Minerva had been Albus's best friend for many years, and one only had to look to see the toll her death had on him. He was looking far older than he had before her death.
Severus walked up to Dumbledore and nodded to him. He glanced at Harry on the bed and had to hide his surprise. Large green eyes were staring at him intently and Harry's face was thoughtful. Severus shifted nervously, he didn't know why Harry was looking at him like that, but it was getting to him. He gave Harry a nod and said stiffly, "Potter, good to see you're awake."
Harry gave him an unexplainable look and then smiled softly. "Thank you, Professor," he said.
"Now, I'm sure that Poppy has explained it to you, but you can't work for at least another three months. You need to regain your health and your magic before you can do anything strenuous," Dumbledore explained.
"Anything?" Harry asked idly as he looked at Severus.
Severus frowned slightly. He was getting a weird feeling that he missed something. He was feeling decided nervous by Harry's looks.
"Anything too strenuous. I'm afraid that means no work for you," Dumbledore said cheerfully.
Harry shrugged and replied, "It's not like it’s a big deal. I hadn't planned on going back to the Aurors. I'm done there."
"Why Harry? I thought you enjoyed being an Auror," Lupin said in surprise.
Harry shook his head in denial. "No, I didn't enjoy it, but I did it because it was expected from the Boy Who Lived, the damn Savior of the Wizarding World. Well, I did my job, I killed Voldemort. Now, I'm going to live my life the way I want too, and damn what anyone else says. If the Wizarding World doesn't like my choices they can piss off. I hear America nice this time of year," Harry said coldly.
"My boy, nobody is saying you have to stay an Auror if you don't want. We're just surprise that you decided to quit that’s all," Dumbledore said softly.
Harry's face softened a little. "Be that as it may Albus, you know that there will be some who will not like the fact that their 'Savior' is going against the ideals of the Wizarding World," Harry said bitterly.
"Then do as you said Potter, tell them to piss off. Your job is done. You took care of the Dark Lord when no one else would. They owe you Potter, don't be afraid to use that to your advantage," Severus said adamantly.
Harry's gaze swung to him and Harry's eyes softened in amusement. "How very Slytherin of you, Professor," he said with a soft smile.
Severus blinked at the smile, hold his face impassive, not showing an ounce of emotion. "That's because I am, Potter."
"I think the question on all our minds though is how did you get rid of Voldemort?" Dumbledore asked. "It was quite a surprise during our ambush when all the Death Eaters fell to the ground in pain, Severus included," Dumbledore commented.
Harry gave Severus an anxious apologetic look and Severus just shrugged. It had hurt severely at the time, but he was glad to go through the pain to get rid of the mark. He was free and that’s what mattered.
"Luckily Severus let us know that the Dark Mark was disappearing, so we knew that Voldemort had died. We just didn't know how. We also knew then why you weren't on the raid with us. What did you do Harry?" Dumbledore asked gently.
"I knew that if I told you my full plan, then none of you would've let me go through with it. I'm still surprised that you agreed to the ambush. Once I got you and the Death Eaters out of the way, I apparated to Riddle Manor where I challenged Voldemort to a duel. We dueled for quite a while when he got me by surprise. I fell to the ground and decided that I was going to end it so I waited. He, of course, got cocky thinking that because I was on the ground that I was defeated, so I waited for his bragging to start before pulling out my Colt .45 and shot him twice between the eyes," Harry said with smug satisfaction.
"Colt .45?" the Headmaster asked curiously.
Harry smiled grimly, "It's a Muggle firearm. I felt it justice that Voldemort should die by a Muggle weapon. He wouldn't be expecting it, plus he would die by a weapon made by the very people he was trying to destroy."
Severus smirked at Harry, it was truly a fitting way for Voldemort to die.
"After he died I cast the Déchirer de l'Ame spell to obliterate his soul. I wanted to make sure he was gone this time," Harry said with a casual shrug.
Severus, Lupin and Dumbledore gasped in shock. "You cast the Tearing of the Soul spell?" Severus asked in shock and anger. "Do you know what that could've done to you? Merlin, no wonder your power levels were exhausted. You could have died, Harry!" Severus said with a yell.
Harry stared at him in surprise and Severus realized that he called him Harry, but damn it, he was angry. Didn't the brat understand just how dangerous that spell was?
"What's the Tearing of the Soul spell?" Poppy asked.
"It's a very complicated and hard spell to do. It basically obliterates the soul, there is no trace left of it anywhere. There isn't a chance in hell that Voldemort is coming back. Not only is it hard to do, but it's dangerous to the castor. It's usually done with three Wizards and even then it can still kill the Wizards. The amount of power used for the spell is tremendous. The Wizards usually burn out their magic before the spell is even completed. The fact that Harry did it by himself and survived is beyond amazing. It means that Harry is a very powerful Wizard," Lupin explained with some awe.
Harry rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Yes, yes. Harry Potter is a powerful Wizard. Whoop de doo," he said sarcastically.
Severus had to stifle a grin, only Harry Potter could care less about how much power he had. He may have Slytherin traits, but the man was still a Gryffindor.
"We'll talk about that later," Dumbledore began.
"Actually, no we won't. I'm not a child, Albus. I'm a twenty-three year old Auror who has just defeated one of the darkest Dark Lords in centuries. I will not be reprimanded like a child for doing something that everyone expected me to do. I can care less if you liked how I did it. Just be glad I got it done. If you expect me to feel guilty about it then you're in a long wait because it's not going to happen. So get over Albus, because I have," Harry said softly but firmly.
Severus was proud of the way Harry defended himself. Harry was right; he had done what was expected of him. He didn't have to answer to anyone about how he did it as long as it was done. Severus may not have like how it was done, but he could respect Harry's choice to do so.
The Headmaster looked a little flustered. "Ah, yes well, what happened after you did the spell?" he asked.
"I burned his body then I transferred the ashes into a diamond for safe keeping. I flew out to the middle of the ocean and dropped it. I have no idea where since I didn't bother to check the coordinates. There were no identifying markers since it was in the middle of nowhere and the diamond fell farther than any human can swim. I wanted to make sure that no one could get his ashes in some futile attempt to resurrect him."
They were all quiet at that revelation. "So, it's over then, for good this time?" Lupin asked.
The Headmaster nodded his head and said somberly, "Yes, Remus, it looks that way."
The tension in the room relaxed and an almost cheerful atmosphere took its place. They were finally free of the Dark Lord. Hopefully it would be a while before the next one came to take his place. Sadly, that was just the way it was.
"Well, my boy, I'll leave you to rest. I have to contact the Ministry and give them the information. Arthur has been waiting for it rather impatiently since I informed him of your current condition. I expect you'll be getting some visitors soon. It shouldn't be too long before you can leave here and go home to recuperate," the Headmaster said cheerfully.
Severus saw the depressed expression enter Harry's eyes. "Yeah," he muttered dully.
"He can't if he doesn't have someone to take care of him. He needs help getting around. His body is far too weak for him to do it on his own," Poppy said firmly.
"Maybe Ron or Hermione can help you?" Lupin suggested.
Harry shook his head. "No, Hermione has the job in France and Ron was going to follow her after his last game this season with the Chudley Cannons. He has a job coaching Quidditch in one of the small Wizarding schools over there. I can't ask them to put aside their plans to help me," Harry said. "Not that they would," Harry muttered not realizing that everyone could hear.
"I would Harry, you know I would, but I have to go to that retreat for werewolves in Australia. It took me three years to get invited," Lupin said anxiously.
Harry gave him a strained smile. "I know Remus, and I understand. We'll think of something. I have several days before I need to worry about it. You go to the retreat," Harry said gently.
"Harry are you sure, I can stay. I…"
"NO! You've waited this long, I'm not going to make you wait any longer. Go, have fun, learn all you can," Harry said in a firm voice.
"Alright," Lupin said softly.
Severus watched as the light went out in Harry's eyes as he realized that no one would take care of him. It must have hurt to realize that none of his friends cared enough to help him in his time of need, even after everything he did for them.
"You can stay with me," Severus said and watched as Harry's eyes flew to his in surprise. His eyes were wide, but he could see a tentative hope flickering there.
"Really? It wouldn't be a bother?" Harry asked softly.
"Of course not, Potter. After all you did save the entire Wizarding World from a Dark Lord," Severus said gruffly and watched in alarm as the light of hope in Harry's eyes died. Realizing how his comment sounded he cursed mentally. He knew that he just made Harry feel like that's all he was good for now. He grit his teeth in frustration, he refused to get sentimental in front of everyone, but the look on Harry's face caused his heart to clench in pain.
He walked forward and stood next to the bed. "Potter…Harry," he began nervously. "I didn't mean to make it sound like that was the only reason I wanted to help you. You know me, Potter, you know what I'm like. I say things without thinking about how they sound. I want to take care of you because I can, because I want to. Who knows, maybe we can use this time to become friends," Severus said softly.
Harry gazed at him, his eyes sharp looking for something. He must have found it as the light came back into his eyes and he smiled. "Alright, I'll stay with you," Harry said softly.
Severus gave him a small smile and stepped back from the bed, ignoring the staring Wizards. He watched as Harry raised his hand to his chest, a soft smile on his face. Harry's eyes widened in shock and he gasped in dismay. "Where is it?" he asked frantically, grabbing his shirt and pulling it away from his chest. "My necklace, where is it?" he demanded.
Severus watched as Harry began to look around his bed for the missing necklace. Poppy walked over to the table and pulled open the small drawer. She pulled out the necklace and handed it to Harry. "Is this what you're looking for?" she asked.
Harry gave a gasp of relief and grabbed the necklace. He quickly put it on and relaxed. He took a couple of deep breaths. "I thought maybe I had lost it while dueling with Voldemort," he explained softly.
"Where did the necklace come from?" Lupin asked curiously.
"I got it five years ago as a graduation present. It was from someone who cared," Harry said softly. "It's never left my body. It has protection spells on it and it's saved my life several times. The person who gave it to me can never know how much this necklace got me through." Harry looked at Severus directly in the eye when he said this.
"Well, I'm glad the spells saved your life," Lupin said.
"Yes, it did that too," Harry said still staring at Severus. Severus's eyes widened in shock as he understood the meaning of Harry's statement. Without the necklace, Harry would have given up. He would've found a way to die, whether by his own hand or by another's. He remembered the comment Harry had made the night before his graduation about being so weary of living. Harry, knowing that someone cared for him, had chosen to live his life.
Swallowing hard, he was thankful that he decided to give Harry the necklace. He almost hadn't. He watched as Harry continued to stare at him, to the bewilderment of the other people in the room. Harry gave him a gentle smile and stroked the pendant of the necklace. Severus froze, Oh Merlin, he knows. He knows I gave him the necklace. But how? Why isn't he angry? Disgusted? Appalled? How long has he known? Severus thought frantically, his face not giving away any of his inner turmoil.
Harry eyes softened and he grinned at Severus bashfully, a tinge of red in his cheeks. "I'm tired. I'd like to rest now please," Harry said with a yawn. He lay down on the bed and snuggled up to his pillow. He gave them all a sleepy look, his gaze lingering over Severus.
"Night," he said softly. Harry closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. The others stood around and stared at Harry. His abrupt manner had surprised them, but they shrugged, leaving the infirmary. With a glance towards Harry, Snape left the infirmary.
Harry woke up with the sun shining in his eyes. He groaned and covered his head with a pillow. After a few minutes of trying to fall back to sleep he realized that it was futile. Sighing, he uncovered his face and yawned widely. He looked around his room and grinned slightly. He had a feeling that Severus had enjoyed giving him a room that was green and silver. Harry remembered the glint in Severus's eyes when he had been shown the room and chuckled.
He had been at Snape Manor for three weeks now and he was still tired. Slowly, his body was regaining its strength, but it wasn't fast enough for Harry. At least one good thing came from being at Snape Manor; he was beginning to get to know Severus. He remembered the shock and pleasure he had felt when the man insisted shyly to be called Severus. When Harry invited Severus to use his name, it had given him a tingle to hear his name being rolled of Severus's tongue.
Thinking back over the last three weeks, he smiled. He had come to know that Severus had a sense of humor, dry and wicked. He liked his tea with a tad bit of milk and some sugar. He hated carrots, but loved Brussels sprouts. He was allergic to daisies and loved purple roses. He had a fondness for Muggle fantasy books even though he lived in a real magical world. He hated Quidditch, but loved Muggle golf.
He had a fondness for cats that was not apparent until you met his three babies as he called them. Slate was a three year old Siamese cat, Ginger was the eight year old Persian and Onyx was the six month old Asian Smoke kitten. The kitten had become attached to Harry and could be found following Harry where ever he went. Harry watched as Severus spoiled them relentlessly. He told Harry that since he didn't have any children, he considered the cats his children. It gave Harry a warm fuzzy feeling inside when he watched Severus with his cats.
Above all he loved Harry and he showed it in various ways. He showed it when he spent time with Harry instead of brewing a potion. He showed it when he went to Hog...
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