Severus knew that he would regret not being a good friend to Lily for the rest of his life. He would spend years atoning for his past mistakes, with no reassurance at the end of the road. Yet, he would have done so if not for the unbreakable bond he had sworn to Harry, which nagged at him to look for the baby just a week after the deaths of James and Lily Potter.
He followed the pull of his magic all the way to Surrey, where he found a row of neat and boring houses. He was appalled when he realized that one of the houses belonged to Mr. and Mrs. Dursley. He had known Petunia’s new surname after hearing some impressive rumors back in Spinner’s End. He could almost hear Ms. White saying, “A nice young man, a good job. He’ll be a good husband; he can provide for her.” But he much preferred Ms. Johnson’s input: “Oh, but sporting a belly as big as a whale’s—surely that can’t be too comfortable, can it?”
From what he could see in the frames around the house, Ms. Johnson was right. Big as a whale, indeed. A chubby blond baby and a long-necked woman. Petunia—how he had hated her when they were kids. He could see the happy family of three in the living room, fawning over the chubby toddler. Dudders, he heard Petunia call him. It was a perfect family photocard. The only problem with this beautiful family was that there was no Harry in it. And he didn’t just mean there were no photos of Harry in the frames; he had stayed there for a week, truly.
But there was no other feeding highchair, no other baby in the playpen, no crib being checked by the two adults.
Just as he was trying to find at least a hair from Lily’s baby, he heard a deafening cry. It disrupted the perfect family scene. The chubby baby began to cry heartily, an awful shade of red engulfing him—the same shade of red that the neck of his father was turning as a big streak of disgust crossed his face. Petunia looked annoyed by the disruption and went all the way to a little cupboard under the stairs. Severus watched in horror as she took out a basket with a baby in it and then, with clear disgust, quickly changed the baby’s soiled diaper. From his vantage point, aided by a spell he had learned during his years of espionage, he could clearly see the awful red patch of skin on the baby’s bottom. Needless to say, under Petunia’s so-called caring hands, it went untreated.
He couldn’t believe his eyes, but he knew it was true; he was witnessing it, after all. So, he did the only thing he could think of: he disapparated.
He apparated to Gringotts and queued to speak to a goblin.
“May your coffers be forever full,” he said quickly. He received a peculiar smile from the teller.
“And may your enemies die by your sword. I’m Bloodfang,” the goblin replied, raising an eyebrow, urging him to state his business.
“Mr. Bloodfang, I am Severus Snape, and I find myself in dire need of acquiring custody of a dead friend’s orphaned child.”
Without looking him in the eye, Bloodfang began shifting some papers.
“And why, Mr. Snape, would you need to acquire said child’s custody?”
“I have sworn an unbreakable vow to protect the child. The bond is urging me to take him out of his current residence, as he is at risk.”
“And who is the child we are referring to?” The goblin’s deep stare made Severus doubt himself.
“Harry Potter.”
“I will need a complete scan of your being to verify that you are indeed Severus Snape and that you are bound by an unbreakable vow to Mr. Potter.”
He was directed to another, more private chamber. Soon, he was followed by Bonecrusher, the Potters’ family Goblin Manager, Healskull, a goblin healer, and then a third goblin who didn’t introduce himself. After Severus put five drops of blood on a parchment, the three goblins spent a few minutes conversing in hushed tones in Gobbledegook. Bonecrusher eventually began to speak to him.
“We have been able to verify your identity, Master Snape. We apologize for overlooking your rightful title.” A slight bow of his head followed the statement. “We have also verified the existence of an unbreakable vow to protect Heir Potter. As for the matter of obtaining custody, we have confirmed that James and Lily Potter’s will could allow you access to the child, provided he is not placed in the care of Sirius Black. As we know that Sirius Black is currently serving a sentence in Azkaban, we would like to clarify where Heir Potter is currently placed.”
“In the care of his aunt, Mrs. Petunia Dursley, the Muggle sister of Lily Evans.”
“In that case, there are a few issues to address. In the Potters’ will, the late Lady Potter emphasizes that although she loves her sister, Petunia doesn’t understand magic and is jealous of it. Her son cannot be left under her care. Since he was placed there without following the will’s instructions, it will be easy to remove him legally and swiftly. The problem lies in the current list of those eligible to care for the child.”
Severus felt a headache coming straight to his temples as he heard the last sentence.
“Who is eligible to care for him?”
“Well, you see, Lord and Lady Potter stated in their wills that he was not to be placed with the Muggle side of the family. Instead, he must be with a magical family member or acquaintance. First listed is the child’s godfather, Sirius Black; as co-legal guardian, Remus Lupin. Sadly, Mr. Lupin’s guardianship depends on Sirius Black, and as he is not available, neither is Mr. Lupin. Next listed was Marlene McKinnon, a late friend of Lady Potter. Unfortunately, Miss McKinnon was killed at the beginning of the year. The last person listed is, unsurprisingly, you.”
“Me?” Severus was flabbergasted that Lily had put his name on the list.
“Yes, Master Snape. However, there are a few clauses for anyone willing to take Harry in,” the goblin replied. Severus felt a fresh pang in his temples. “For Harry to be legally and fully adopted, he must be placed with someone accepted in their own right by the Potter Family Chart. In the case of Sirius Black, he was easily accepted as he is Heir Black and deemed acceptable by the Family Chart to care for another Heir. In your case, it is more difficult. Even though the family was progressive, they were still governed by pureblood principles. You are a half-blood with no ties to the family, so the Family Magic is not reassured, especially because you’re not married.”
“What? Why does the Family Magic reject me for not being married? Sirius Black was definitely not married when he was sent to Azkaban,” Severus bit out.
“It is not only you that it rejects with that clause. Ms. McKinnon was also partially rejected for the same reason. The issue lies in the fact that traditional pureblood families believe that maidens shouldn’t adopt children. As they are not married, they have no proof that their future husbands will approve of the child’s presence in the household.”
“But I’m no maiden—I’m a man,” Severus said, growing even more annoyed. It all seemed like hogwash.
“Herein lies the problem, Master Snape. You are indeed considered a maiden by the charts of pureblood families. Our thorough scan has shown that you are a carrier, and as a man with the ability to bear children, you’re labeled as a Maiden. Now that your status as a maiden has been confirmed, the magic in the Prince Family Chart has recognized you. No innocent maiden should be shunned from the Prince family.”
“But my mother was shunned from the House of Prince!” Severus wanted to shout but managed to keep his composure.
“That’s because Mrs. Snape was no innocent maiden,” the unidentified goblin began. “You see, Master Snape, your mother was a protected maiden until she had sexual intercourse with a man who was not her husband. She lost her status as a maiden. Later, the fact that she married a Muggle is what led to her being disowned by her father. On the other hand, you’re still a chaste maiden.” The fact that he was still a virgin made a blush creep up Severus’ cheeks; there was no need to air it so bluntly. “Lord Augustus Prince has been informed of your existence and is on his way to meet you.”
“You’ve already informed him? I would have appreciated it if you had asked for my approval beforehand,” Severus said in hushed tones, trying to keep calm.
“As you’re an unmarried maiden, you’re still under the lawful rule of your Head of House—it’s protocol.”
The words “lawful rule” didn’t sit well in Severus’ stomach. He had been overjoyed the day he became an adult, freeing himself from his abusive father and the shadow of what his mother had become before her death. He had just liberated himself from Voldemort, as temporary as that might be, and now he was somewhat under Dumbledore’s thumb. Soon, there would be a new Master Prince.
He didn’t notice it, but he began to hyperventilate. As he became increasingly enclosed in his mind, he paid no heed to the goblins’ attempts to calm him. He simply shut down when the air he was breathing was no longer enough.
When Lord Augustus Prince opened his post on the morning of November 8, 1981, he was not expecting to see an urgent notice from Gringotts. He read the contents of the letter with great interest.
A grandson, 21 years old, a chaste maiden, panic attack, exhaustion, malnourishment, and a custody petition.
He sighed deeply, though he certainly didn’t huff the name of his disowned, late daughter. He disapparated directly to a nook in Diagon Alley, striding purposefully toward the bank, his robe billowing behind him.
Upon stating his business, he was promptly received by Goldluster, his account manager.
“Lord Prince, we are elated that you have come so quickly. As I stated in the letter, the Prince family magic has recognized your grandson as part of the family. He is a maiden, and a chaste one at that. We have conducted blood tests that confirm he is indeed the son of your disowned daughter, the late Mrs. Snape, and a Muggle named Tobias Snape. It seems he doesn’t own a vault here in Gringotts, which is why he escaped our notice.” The glint in the goblin’s eyes showed a hint of frustration at this last fact.
“So, he is a Prince now?” Augustus knew perfectly well that an innocent maiden would always have a place in the Prince family.
“Almost, but not quite. He must be blood-adopted into the family to carry the Prince name. After all, he is the spawn of a Muggle Snape, and the family magic will not allow it.”
Augustus was certain he wouldn’t like the answer, but he forced himself to ask the question. “So, why is it that my maiden grandson is attempting to gain custody of a child?”
Goldluster quickly filled him in on the details regarding Harry Potter. Augustus was actually quite pleased with his newfound grandson. Despite being unaware of his own status, Severus remained a chaste maiden. He was already a Potions Master, the youngest one at that, and had achieved full marks on his OWLs. He was everything Eileen was not. So, Augustus made his decision rather easily.
“Let’s proceed with the blood adoption. He will be blood-adopted as the child of Elena née Rowle and myself. You are then allowed to perform the full ritual—no Muggle blood should remain in him, and erase Eileen’s blood as well.”
“There is another issue, Lord Prince,” Goldluster said, grimacing even more than before. “Your grandson has been marked as a follower of You-Know-Who. It is a slavery contract that could track him and siphon his magic. It is very dangerous.”
“Is there something that can be done about it?” Augustus knew this headache wouldn’t go away easily.
“Of course. There’s a reason why Lord Voldemort doesn’t have many female followers. For a maiden or a married woman to be truly bound by a slavery contract, her Head of House must have approved the arrangement. We know for sure that Bellatrix Lestrange, upon entering the House of Lestrange, was given approval by her Head of House, Lord Corvus Lestrange, and Alecto Carrow was similarly approved by his Head of House and father to join the Death Eater ranks. As it stands, you have not given approval for your grandson to join, so you could rescind it without issue. However, you will need to participate in a ritual. As mentioned in our missive, Maiden Severus has been placed in a healing coma following his panic attack. Should we keep him in that state, or would you like to speak with him?”
“Let him remain in the healing coma. First, let’s proceed with the ritual to rescind the slavery bond, and issue a fine to Lord Voldemort for inappropriate behavior against an innocent maiden of the House of Prince. After that, we’ll proceed with the blood adoption, as a Prince should be born and die free. Once we’re finished, I want you to check which families are seeking a male consort. They should be neutral-aligned and willing to accept Severus’ ward. I’ll review their demands personally.”
“That shall be done, Lord Prince. Follow me to the ritual chamber.”
Although it was easy to say, it was not easy to do. The ritual to strip Severus of the illegal slavery bond was taxing for Lord Prince, lasting more than two hours and leaving him in need of rest afterward. Fortunately, goblins worked non-stop. They proceeded with the blood adoption ritual without much difficulty, only requiring some input from him as Head of House from time to time. By nightfall, Severus rested free and a pureblood in the Goblin Medical Ward.