Chapter 1: Prolog
Chapter Text
The color really couldn't be described as brown.
It was not brown, more of an unhealthy gray-green, which, when viewed inaccurately out of the corner of one's eye, could perhaps pass as brown, but only perhaps.
Severus vaguely wiped his long, dirty fingers across the floor, where the steps to his terrace had been just two hours ago. When he lifted his fingers again and held them up to his eyes, his theory was confirmed once more. This was definitely not brown!
"Uncle Sev?" asked a quiet voice behind him, but the dark-haired man felt no motivation to turn around or respond in any way.
Instead, he continued to stare at this ugly color and wondered how the mixture of white tiles, gray concrete, and almost black topsoil could have produced such a result. It was terrible! He crushed the dust between his fingers, but that didn't really make it any prettier. Couldn't his home at least produce beautiful dust?
A hand grabbed his shoulder firmly and turned him around.
Black met light gray. Severus couldn't remember ever seeing so much compassion in Draco's eyes.
"How did this happen, Uncle Sev?" asked the blond, reaching under the taller man's armpits to pull him to his feet.
Severus shrugged lazily. "Death Eaters and revenge, or someone who thinks I'm a Death Eater and wanted to punish me. What can I say? It doesn't matter."
"It does matter," Draco mumbled quietly and confidentially. "You just lost your home, your refuge, and all your possessions at the same time. Nobody can be indifferent to that!"
Severus slumped for a moment longer, then shook his head decisively and straightened up to his full height. His well-oiled mask was back in place.
With a jerk, he pulled away from his godson.
"Irrelevant!" he growled, cleaning his hands with a simple hygiene spell. "This isn't the first time. I'll find something new for myself soon. Nice of you to come by, but unnecessary. If you will excuse me for now. I have to go to the Ministry and then contact Gringotts."
Draco did not participate in Severus game of controlled Slytherin. He still looked worried. "You should come home with me. It's already late afternoon. Get a good night's sleep, recover from this shock, and continue tomorrow with full strength."
"I don't need your pity, Draco!" Severus hissed, moving closer threateningly. "I'm a grown man and I don't need anyone's help, especially not a child's!"
For a moment, the potions master saw pain flash in Draco's eyes, but in the next second, the blond man had turned on his heel and disappeared.
Severus allowed himself a sigh, but immediately pushed back the burgeoning feelings of guilt with all his might. He had enough problems without having to worry about the pride of the Malfoy heir!
He took a deep breath for another minute, then disapparated as well.
Chapter Text
More than seven hours later, Severus emerged from the wizarding bank, desperately running his hands through his hair.
What was he supposed to do now?
His house was gone, the Ministry had just informed him that the search for the culprit would take months because there were no useful leads, and Gringotts had refused to give him a loan, so he couldn't even buy a new place to live and his savings simply weren't high enough.
As things stood, he was homeless!
That was indeed a novelty!
No matter how bad things had been for him, he had always had a place to stay. Even if it was just the small room he was entitled to as a teacher at Hogwarts. This was the very first time he had been left with nothing.
And now he wished he hadn't been so quick to reject Draco's help.
But today he would find no solution.
Tired and quite hungry, he made his way back to the Leaky Cauldron. He hoped he could still get a room there, even though it was now the middle of the night.
But before he could open the passageway to the inn, a small black owl landed on his shoulder. Its claws dug deep into the potion Masters shoulder as it tried to hold on.
Severus grunted disapprovingly, but nevertheless carefully took the animal's cargo from it. The black beauty immediately rose again, leaving behind a surprised man holding a letter that seemed to contain a small object.
Suspicious as ever, he first checked the contents for possible curses or other dangers, but the object did not appear to pose a threat to his health. Nevertheless, he nervously opened the envelope carefully and poured the contents onto his palm.
He had just enough time to realize that it was a key when it began to glow blue and he felt a familiar jolt directly behind his belly button.
The rush of colors didn't last very long, and he landed with a thud on thick carpet.
Already more than annoyed by the previous events and not in the mood to deal with even more problems, he turned around angrily and paused when he found Draco on the sofa behind him.
"Draco?" Severus asked, puzzled.
His own surprise was reflected on the younger man's face.
"Uncle Sev! I didn't know you were coming after all! I'm glad you're here. My friend, you look completely exhausted. Sit down. Would you like a whiskey?" the blond blurted out and jumped to his feet, but Severus just shook his head.
"Why did you send me this Portkey, Draco?" he asked wearily, falling like a stone into the nearest armchair.
"Portkey? What portkey?"
The former spy held up the key. Once again, surprise appeared on the Slytherin's face.
"I didn't send you that!" Draco confessed honestly.
Severus was about to ask what that meant when he noticed movement in the darkness behind the open door.
In the next second, none other than Harry Potter stepped out of the shadows. He looked different from the last time Severus had seen him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what exactly was different.
"Good evening, Professor Snape," said the boy calmly. "I’m glad that you finally found your way over. I was starting to worry."
Both Slytherins stared at the Gryffindor for a moment. Draco regained his composure more quickly.
"You sent Uncle Sev the front door key?"
The Potions Master paused inwardly.
Front door key? So it wasn't just some piece of junk after all, but actually had a use?
"I did, yes!"
"Why?", Severus asked.
"I thought that was obvious. Professor Snape, you have lost your home and need a place to sleep. Now, I owe you my life, I am in your debt. I therefore consider it appropriate to make the spare bedroom on the third floor available to you. You already have the front door key. You've been here often enough, so you know where everything is. Help yourselves, make yourselves comfortable, and if anything bothers you, don't hesitate to let us know. Draco, please give him a quick introduction! I wish you a good night!"
With that, the dark-haired boy turned and disappeared into the darkness again.
Complete silence fell over the scene, only Potter's footsteps could still be heard as they slowly climbed further and further up the stairs and finally fell silent.
"You never told me you were living with Potter!" Severus finally muttered accusingly.
Draco just smiled sadly. "True. But you never asked me either. It's been four years since the war ended. You know Malfoy Manor was confiscated, and yet you never asked me where I was staying. Forgive me, Severus, but you've been a shitty godfather for the last four years!"
Again silence spread between them. Severus stared at his godson morosely, but he couldn't argue away this accusation.
Draco was right, it had never occurred to him to worry about the blond boy's whereabouts. He had simply assumed that someone had taken care of him and had therefore focused on his own problems.
After a few minutes, he finally sighed deeply.
"And how did you end up with Potter?" he asked quietly.
Draco began to grin. "Similar to you, I didn't have much choice. Potter happened to overhear me arguing with Tom from the Leaky Cauldron because I couldn't pay the rent. He didn't argue much, just paid my debt and then Apparated here with me. And that's how it stayed. He simply saved my ass! And not just me, the others here owe Potty a lot too!"
Confused, the former teacher frowned.
"The others? Which others?" he wanted to know.
"Oh, the house is pretty full. Granger is here, Ron and Ginny Weasley, George Weasley often comes to visit, Luna Lovegood and Blaise are also staying here. Neville actually lives here too, but he's currently on a research trip to the Amazon studying Muggle plants. And then, of course, there's Aunt Andromeda and Teddy Lupin, who are practically permanent guests."
The Potions Master blinked a few times as he processed this information. Then he finally proceeded to take a closer look around.
Potter had mentioned that he had been here many times before, but he didn't recognize the room at all.
The light-colored walls, the huge beige sofa, the bright bookshelves everywhere, the thick carpets, the friendly pictures, and the grand piano in the corner by the windows were all unfamiliar to him.
Furthermore, he couldn't remember ever being in a wizard's house that had not only a stereo system but also a television.
"And where exactly are we?" he finally asked.
"Number 12 Grimmauld Place!"
Puzzled, Severus looked around once more. This was supposed to be the former, gloomy headquarters of the Order? How on earth had these children managed to transform it so completely?
Severus couldn't help but admit to himself that he found it extremely cozy. He was curious about the rest of the house.
"Did you choose the furniture?" he asked after a few minutes, when he realized that this didn't fit his godson's normal style.
"Nope," the blond laughed immediately. "We have Harry and Kreacher to thank for all of that. They furnished all of the common rooms, and we were allowed to do whatever we wanted in our bedrooms. But I have to admit, Potty did a pretty good job."
“So Kreacher is still alive?”
Draco laughed again, and Severus was briefly surprised. He hadn't seen his godson so relaxed in ages. Apparently, he really hadn't noticed anything in recent years.
"Oh yes, he's still around. And you'd better be careful not to leave any dirt on that carpet if you don't want to be lunched!"
Severus just shook his head and they fell silent again.
"Okay, I'll briefly explain the relationships between the residents of the house," Draco said calmly. "Hermione and Ron are now married. They are expecting their first child. Blaise has been in a steady relationship with Ginny for over a year now, even though they often argue. Never get involved in such arguments! Luna and Neville are also a couple, but you would miss it if you blinked.”
"And I suppose you're involved with Potter!" grumbled Severus, remembering which gender his godson had always preferred, even though Parkinson didn't seem to understand that.
The blond boy grimaced slightly in disgust. "No, definitely not! Harry is gay, but... well... that would be like me trying to get you into bed. Potty is family. You don't drag family into your bed!" said Draco. "No, I... well, I'm seeing George. It's nothing serious, not official. And not for him anyway. I don't know. It's not that important."
Draco stopped babbling, his face turning bright red.
Severus decided to simply ignore the last statement. With a Weasley, for Merlin’s sake! Potter would have been a better choice!
"And you're all... what? Potter's lodgers, his guests? What does Potter get out of putting up with all of you?"
Suddenly, Draco's expression darkened and he slid forward in his seat to pin his godfather with a stare.
"You still don't like Harry. That's fine, but I strongly advise you to keep your dislike to yourself, Uncle Sev! Harry is what keeps us all together. He decided to invite each and every one of us into his family, and that's exactly how he's always behaved. He offers us advice, shelter, and a sense of belonging. When he's away, it inevitably causes strife. He is the head of this house, and you will respect him as such. And in return, you too will belong."
"Fine, but that still doesn't explain what he gets out you guys staying here!" Severus grumbled. He wasn't used to Draco giving him such a clear opinion.
"You'll understand once you join us for breakfast tomorrow," the Slytherin said weakly and stood up. "Come on, I'll take you to your room. You honestly look like shit!"
They stepped out into the hallway together, and the teacher didn't recognize it either. The dark wood was now very light. The torches had given way to modern lamps that gave off warm light, and the wizard pictures were no longer visible. Instead, there were plants here and there, and photos of the house residents hung on the walls.
And wasn't the hallway overall a lot wider?
On the way upstairs, Severus stopped briefly in front of a group photo. Potter stood in the middle, holding a baby with blue hair in his arms and laughing heartily. His friends surrounded him. They looked happy together.
Severus felt a brief pang in his chest, which he could only interpret as jealousy.
There was no such photograph of him. No one had ever cared enough about him to want him to be part of a lasting memory.
Shaking off his feelings, he followed Draco further upstairs.
As they passed, the young man pointed to doors and whispered briefly to him who was sleeping there, but the Potions Master only listened with half an ear.
When they finally reached the top floor, Severus felt nothing but relief.
After a few brief words, Draco said goodbye and finally left the long-haired man alone with his thoughts.
The room he had been assigned was surprisingly spacious. Here, too, there were only light colors, but the bedding had the typical Slytherin colors, just like the curtains.
Then his gaze fell on a small pile of laundry lying on the bed. He stepped closer and found a note. A short gasp escaped the man.
I went through my wardrobe
and found these. These things should fit you
and not offend your fashion sense too much.
~ HP
Strangely touched, Severus nodded at the note, as if his host could somehow see his appreciation.
He was pleased to discover that the second door in his room led to a modern bathroom. Since there was another door here as well, he realized that he would probably have to share the bathroom. And since Potter occupied the other room on this floor, the things lying around here in disarray probably to his host.
The former teacher didn't mind at all.
He jumped in the shower. The clothes actually fit, even though it felt strange to wear someone else's clothes.
But since the smell was quite pleasant, Severus didn't mind and finally snuggled into the cozy bed.