As the World Tilts

Deaging is extremely cliche, but I've caught the bug. Let me know what you think!

AU from DOM battle on.

I do not own HP.

Prologue

Harry couldn't keep the jaw-splitting grin from his face as he read his most recent letter from Sirius for what may have been the fiftieth time. After glancing at it once more to assure himself it was truly real, he folded and tucked it carefully away in his bag.

Ever since Hedwig had returned with it the night before, he had felt a shaky, hesitant, but overwhelming bubble of glee forming in his chest. Harry recognized the feeling like a long-forgotten friend. It was what he'd felt the night Hagrid had come to get him from the Dursleys. It was what he'd felt the night he'd learned Sirius was innocent, before Pettigrew had escaped and everything had gone to hell. It was hope-something he'd done his best to hold onto, but its tendrils had begun to sneak away after too many summers of near-starvation and as the war with Voldemort wore on.

But now, perhaps, things would be different. Regardless of his past experiences, Harry had to admit that with all that had happened recently, it seemed things were finally turning around. It seemed safe to let some of his hardened defenses crack a bit. So was it any surprise that stubborn hope had found its way back to him once again? But part of him was still hanging in nervous anticipation, half-expecting it all to be ripped out from under him any second.

He looked up to see Hermione smiling her soft, knowing smile at him before grimacing at Ron who was cheerfully mumbling incoherently through too much treacle tart, and he felt a rush of affection for them. The constant nature of his friends was one of many things he loved about them. It reminded him of all the shit they'd trudged through together, and all they'd stood by him through.

But right now was not the time for darker thoughts of what had passed. No. Today, even the prospect of double-potions with the Slytherins first up couldn't dampen his mood. Exams were next week and then it would be summer. And for the first time, he could genuinely say he was looking forward to it.

Even though it all seemed too good to be true, he couldn't contest the maelstrom of events that had taken place this year.

The battle of Hogwarts had only been a few months ago, half-way through his sixth year. After the hell and frustrating lack of progress of the year before, how quickly things had sped up after the battle at the Ministry, when a polyjuiced Severus Snape had covertly blown Sirius out of the way of the veil, still blew Harry's mind.

Severus had been outed as a spy not long after the fiasco at the Ministry, during a particularly risky mission. The potions master couldn't say he regretted it, however. Not having to scrape at the Dark Lord's feet was an indescribable relief. And despite the moment of distraction which cost him his position (all due to a certain watery-eyed, obsequious rat), the information he had been able to gain that last mission had been invaluable for the order.

Perhaps it was just spite, but Severus decided to get some appropriate comeuppance for his sufferings, and so as a parting gift to the Death Eaters (and to satisfy some part of his grudge against the marauders), he portkeyed away with Peter Pettigrew before promptly presenting him to the ministry. That the 'mutt' Black was cleared soon after and given a public (and thoroughly superficial) apology by the bumbling fool, Fudge, was a decidedly unfortunate side effect, in Severus' opinion. But he felt that landing one of his schoolyard nemeses in Azkaban and milking information from the rat was worth it. Perhaps.

To say Sirius was not particularly thrilled to owe his freedom to his long-time enemy would be a gross understatement. The fact that he now owed both his life and freedom to the former spy nagged at him relentlessly. Nevertheless, his utter and complete joy at finally being able to walk free without fear of being hounded by dementors at every turn won over his desire to spend all day being sullen and resentful for owing the damn slimy Snape a debt.

And so he had made some effort-what he thought was a great effort (albeit at the constant pestering of Moony)-to simply ignore the Slytherin when in his presence after an initial painful, yet perfunctory, show of appreciation. Ah well. Sirius felt he had better things to think about. Like how Moony and his girl and kid were moving in with him and helping him to refurbish Black Manor. And how he'd finally get to make good on his promise to Harry.

The information gained due to Pettigrew's incarceration and questioning by Veritaserum opened some metaphorical floodgate and the war had burst into the open soon thereafter. Death Eater attacks became more rampant, but less organized, and soon they had taken to waging full-scale attacks. It was right after Winter Hols that Voldemort and his army had stormed Hogwarts.

The training Harry had undergone with Snape after his discovery as a spy had paid off, and when the time came, Harry used the hexes and defensive maneuvers the man he was beginning to respect (despite his unbendingly snide demeanor) had taught him to finally defeat Voldemort when the madman confronted him in the Forbidden Forest.

Not that there weren't losses. Colin Creevey was one of many students who gave his life that night. In addition, Narcissa Malfoy had been killed while protecting her son. Draco had been reluctant to take the Dark Mark and his refusal to kill Hermione Granger where she stood had led his father to lash out at him, disowning him and attempting to murder him in a single breath.

*~*Severus POV*~*

In the months since the battle, Draco had withdrawn into himself and the deadened look in his eyes left his friends and Godfather more than a little worried. Befitting the Slytherin crests they wore, Draco's friends did not pander to his every need or sob openly in sympathy as a Hufflepuff might be inclined, but rather attempted to form a silent wall of support for him, giving him space and quiet companionship accordingly.

For Severus' part, though he did truly care for his godson, his general lack of experience coddling children made him uncharacteristically unsure of how next to act with the young man when he was without his carefully constructed mask of self-assuredness.

Weighing particularly on Severus' mind was the glaring, horrifying fact that, with the death and incapacitation of the boy's parents, it was now Severus and Severus alone to whom responsibility for Draco fell until he came of age. The extra cruelty Lucius had delivered on the poor boy by disowning him made Severus want to break into Azkaban to torture the man with some of his own curses.

It was clear Draco would need help to get past this. Help beyond what Severus could give, as he, while possessing the skill to intimidate legions of brats into following rules that made him a decent Head of house, Severus feared his harsh demeanor would push Draco too far too soon in his current, fragile state. And yet those Snape trusted fully were few, and for Draco it was no better. So for the present Snape was simply attempting to provide a willing ear and some modicum of stability for the boy who was no doubt still in shock.

*~*Draco POV*~*

His fa-no. No! Lucius Malfoy. He was in Azkaban once again-this time for good-and with no possibility of leniency on his sentence. Draco had gotten that owl about a month ago or so. He couldn't quite remember. And he vaguely wondered why the owl had bothered. He wasn't a Malfoy anymore, after all. He was just some nobody; nameless, he was just like any other outcaste-any mud blood or blood traitor or...

Draco didn't care. Well, maybe he did. About Lucius being in Azkaban, though? It served the bastard right. But no sooner would he voice such thoughts that it would hit him that, while the majority of the wizarding world and the students around him were enveloped in the carefree ecstasy of victory, Draco found himself suddenly parentless, stripped of the Malfoy name, and more alone than he'd ever felt before. He hated them. He hated them all.

The blond Slytherin felt jealous rage well up in his throat as he watched the Gryffindor table surreptitiously across the great hall, scowling when he saw a stupid smile light up Potter's face. What right did the golden boy prat have to look so damn happy when Draco's life was such a fucking mess? He clenched his fists, plotting revenge on his long-time rival.

Draco had attempted to shove the painful truth of that night to the back of his mind. The horrific spectacle and reality of it all was too much to bear. It was so much easier to blame perfect Potter for his pain. It made him feel lighter to do so. More like himself. More like things were right with the world. As for all Potter was an irritant, he was a normal, usual irritant. Nothing out of the ordinary. Maybe a throw-back to one of Draco's old games was in order…

Draco noticed the narrowed eyes of his godfather watching him penetratingly from the head table. The blond smiled innocently up at him, causing the man's expression to darken even further in suspicion. With a sigh, Draco turned back to his plate and continued to push his food around with his fork, though a mischievous glint was stirring in his silver-grey eyes.

*~*Harry POV*~*

Harry felt someone's gaze on him and turned around just in time to see a head of blond hair turn swiftly back to face the table. Harry sighed. Draco Malfoy had been almost mute since the battle. If he was honest with himself, Harry no longer harbored any serious ill-will towards the Slytherin. The boy was now, for all intents and purposes, an orphan just as he, Harry, was…but Draco's case was so much worse in some ways.

To have your mother murdered right in front of you by your father just because she'd been attempting to stop your father murdering you? Harry couldn't begin to imagine the pain his fellow sixth-year must be feeling. And the guilt, regardless of whether he should feel that way. Harry knew he'd be buried in it if it were him. And considering Draco's uncharacteristic behavior lately, Harry was willing to bet Draco was pretty buried himself.

And besides…as Sirius had just written him, Harry was not really an orphan any longer. Finally, Harry could take Sirius up on his invitation from 3rd year. Come end of term next week, Harry would be going home with Sirius and Remus (and his new little family) to one of the more pleasant (much more, Sirius had assured) Black properties for the summer. Despite the dark pall that thoughts of Draco's situation had pulled over him for a moment, Harry could not suppress his giddiness at the prospect of the first of many wonderful summers. On that note, he gathered his things and followed his friends from the Great Hall.

Chapter 1

Harry took his place beside Hermione in the cold dungeon classroom. Being a NEWT-level class (Harry still couldn't believe he'd made the grade for Snape's course), student behavior was generally less volatile than in previous years. Since Voldemort's defeat, even the students who had known death-eater parents had stopped their constant interference and sneering and had become much more tolerable, showing the Slytherin penchant for playing the winning side.

Harry watched as Draco entered with Blaise Zabini and was surprised to see some of the long-missing fire back in the blond's silvery eyes. Harry doubted it could mean anything good, but pushed the thought away as the dungeon door slammed shut and Snape strode into the room in typical fashion, black robes billowing majestically around him. Reaching the front of the classroom, Snape stopped and spun on his heel in a single motion, letting his eyes rove suspiciously over his students, a sneer tugging at his lips as he began the class.

"As today is the final practical lesson of the year, you will be given the opportunity to brew a potion from the latter half of the textbook of your own choice. As this should be review, I would expect it to be well within your capabilities as sixth-year NEWT students. However, there are those among you who have thus far failed to prove themselves worthy of such a distinction," Snape sneered. Harry frowned and glared slightly as the obsidian eyes focused on him for a moment too long. "I pray you take this as the chance it is to show you have some modicum of talent…if you harbor any hope to continue to next year's course, that is. Begin."

Harry quickly began to flip through his copy of Advanced Potion-Making and slowed at the Shrinking Potion. He remembered that he had done a rather decent job with this one earlier in the year. He leaned closer as he noticed the familiar spiky scrawl of the half-blood Prince in the margins. Harry had realized early on that, though using the Prince's edits usually led to perfectly-made potions, it more often than not led to Professor Snape suspecting him of cheating. Harry had, therefore, reluctantly resumed following the standard instructions for the most part this year. For one thing, he didn't want Snape to get so suspicious that he examined the book over-closely and confiscated it.

But today was the last day of class and Harry was in too good a mood about going to live with Sirius to worry about risk-taking. He wouldn't need the book after today anyway, so what did it matter if it were taken away?

And so he started to follow the Prince's instructions for the potion, becoming increasingly confident as the color for the brew quickly did what it was supposed to. Hermione glanced over several times to check his progress and then, noticing the greater attention Harry was giving to the scrawled words, hissed "Harry! You promised me you weren't-"

"Ms. Granger. Need I remind you that any assistance you offer Mr. Potter will cost you both? 5 points from Gryffindor for disrupting class time. Be thankful it isn't more," the potion master said in his usual silky tones.

Hermione frowned but just sighed "Yes sir," and resignedly returned to her work, shooting the occasional accusing glance at her friend.

Harry had almost completed the potion when he noticed an additional note at the bottom of the page:

Young at Heart Potion. Simply adding three pinches of aniseed after the second-to-last step should change the make-up of the potion considerably…I conjecture that-

Harry had recently realized that he found potions a lot more interesting than he'd always thought. Especially things like this-how adding one ingredient could change the make-up of the potion in peculiar ways-just opened so many possibilities for experimenting. Which was certainly the way the Weasley twins thought about it, Harry mused fondly.

His attitude change had been a slow thing, and due greatly to how much Severus Snape had helped him to take down Voldemort. The fact that the man (though inadvertently, according to Snape at least) had saved Sirius at the Ministry had definitely been the big push to make Harry rethink his assessment of the potions master. But it was seeing how absolutely vital Snape's healing potions had been during and after the final battle and Snape's graceful and precise technique while making them that had impressed Harry enough to urge him to put some more effort into the class.

Too bad Snape had never really given him a chance in potions, Harry sighed. Lost in thought, he failed to notice something levitating by his knee and then up and into his potion. A hissing sound had him glancing up just in time to see his perfect potion bubbling dangerously.

Severus scowled as Ms. Granger's bushy hair blocked his view of the dunderheaded sixth-years. Though this particular group of students had been admittedly more well-behaved this term than in previous years, he never felt safe letting any of them out from under his watchful eye. Particularly in a lesson like this, when the variety of potions being brewed could cause innumerable crises if any untoward mixing were to occur, he did not appreciate any blockage of his vantage.

His eyes wandered to Draco. And while the boy appeared to be concentrating fully on stirring his potion, Severus knew his godson better than to assume an innocent face meant just that. And sure enough, under the desk, he just managed to spy the tip of his godson's wand whisking back and forth. His fears were confirmed when he glanced at Potter's workstation just as something entered the boy's cauldron unbeknownst to Potter himself. His eyes widened in understanding, horror and anger.

"POTTER! Move, boy!" He bellowed, leaping up from his desk and pointing his wand to stabilize the potion. He rushed over to pull the gob-smacked child, who was simply staring blankly at his hissing concoction, away from the site of danger.

Harry stood up quickly at his Professor's bark, and though Severus managed a stasis charm on the potion before it exploded, the sudden rush of students attempting to gain some distance upset the worktable. Unthinking, Snape threw himself over Potter (in an admittedly Gryffindorish move he would never admit to) just as the cauldron spilled over, drenching both Professor and student in its contents. A burning, overwhelming pain was the last thing Snape was conscious of.

…

Draco stared in horror as his attempt at letting off some steam via ruining Potter's potion and embarrassing the boy got way out of hand. Though he didn't like Potter, he didn't want to kill or seriously injure him. Though he wouldn't admit it, without his messy-haired rival, life would be much less exciting. But he never would have expected Severus to actually throw himself over Potter, taking the brunt of the potion himself! His heart nosedived in panic for his godfather. He was all he had, after all. And even though the man could be an arse, and Draco had been avoiding him somewhat recently, he still cared for the man.

Two horrible, heart-wrenching screams woke Draco from his ruminations and had him springing over his chair, waving his wand in an attempt to vanish the potion as quickly as possible.

Severus was spasming as he screamed, and then the timbre of the screams changed as Draco's godfather's features began to distort. Potter may have been in a similar state, but Draco couldn't spare more than a passing thought for the him.

"Evanesco! Evanesco! Severus! Uncle Severus! Somebody help me, dammit!" Draco was panicking. He could definitely admit that at this point. For one thing, Severus almost never screamed. Even on those awful occasions when Draco had been forced to watch as Lucius' cohorts and master tortured the man, Severus had rarely let his true discomfort show. To think that something he, Draco, had done had led to this…

"What are you all doing standing there?" He yelled at his stunned classmates, most standing helplessly or watching in mounting horror. "Help me get rid of the potion! And someone get Madame Pomfrey!"

His words finally getting through to them, Blaise nodded and took off (along with several others) while Hermione instantly snapped to helping clean the mess of potion off of the two.

The silvery potion vanished, Draco stepped closer. He gasped in horror when he realized that Severus and Potter seemed to have vanished along with it.

"Harry!" Granger gasped from beside him. Draco was too distraught to even sneer at her tears. He dropped to his knees and frantically felt around in the black robes piled lumpily where his godfather and rival had been seconds prior. His breath caught when he felt something. The lumps in the black material were moving.

"Shut up, Granger!" He hissed at the sobbing girl. Creeping forward, he carefully began to pull up the robes. Two pairs of eyes met him and he gasped, dropping the dark material in shock.

Cursing himself for being a coward, Draco steeled himself and lifted the material again, pulling it down to reveal two wide-awake, and clearly terrified little boys, one draped over the other, each clinging to the other for dear life.

"Oh my god," Draco whispered in amazement and horror. Obsidian and emerald eyes widened in unison and the two dark-haired children flinched away from him, scooting back as quickly as they could in their over-large robes until they were backed against the cold stone wall of the dungeon, each tangled in a mess of black.

As both were far too skinny, with messy, greasy dark hair (though the dark-eyed child's was longer and straighter than the other's), Draco thought they looked remarkably similar to one another in that moment. Particularly with the identical looks of fear and distrust in their eyes. Hard to think that this was Potter…and Severus…

Draco's eyes widened at that, fully comprehending what had happened.

"Oh my god. P-Professor? Harry?" Granger said from his right. Draco did sneer this time at her whiny voice, broken with sobs. The ruckus she was making clearly wasn't doing much to comfort the children, either, as they just scurried further away the closer she got to them. The green-eyed runt, Potter, Draco reminded himself, suddenly tripped and landed on his hands and knees. Surprisingly, though it looked like a hard enough fall to have skinned them, the child showed no indication that he had been hurt. He simply bit his lip and curled into himself, pressing backwards against the stone wall, only curling further in on himself when Granger expressed her concern for his hands and knees.

Severus was curled in a similar position, sitting about 5 feet away from Potter, eying his surroundings warily. Curiosity battled the fear in his eyes (unlike Potter who simply looked lost and terrified). But Draco's eyes were only for his now-tiny godfather, and he smirked at the child's obvious preoccupation with the cauldrons and rows of ingredients.

Little Severus' eyes widened in wonder as he looked around the lab, a slight smile tugging at his lips, and Draco marveled at the difference it made in the stern little façade. It occurred to him that he had not seen a true smile on Severus' face more than twice in his life. If that. But clearly this was evidence of his godfather's passion for potions becoming apparent already.

I wonder if Uncle Sev still gets so excited about potions once in a while? Certainly he throws himself into them, but…does he ever get any happiness from them? Draco was wrenched from his thoughts when Severus' expression blanked suddenly, the boy flinching as if having remembered something suddenly. Fear in his eyes once again, he peered around, seeming to be looking out for someone before curling into himself like Potter, his little arms tucked tightly around his legs in a semblance of comfort.

"Harry? Harry, it's me, Hermione! Do you know who I am?" Draco's attention was again yanked unceremoniously to the Gryffindor duo. Granger was crouched down before the messy-haired boy (who was really far too skinny, Draco mused. It looked as if a light breeze might knock him over, for Merlin's sake!). She smiled encouragingly, but when the boy shook his head and the damn know-it-all nearly started sobbing again, Draco felt he had to step in before the girl caused some kind of epic disaster.

He spoke in a calm, even tone so as not to scare the children. "Granger. The kid looks like he's about to have a panic attack so could you do us all a favor and quit your blubbering for a second?"

Granger looked up in shock and anger, but then noticing the way Potter was whispering "sorry, sorry I'm bad, sorry" and a mix of other incomprehensible mutterings, she looked suitably contrite and horrified.

"Oh Harry, you don't have anything to be sorry for! I'm not mad," she whispered. The green eyes regarded her silently but Draco could tell the boy didn't believe her. There was definitely something up with Potter, Draco thought. The boy was acting totally contrary to his expectations-he was turning into a puzzle. And Draco was not fond of puzzles. At least ones he seemed to be lacking great chunks of information about. He would have to think more about it later, at any rate.

Severus stared fixedly at the boy to his right. He looked scared. Really scared. Even more than Severus was, to be honest. He looked really worried that he'd upset the bushy-haired lady and was whispering "sorry" over and over again. Now, Severus wasn't that familiar with kids his age. Father forbid him from playing much for one thing and the kids he did know were all mean and awful to him, teasing him about his hair and clothes and throwing sticks and stuff at him and pushing him down.

Severus sniffed at the memory. He wanted his mummy. He hoped she was around and would get him soon! It had been really scary waking up in darkness and feeling tangled up in a place he'd never seen before. He'd been hurting, too. All over. But at least he'd been with the other boy. For some reason, it had felt comforting to hug him. He wasn't used to hugging anyone but his mummy. So maybe that kid was okay, then? Seeing how sad he looked made Severus want to comfort him and not let him feel sad anymore. He always tried to make his mummy feel better after Father had a 'talk' with her, after all. Mummy said he was the best at that. Maybe he could help this kid, too?

Severus took another glance around the room and felt another little bubble of excitement. He knew he just had to be in a potions laboratory! Mummy said they had lots at Hogwarts and so Severus wondered if somehow that's where he was. Mummy had always told him about Hogwarts and how he would go there one day and be in Slytherin and become a great wizard. He was sure his mummy was somewhere in Hogwarts if he was there, and that just had to be where he was! But he had to make sure.

"Uhm, excuse me sir."

Draco whirled around, blinking, and stared at Severus, who had no idea why the blonde man was looking at him with such a funny expression on his face.

"Uh…y-yeah, Severus? What's up?"

The tiny child, who looked to be around 4, narrowed his eyes slightly. "How do you know my name?"

"I'm uh," Draco paused. How did you explain to a four-year-old that you're his godson? "I'm a friend," he decided on. "You probably don't remember me, but I definitely know you, Severus. I promise that I don't mean to hurt you." There. He hadn't even lied. Emitted truth, yes.

Draco found himself squirming under the tiny child's too-wise gaze. It felt so much like being under his godfather's usual penetrating look, as if Severus were looking through him, seeing all his secrets, reading his thoughts and feelings…

"What's your name?" Severus finally whispered, seemingly having accepted Draco's explanation.

"Draco," the blond smiled. "I'm Draco, Severus. Hey, would you come with me? It's chilly in this dungeon and we need to get you to somewhere warmer, don't you think?"

Severus gave a fleeting smile but then his forehead scrunched in thought.

"Is mummy there?"

Draco paused. "Uh, I don't know, Sev," he lied. "Let's just go talk to the headmaster, okay? He'll know what to do, I bet," he stalled.

"Headmaster? Are we at…at…" Severus' eyes widened in curiosity and wonder and he whispered excitedly, "Hogwarts?"

Draco smiled wider and nodded at the sudden childish excitement. "That's right, little man. So come on, okay? I'll show you around."

Severus nodded and inched forward, sparing another glance for the boy next to him who was watching the events unfold with utmost concentration. Severus let himself be picked up by the blond but glanced back at the boy. He wondered if…um, Harry? Severus thought that was what the lady from earlier called him… Well, he wondered if Harry's mummy was here. Severus was sure that his mummy was somewhere in Hogwarts! With that comforting thought in mind, he wrapped his arms hesitantly around the tall blond man's-Draco, he reminded himself-neck and waited expectantly.

Harry watched wide-eyed as the boy next to him let Draco pick him up. He gulped. He was cold and hungry and scared (though that wasn't new). But where was he? Oh, Uncle Vernon and Aunt 'Tunia were going to be so mad! He must have done something freaky again, and he'd bothered a bunch of people 'cause they were all crowded around him and everything.

He really didn't know what was happening. He had woken up in darkness and was hurting, but even though he was scared, he felt better than a lot of times because someone was hugging him. Then the blackness had lifted and he'd seen the blonde man with pretty silver eyes and he'd been so scared, sure he was about to be in trouble.

The other boy-Severus-seemed almost as scared as he was and Harry realized that Severus had to have been the one hugging him. He couldn't remember anyone hugging him before. Even though he was really confused, the possibility that maybe Severus wasn't like Dudley and the other kids he knew made his tummy bubble with hope. After all, Severus was almost as skinny as he and he had dark hair too! Maybe he was a freak like him? Well, that was fine by Harry, because at least he wouldn't be alone then.

But then Draco had said he knew Severus and then had picked him up and Harry's tummy pinched in disappointment. Severus had a mummy and a friend who loved him and everyone would forget about the freaky geeky Harry again. Even though he was used to it, it still hurt Harry to think about why nobody ever wanted him.

He sniffled a bit and didn't notice tears had begun to drip silently down his cheeks.

"Oh, Harry! Don't cry, sweetheart, it's okay!"

Harry jumped in shock as the pretty lady with the brown eyes from earlier wrapped her arms around him.

Harry was so unused to the sensation of being hugged that he flinched away at first but then, noticing Severus staring at him from Draco's arms, eyes wide, and then looking at how sad the girl looked, he inched closer again.

More tentatively this time, she put her arms around him. "Harry, I promise you don't need to be scared! You're safe and, um, Mal-D-Draco won't hurt you either, and we'll take care of everything, okay?"

Harry was stiff as a board in her arms but then finally nodded and relaxed a bit.

"Good boy," she whispered.

Harry didn't know why she sounded so sad, but he knew it had to be his fault. He'd made her sad again! He pushed back from her suddenly and said, his eyes full of tears, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to!"

"What, sweetie?" Hermione felt as if she were being torn apart by even more raw evidence of the insecurity the Dursleys had crafted in her front.

"I was bad. I made you sad," he whispered.

"No, honey. No you didn't. Here, let Mione pick you up and take you with Severus and Draco, alright? I promise we'll explain everything then. Okay? You're not in trouble."

"Hold your thestrals, Granger. I nearly forgot!" Draco set Severus back down gently and took out his wand, making both boys' eyes widen both in awe and trepidation. With a wave, Harry's and Severus' robes shrunk down until they no longer swallowed them.

Severus jumped a bit but then grinned. Sometimes his mummy would use magic in private with him. It was rare, but she would and he loved it! Oh, and now he looked like a real live wizard! If only he had his own wand…

Harry, on the other hand, let out a whimper but then made no other sound. Severus glanced at him and noticed the boy was shaking, his eyes widening in fear as he glanced down at his robes. He was looking around and looked really scared as if he thought he would be in trouble with someone.

Suddenly, Severus felt an even stronger desire than earlier to make Harry feel better and take care of him. To be honest, Severus had always wanted to be a big brother but Father thought kids were no good and useless and he didn't want any more. But Severus had still always dreamed about having a brother to protect and he thought, just maybe, he could pretend to be Harry's brother. They even looked alike! Severus loved to plan and dream up adventures and this sounded like a really good one! He'd be like a brave knight protecting his prince from an evil dragon! First he'd make him feel better, though.

He slowly inched over to Harry who watched him warily the whole time. Finally, Severus got close enough to whisper to him.

"Are you scared?"

Harry nodded hesitantly, eyes wide.

He closed his eyes as Severus reached over but then opened them in shock as he felt a wet sucking sensation on his cheek and arms wrapping around him. "Don't be scared, Harry. We're just at Hogwarts. I'll protect you, okay?"

Harry let Severus hug him for another few seconds before he tentatively hugged him back, nodding and letting some tears fall in earnest. When Severus didn't push his arms away like Aunt 'Tunia did whenever Harry tried to hug her, he gained some confidence and hugged Severus to his chest even more tightly.

"Okay," he whispered, his heart fluttering with hope and warmth at the gentle contact. His cheek still felt warm and wet from the kiss and Harry felt almost jittery suddenly. That was the first kiss he could ever remember!

Hermione felt a pang in her heart at the sight before her. Severus seemed to truly be a sweet child. She'd been worried at first, but had relaxed entirely when the little boy had planted a babyish little kiss on Harry's cheek before hugging him. But Merlin, what had happened to her friend? Oh, she knew about the Dursleys (or thought she did), but seeing it in the making in this small, innocent child who had not yet survived the way the 16-year-old Harry had just brought it crashing down with such force it took her breath away.

Suddenly, a whoosh! sound was heard and Albus Dumbledore, Poppy Pomfrey and Minerva McGonagall entered the room through the floo.

"Oh my!" Minerva gasped at the sight before her.

"Indeed," Dumbledore said softly, though his concerned gaze lightened and his eyes began to twinkle as he took in the scene before him. When a crowd of frantic sixth-year Slytherins and Gryffindors (an unlikely group on the best of days) had demanded entrance to his office during his mid-morning tea and had explained about a potions accident and Severus and Harry having been caught in it, he had feared what his dear children would be in for.

But now seeing how naturally the tiny Severus seemed to have taken to protecting Harry at this age, Albus wondered if this might not be a blessing in disguise. He was not unaware, either, of the odd looks the Malfoy scion (or former scion) was giving the two children-looks a mixture of guilt, longing and concern.

Very informative, Albus thought. As he gazed at the little group, his eyes began to twinkle anew. Perhaps this could be a blessing in more than one way…he simply needed to play his cards carefully.

Meanwhile, Poppy had set to casting diagnostic charms on the boys. Harry had been terrified and had tried to flinch away, but Severus had simply held him tighter and whispered words of comfort to him.

"Don't worry, Harry. It won't hurt us. It's just her magic wand. Mummy uses it all the time and it isn't bad, I promise. Just don't look, okay? I've got you, little brother." Severus then childishly petted Harry on the head and the boy seemed to burrow even deeper into Severus' grip.

Poppy looked a bit grim as she stood, but nodded to Albus, who then said, cheerfully, "Alright, children. Shall we adjourn to my office now?" He smiled down at the two little ones still huddled together. "Harry? Severus?"

The boys looked up with wide eyes.

"Forgive me for not introducing myself earlier. My name is Albus Wulfric Percival Brian Dumbledore, and I am the Headmaster here at Hogwarts. Would you two care for a lemon drop?"

The impossibly wide eyes as the children had listened with amazement to the funny old man's very long name suddenly filled with battling suspicion and hope at the mention of the lemon drop. Eventually, though, after a shared look, they both took the treat. As they sucked on it, they calmed down almost instantly.

"Always does wonders before a trip through the floo," Dumbledore winked at Draco and Hermione.

Draco wondered if he should try to excuse himself. He certainly didn't want the headmaster to discover his role in all of this…but another look at Severus made him change his mind. This was his godfather he'd landed in this situation for Merlin's sakes! The man had done his best to help him and protect him and the least he could do was help him now to get through this.

"Severus?" He crouched down by the boy. "Want to hop back up? We're going to go to Professor Dumbledore's office now."

"Okay, Draco," Severus said quietly, but Draco noticed he gave Harry's hand a little squeeze before he accepted Draco's offer to pick him up.

Harry felt much colder now that Severus wasn't holding him anymore. He shivered. Stupid Harry-how could he have gotten used to it so quickly? He shouldn't be a spoiled nuisance wanting attention. But it seemed like Severus really liked him and it was hard to forget that…he gulped. He had to be brave. Severus had told him he was brave, so he had to show that he was!

He looked up and saw that Mione was holding her arms out again. Hesitantly he let her pick him up, but was again stiff in her arms. Hermione frowned at how awkward Harry seemed to feel being held, but she was determined not to push him. Ever so gently, she rubbed his back and eventually he relaxed a bit. Sighing at the understanding that she couldn't expect much better, she followed Draco and the Professors towards the floo.

"Okay, now close your eyes, Harry," she said softly as she noticed how horrified the child look as people were sucked into the flames. "It doesn't hurt at all!"

"It doesn't eat them?"

"No. No, it doesn't eat them, silly! Just close your eyes. We're going right after Severus, okay?"

Harry nodded and squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the burning sensation. He'd been burnt before, after all. Aunt Tunia had pressed his hand to the stove once when he messed up breakfast. Somehow the burn was gone the next day, though. They weren't very happy about that. Harry shivered at the memory and buried his face in Hermione's neck.

But besides a little bit of warmth, he didn't feel a burn. After a while he opened his eyes and he was in the most amazing room ever! Severus was racing over to and jumping up on a big couch and a pretty red bird was sitting over by Mr. Dumbleboor. Harry smiled at Severus and was thrilled when Severus smiled back. The instant Hermione let him down he ran to see Severus but then bit his lip when he realized he was on the couch. Harry wasn't allowed on couches. Was he? He didn't want to break any rules since so far everyone was being so nice. So he just crouched before Severus on the ground.

"Harry? What are ya doing?"

"Um, I'm-I'm just sitting Sev'rus," Harry said quietly, eyes wide.

"But why there?" Severus raised one eyebrow and Draco snorted from behind them.

"Uncanny, really," the blond drawled.

Even Hermione giggled a bit despite her concern over Harry's behavior.

Severus ignored them and fixed Harry with his dark stare. Harry looked confused but said, "Freaks aren't allowed on the furniture."

Suddenly, Severus' expression changed. He looked shocked, but then his face reddened in hurt and anger.

"You take that back!"

Harry stared in utter confusion as his friend backed away from him and tears welled in his eyes.

"I thought you were different! But you just want to tease me too? I-I…" Severus started to sob, throwing his face into the back of the couch.

Draco swept to the couch and hugged Severus to him. "Hey it's okay, Severus. I'm sure he didn't mean it." His expression hardened as he looked at Harry. "What's this about, Potter?"

"Leave Harry alone! He didn't mean anything bad and you know it!" Hermione snapped, hugging the smaller boy to her.

"I…"

"Children, please! What has happened?" Albus swept over from where he had been holding an extended floo conversation, his eyes full of concern."

"Harry thinks I'm a freak," Severus sniffled.

Understanding, a jolt of horror hit Harry and he yelled out, "NO! No, Severus, I don't! I-I was talking about me, not you!"

"Child, whatever are you saying?" Dumbledore asked, crouching down before the now sobbing child.

"It has to do with his relatives, Headmaster," Hermione offered softly, her voice sad.

Severus watched with wide eyes from his place in Draco's lap. The blond was frowning slightly as he watched his ex-rival.

"Harry?" Albus pressed gently.

"Not s'pposed to say…get in trouble…" he sobbed.

"No, no child. No one will tell. They won't know. Now what was wrong just then?"

Just above a whisper, Harry said, "Freaks like me aren't 'llowed on the good furniture."

"Good furniture?"

"Couches, chairs and beds."

The room's occupants' eyes widened in horror. Severus was now crying openly, though silently, in Draco's arms.

"Oh child. Oh, that is just not true. You should certainly use any piece of furniture to your heart's content unless there is a very particular reason not to." Albus' voice, though soothing, sounded suddenly very old and regretful.

Draco was also staring at the child with something odd in his expression. Harry was truly unnerving him, bringing back too many bad memories. He needed them to stop. He didn't need to get wrenched back into his own situation when all this chaos was going on. And so before he knew what he was doing, Draco bent forward and scooped Harry up and plopped him in his lap beside Severus.

Harry seemed shocked and stiffened at first, but then Severus hugged him and they both relaxed.

"I'm so sorry, Harry. I'm so sorry…I didn't know!" Severus cried.

"S'okay, Sev'rus…don't worry."

"Albus, what are we going to do about them?" Minerva asked.

"Ah, yes. We will discuss that, but we are awaiting some additional guests…oh, perfect timing," he said as the floo went off again.

A frantic Sirius Black tumbled out of the floo with an only semi-shabby Remus Lupin behind him.

Huge first chapter. Hope you liked it! I wanted to show a Severus before he's lost that childhood innocence. I realize he might be considered OOC, but, at least in my AU, he had the protection of his mother's love and so, for a four-year-old, I think it's moderately believable...

Please Review!