Chapter Text
Severus was sitting in front of the fireplace drinking fire whiskey. He couldn’t really call this place home, the only home he’s ever known was torn away from him five years ago and now he was left all alone. The only reason he comes to this place is when he isn’t needed at Hogwarts. The only thing keeping him going was the chance to see his son again. Without that, he would have killed Dumbledore by now. But he is the only one who knows where his son is. If he killed the bastard, he would lose the chance to see his child again. Of course that manipulative bastard wasn’t aware he was hiding Severus' child from him. If Dumblefuck knew Harry was also mine, He’d have had me killed off too or thrown into Azkaban alongside Black and the death eaters. Severus thinks to himself as he downs his glass of whisky.
After pouring another glass, he pulls out a picture that’s always hidden in a pocket of his robes. If anyone looks at it. All they’ll see is a muggle photo of young Lily smiling out at them. Little do they know that there is more to the photo. Severus pricks his finger and lets a single drop of blood fall onto the photo and the picture changes. He’d created the enchantment himself and the only way the true picture will reveal itself is if Severus willingly pricks his own finger and lets one drop of blood hit the picture. If there is any sort of coercion at all, the photo would remain the same.
The picture was taken a few weeks before everything went to complete and utter shit. The photo is of him and his family. The photo shows James, who is pulling Regulus into his lap for the photo. Lily is sitting next to James with Harry on her lap and Severus is on her other side. Smiling down at their child. It was the last time he remembered smiling. There hasn’t been anything worth smiling for since that night.
I thought I'd be able to protect all of them. But they were all killed the same night. I should have at least gone with Reggie to the cave even though he told me to keep an eye on Dumblefuck and he’d take Kreature with him. I was so sure of my potion working that I believed him when he said he would be fine. It still hurts thinking about that night. I should have known something happened when Dumbledore cast a patronus. The Bastard was too good at nonverbally telling his patronus the message he was wanting to send.
Severus wasn’t sure if having this winter break off from Hogwarts duties was a good thing or not. Now he’s just stuck in his practically empty house with nothing but his thoughts. He never saw the point of decorating it or unpacking the few boxes of belongings he was able to salvage from the wreckage of what was once his home. As soon as he finds Harry he was fucking off far away where no one would be able to find them. He didn’t give a fuck what they rest of the wizarding world would think. Just because Harry was the boy who lived didn’t mean they were entitled to have him be their hero.
Severus had hoped that he would have already found his child by now but no matter how close he kept to Dumbledore, he hasn’t come any closer to finding him. It seems like Dumbledore just dropped the child off at a random house and hasn't gone to check up on Harry's wellbeing once. Severus has intercepted letters over the years, but nothing has had any mention of Harry in it.
He’s getting close to just say fuck it and torture to information out of the bastard. Sadly if Severus did that it’d raise too many questions about where Dumblefuck had gone and there’d be a massive search party for the wizarding world's beloved headmaster. One of these days he’ll get his revenge.
Standing up, Severus turns down the fire with a wave of his hand and then walks to his room. It's as dreary as the rest of the house. It only has a bed and nightstand with a couple of books he brought with him from Hogwarts on it. He places the picture on top of the books and transfigures his clothes into pajamas as he climbs into bed.
The bed feels too big, empty without the bodies of those he once shared one with. They all had separate rooms if they wanted to be alone but more often than not everyone wanted to share the bed. He missed the feeling of being wrapped up in another's limbs. Usually it was set up so Severus and Reggie were on the outside and Lily and James were in the middle. Some nights, Lily and James would go to one of their private rooms and leave Severus and Reggie on their own.
Severus cherished those nights. He wouldn’t put it past Lily to purposely pull James away so that he would get to be alone with Regulus. She knew about his infatuation with Reggie and that both of them hate sleeping alone and would opt to share the bed instead of sleeping alone. On those nights he'd more often than not wake up to Reggie using him as his personal pillow. He couldn’t tell how many hours he’d lay in bed watching him sleep.
He regrets not telling Regulus that he loved him and now he’d never get the chance to tell him how he felt. Reggie was dead now and he wasn’t even left with a body to bury. He even went to that god forsaken cave to look for it but all the bodies were nothing but a few burnt bones. At least he had closure with Lily and James.
Severus slips into a fitful sleep while distracting himself from how lonely he is by thinking about the list of stuff he should get tomorrow to stock up on the supplies he would need to see him through the rest of Christmas break.
~
That same night, Remus and Bill arrived back in London. Bill would be going to Little Hangleton to retrieve a certain ring with a team of goblin curse breakers, and Remus would attempt to fetch Severus. But first, they had a golem to vanish and replace.
Getting in and out of the house quickly and quietly was simple enough. They just applied a few silencing wards, and replaced the golem under the stairs with ease. Remus’s wolf was close to the surface just thinking about how awful it would be for his cub to really be living under the stairs. It did make replacing the golem easy though, as they only had a couple steps to intrude and leave before being spotted.
Still, it is extremely difficult leaving such a weak and fragile looking replica of his cub in such a situation. As he left the front door, Remus took one last sorrowful look over his shoulder.
Bill placed a hand on Remus’s shoulder, “It’s ok, Harry is safe at home. It's necessary we keep a decoy here so no one suspects a thing.”
“I know it’s not really Harry… but I can’t get the image of Harry living in that cupboard out of my head.” Remus turns to the street and without another word teleports to the inn they have rented out for the night.
~
Dudley doesn't know what woke him up, but he can’t physically sleep and has the strongest urge to look out his window.
He got there just in time to see a couple men holding what looks like a small child appear out of thin air right in the middle of the street in front of his house.
Holy shit. This can’t be real. It must be a trick. Dudley thinks to himself as he watches the figures start walking to his house. He is about to go warn his parents about a break in when he looks at the child closer.
Harry? That’s Harry… it can't be, Harry has been in his cupboard all day. Plus Harry looks lifeless. Dudley can't make sense of anything. His confusion has paralyzed him while he tries to make sense of what he is seeing.
He notices the redheaded man pull out a stick. That lights up at the tip. He hears a faint buzzing, even from up in the room. That sounds like the Doctor's sonic screwdriver! His mom only allowed him to watch sci-fi and reality shows, so he mostly stuck to sci-fi. It was more interesting. And though he liked the more adult shows, Dudley had to admit to himself he is pretty obsessed with the movie Robots recently. But Doctor Who is always his go to because he wanted to feel more grown up about what he is watching.
Dudley is still looking intently when the 2 men open the door. He notices a distinct lack of sound. Normally he could always hear the door open and close, but he heard nothing. While the two men stepped inside his house, Dudley cracked open his window. He knows he should be scared or run and get his parents. Or do something other than let the 2 men in. But they have a sonic screwdriver! So they have to be good guys, right?
It only took a few minutes for Dudley to start getting impatient. He still can't hear a single sound coming from inside the house. Really with a sonic screwdriver those men had, anything was possible. He was about to give up trying to hear or see anything when sound from outside came again.
He noticed the redhead walking out first and standing patiently on the sidewalk. Just a few moments later the other man with scars all over his face walked out too and looked back. Dudley was shocked at how pained the man looked looking back. Like his child had just died inside the house. What could cause the man so much pain?
The redhead spoke up. Saying that Harry was home and not to worry. That they needed a decoy. A decoy? So people won’t suspect what?
Ever since last year Dudley noticed a distinct difference in his cousin. His cousin was docile, compliant, and never had any snarky remarks like before. Never worked Dudley up like he did before. Dudley had grown bored. He didn’t realize that he actually enjoyed all the snarky little comments before they were gone, and his cousin became an empty shell of a person.
Dudley’s leading theory was that the “freakishness” his parents were always on about was actually because Harry was secretly a robot. He noticed his eyes glow a couple times. He heard a weird buzzing sound coming from Harry all the time. But this past year his eyes stopped glowing all together. Dudley knew something was off. Something was different.
Once the 2 men disappeared into thin air, Dudley crept downstairs. And took a peek in the cupboard. He woke up “Harry” and began questioning him. All answers were short and simple. He was definitely a robot. Not one like a Dalek or anything. But definitely one that was on the side of Time Lords. Those 2 men were definitely Time Lords. Was Harry also a Time Lord? Is this why his parents always called Harry a Freak?
Even Dudley could admit strange things did always happen around his cousin. When he thinks about the sonic screwdrivers, and this robot Harry that is some sort of “decoy” it all made sense.
He is starting to feel guilty about how he treated Harry. If only Dudley knew Harry was a Time Lord before. He could go on so many amazing adventures and fight all sorts of things!
That’s it. Dudley will now do his best to make sure his robo-cousin isn't discovered. And he needs to start learning about robots and science so he is all caught up when he meets his Time Lord cousin again. Also, he needs to focus more on what he is hearing when he hears that buzzing. He couldn't be sure. But the sounds coming from his Time Lord cousin, his robo-cousin, and the sonic screwdriver all seemed a bit different.
~
Early the next morning, after only a few hours of sleep Bill was ready to go horcrux hunting. WIth the time difference really all he could handle was a quick nap.
Remus was also wide awake. “You are lucky you can go horcrux hunting at 4 in the morning. I doubt Severus will be out at this time.”
“Ya well I would also rather deal with a horcrux than a Severus. You definitely have the worst luck out of the two of us!” Bill shot back with a cheeky grin.
“Oh fuck off!” Remus chucked a pillow at Bill’s head and then sobered a little bit. “Do you think Reggie is right? That Severus turned against his own child? I never believed it, my wolf trusts Severus with my cubs, and my wolf is never wrong about these things… but still with all Reggie’s pouting about it, it does make me wonder.”
“Professor Snape is definitely an interesting person. Since I began training with the goblins to look beyond the surface level of what I see. I think Regulus has been hurt for a very long time and needs an outlet. Even he has admitted to me many times that most of his frustration just comes from not knowing, and never finding him alone to actually talk to him about his choices and what he is doing. I don't think he is capable of seeing the situation clearly due to all his uncertainty and insecurity coupled with years and years of isolation and nothing but those uncertain and insecure thoughts to keep him company. I’m sure when we sit the 2 down together they will resolve their issues in no time.”
“Thank you Bill, that helped me a lot. I know you and Reggie have been getting along, I didn't realize you also talked about this.” Remus really did look like he was put at ease, and Bill is happy he was able to help.
“Of course we talked about it! We have been going over every single detail of this trip for weeks, including any fallout and potential hurt feelings and disappointments. Reggie is just scared to have hope. He just needs a little reassurance and I’m sure it will all work itself – “ Bill is cut off by a small team of goblins port keying into their room. “Ah, it is time for us to go. Good luck with Severus later today Remus!”
~
When Severus wakes up the next morning he looks over at the clock and notices it's a little past noon. He had stayed up later than he thought last night if it’s already so late in the day. He gets ready for the day and has a quick lunch before heading out to do his shopping.
The shops he needs to go to are thankfully mostly empty. Severus doesn’t think he’d be able to deal with a lot of people today. He just finished with his shopping and stepped out of the apothecary when he sees a face he hasn’t seen since James and Lily's funeral. “Remus?” he calls out before he can stop himself. Why the fuck did I call out to him? It’s not like we were ever really close. We just happened to have a lot of people we mutually cared about. Plus his werewolf tried to kill me once.
“Severus, thank Merlin, I was hoping to run into you” Remus said looking a bit frazzled but relieved. “I was thinking it’d take a few more days but it seems Fate has decided to be helpful for once and allowed me to find you quickly. Or well you find me.”
“You were looking for me? Why?” It’s been so long since they’ve seen each other. What would Remus need him for now, after all of these years.
Looking around, Remus notices that the streets are starting to get busy and he doesn’t need anyone over hearing anything. The less people who know where they are the better. “Would you mind me taking you somewhere a little more private? I’d prefer not to talk about it out in the open where anyone can overhear.”
I nteresting, Remus isn't the kind of person to haul someone off in private lightly. Lord knows all the marauders had a dozen ways to keep secrets even while out in the open. Snape knew that there were Death Eaters and the Light who would gladly whisk him away and kill him, hell maybe Dumbledore himself sent someone under polyjuice. “3rd year, after the first Gryffindor and Slytherin match, where were you?”
Remus looked a bit peeved at this question. Severus understands the reluctance to answer and smirks. “You understand I need to confirm your identity if you are going to just whisk me off into Salazar-knows-where”.
“Leave it to you, to try and get a solid answer from a long standing debate. Fine. Fine. But you will not tell ANYONE I snitched. This isn't snitching, it’s verifying my identity.” Remus let out a huff of defeat. “I was breaking into the Slytherin dorm room to slip a potion into everyone's celebratory drinks so it would turn everyone’s hair red and gold. But you guys deserved it! You clearly cheated that match!”
Severus smirked. Yes the Slytherins cheated, and honestly the prank was hilarious watching all those snooty rich kids have panic attacks over their hair clashing with their outfits. But he would die before he let the marauders know he enjoyed that particular prank.
Resigned and intrigued, Severus holds out his arm for Remus to grab a hold of and teleport them to wherever it is he wants to bring him. He didn’t have anything else he needed to do anyway. And it would put off returning to his dreadful house a little longer. The next thing he knows, he is standing on a rocky beach somewhere. Looking around he sees that there is nobody else in the alcove. He is surrounded by cliffs on one side and the ocean on the other. “Where are we?”
“Somewhere private that only allows authorized magical creatures from entering or leaving the area.” Remus smugly tells him. “I am one of the lucky ones that is able to teleport in and out of the area. The wards around the area also prevent anyone from trying to follow me. If they try they’ll be deposited into a forest a couple hundred miles away. Even if they tried holding onto me.”
“I didn’t know such wards existed!” Severus was impressed. Such wards would be useful to know for whenever he was able to find Harry. “Where did you learn them?”
“I’ve become acquainted with some wonderfully knowledgeable people recently, I should also let you know that anything discussed here you won't be able to mention to anyone else and if you even tried then everything we discuss will be erased from your memory.” Remus pauses to allow Severus a couple moments to absorb the information. Having Goblins and Nymphs help protect Harry has been immensely useful “But even with these precautions I’ll not tell you everything unless you agree to accompany me to where I want to take you. Only once we arrive there will you be informed of everything else.”
“So what can you tell me and why were you looking for me specifically?” Depending on what it is, Severus might not even be able to help much. And if it takes him away from sticking close to Dumbledore, he’ll have to decline. Even though he would very much like to learn about these wards.
Remus pulls out a slip of paper from his pocket and hands it over to Severus. “We need a potions master skilled enough to brew this potion.”
Unfolding the paper Severus notices that it's been copied out of a book. Looking over the ingredients and the brewing instructions, he instantly knows what potion this is and is even more surprised that it is Remus, a werewolf, that has come to him wanting him to brew a potion to slow down the rapid aging of a Dhampir child. “Since when have you started hanging out with Vampires? Last I heard werewolves and Vampires are supposed to be enemies?”
“Like I said, I've met a lot of wonderful people recently. And that old stereotype is ridiculous… Well there are some covens and packs that still get into fights but most are on friendly terms with each other. Most don’t see the need to fight when both are just trying to survive.”
“As much as I'd love the challenge of brewing this potion. You’re going to have to tell your vampire friends to hold off on getting pregnant until they find another Potions Master. I cannot be away from Hogwarts long enough to have the time to brew this potion for them.”
“That’s the thing, The Dhampir was born in September. She needs it brewed as soon as possible.”
“What idiot vampires got pregnant without planning for it first. That is very dangerous not just for the mother but also for the child. If not brewed in the first couple years of life, the potion is useless. And because this potion isn’t being taken by the mother throughout the pregnancy, the child will have to take the potion over the period of a few months.”
“Well, The father wasn’t aware that he was a squib and got his still human mate pregnant while on their honeymoon.” Severus was horrified the longer Remus spoke. “The mother almost died during childbirth but they changed her just in time.”
“Is there anything else about this Dhampire that I should know. Maybe I can gather the ingredients over the rest of the school year and start brewing in the summer but someone will need to take over the brewing once the next school year starts.”
“Well… The mother also just so happened to be a squib and now their daughter is a wizard dhampir and without the potion she’ll reach magical maturity around age 5 and stop aging around age 7.”
Severus really just couldn't see how any of this was his problem. He wanted to brew the potion. But he has priorities. He can't leave London. Not until he finds his boy. “Why can’t they come here for at least the next couple years, if it is so dire of a situation, surely they wouldn't mind coming to London?”
“Trust me, you want to go to them. You will regret not doing so.”
“I can’t leave for that long. I need to stay by Dumbledore.”
“Why can’t you just leave for a year or 2? Is he keeping tabs on you or something?”
“I have to stay by him until I find where the bloody hell he left my child. I would go with you but Harry is more important.” Severus really did want to help the dhampir but he wouldn't risk losing his only option of finding Harry.
Something he said seems to put Remus at ease. “Please, just come with me. Even if it’s just for a day or two. Once we get there you’ll be told everything.” Severus has rarely seen Remus practically begging for anything. “You’ll regret it if you don’t.”
Maybe it was the desperation in Remus’s eyes, maybe it was Severus’s crushing loneliness, maybe it was something deep within his gut that was urging him to go, but Severus finally caves. “Fine, I’ll go but if I deem it a waste of time I’m coming right back here.”
“Thank Fuck, I’d probably have nocked you out and dragged your unconscious body with me if you refused. You coming willingly is a lot easier.” Remus said with a wide smile. Then proceed to sit down and get comfy leaning against one of the rocks. “Now we just have to wait for my traveling companion to meet us here and then we can go.”
“Do I get to know who we’re waiting for?” Severus didn’t have much hope of being told what with how secretive Remus was being.
“Nope.”
Sighing, Severus found a spot, picked up a rock, and transfigured it into a comfortable lounge chair. He wasn’t sure how long they’d be waiting for. “I forget how much of a little shit you like to be.”
Luckily they only had to wait about an hour before there was the sound of someone teleporting into the alcove. Severus was surprised when he recognized the person they were waiting for. “Mr. Weasley, do I even want to know how you’re mixed up in all this? I thought you were transferred to a Gringotts location in Egypt or something?”
“Professor, Yes I was transferred out of the country to another Gringotts location. It did change pretty last minute and I just forgot to inform everyone where the new location was.” Bill answered, grinning at Severus. “It’s good to know that I was correct in assuming that you had this year's winter holidays off and would need to make a stop at Diagon Alley. It would have been a pain in the arse trying to kidnap you from Hogwarts if you stayed. Would have had to make it look like the giant squid drowned you in the lake or something.”
That last statement sounded too much like it was an actual plan for Severus' comfort. “How exactly did you plan on sneaking into Hogwarts without the wards notifying Dumbledoor?”
“We have our ways, Now off into the sunset we go.” Bill answered as he grabbed onto one of Severus’s arms and started walking into the ocean.
“If you guys actually plan on drowning me, I'm coming back to haunt both of your asses.”