Chapter 1
A harsh shock ran through his system.
Lilly is dead! his magic yelled it at him, thanks to the spell he had cast with his blood and a strand of her hair.
Where? He looked around frantically as if he could see her in the deserted dark moor he was at right now. He was here, collecting rare ingredients on Samhain that Dumbledore had allowed him to leave Hogwarts for.
Then, his magic was nearly ripped out of his body. What? Oh!
Lily’s child!
The oath to protect it!
It must still be alive, as he still had his magic. Even if his left arm hurt badly now.
He noted that he was on his hands and knees on the soggy, muddy ground and he jumped up again. Wobbling a little.
Where were they?
When he asked the question a second time, he immediately knew! It was like a curtain was pulled in his mind, and the knowledge of the Potter’s home came back to him at once.
The Secret-Keeper of Lily’s hiding place must have canceled the spell anchored to him or her. A traitor!
Severus apparated to Godric’s Hollow as silently as he was able to, and it was quite silent thanks to his (former) master’s teachings.
He shoved all thoughts about that man into a compartment in his mind and locked it.
There was the house! It had a hole in its roof! He sprinted to the open door, silencing his feet without thinking about it at the same time.
There in the entrance hall lay a dead James Potter, Severus noted dispassionately. Very much in rescue mode. No vengeful glee did rise, even if he had wished for just this occurrence often when the four boys Potter had been the leader of had tormented him at school.
His magic urged him on to save the child and led him up the stairs that he took two at a time, it was absolutely no hardship with his long legs. He quickly walked to the door, which hung on one hinge, and looked into the room. He saw the back of a man in a Death Eater’s robe, who was reaching for a wand on the floor and cast a strong stunner on the man’s back. Better safe than sorry.
He then took a deep breath and looked around for other possible dangers. There was none. He looked again and took in the situation. The room was missing half its ceiling and the roof, On the floor lay ... “LILY!”
Severus dropped to his knees a second time within minutes. He reached for her body, took it in his arms, and sobbed when her head fell back, her red hair spilling to the floor, and her beautiful eyes staring lifelessly at the missing ceiling, his hands trying uselessly to steady it.
His sobs were joined by another’s, and he looked up, eyes blurry with tears.
“Mummy!” sob, “Muuuummy! Daaaddy!” wailed the little boy standing in his crib, and Severus’ heart broke, when seeing the same green eyes, this time filled with big fat tears and so much life in them in opposition to his mums. Severus magic tucked at him again. The child was not safe yet.
Severus looked at the woman in his arms. She was gone, but her son was still alive and in danger. He needed to act!
He gently laid her down on the floor, closing her eyes carefully, and looked around again. He then went to the stunned man, who was lying face down on the floor, his face hidden by his black Death Eater cloak.
He was making shushing noises at the child, while he carefully walked toward the man on the floor. He cast a spell, which turned the man around and looked into the slack face of Peter Pettigrew.
Hot hate rose in him. The sniveling minion of Potter and Black was a Death Eater? Bah! Severus at least had an excuse for why he had joined, even if it was a weak one. But this disgusting lowlife had none!
He cast a vanishing spell on Pettigrew’s left sleeve and there it was, the Dark Mark, even though it was more gray than black.
Later, he thought.
He looked at the wand and the cloak that lay next to the worm and recognized them at last. Has the Dark Lord had been here? And he then disappeared into thin air? And he left his wand and cloak? It made no sense!
Severus looked around for any witnesses except the boy, and seeing none he took the wand and broke it.
It was an unthinkable act. No pure-blood would have ever even thought of committing it, but unfortunately for Voldemort, Severus was a half-blood and he had no such qualms. This wand killed his only childhood friend with high probability and so it was justified in his mind.
He cast a looting spell on Pettigrew and the cloak on the floor and took the purses and portkeys but broke the wand of the pathetic worm as well. He then cast a strong binding spell on the traitor and turned to the crib, while thick robes bound Peter Pettigrew tightly.
Severus still felt the strong urge to save the child. Well, then he should better bring him somewhere safe. He cast a packing spell, collecting all necessities the boy needed for the next 2 weeks or so and some toys. He grabbed the blue-pink bag and went over to the crib. The boy stood there holding the rails, and looked at Severus with his big green eyes. There was a wound on his forehead, that only bled sluggishly now but had spilled on the bedding on the little crib earlier. No wonder he had been crying!
He looked an absolute mess. Full of blood and snot, so Severus cast a gentle cleaning and a healing charm. The wound didn’t close. That was quite unexpected, but at least it stopped bleeding and so Severus held out his left hand and said, “We must go to safety, little one.”
Harry was used to deep voices and as the man was the only one who seemed not to be asleep, he held up his little arms in an obvious agreement to be picked up and soon sat at towering heights, feeling much safer.
As soon as the boy was in his arms, he cast a scrambling charm, which would erase his magical signature in this room and be active for 5 more seconds, and apparated away.
Sirius was confused. Peter was not in his hiding place. Where was he?
He cast a point-me Peter Pettigrew, but the spell could not find his friend. They all had learned a spell, which interrupted the point-me. It was a spell, which had often saved lives.
Peter seemed to have cast it on himself. Well, Sirius reminded him daily to do so, never thinking he would need to find Peter himself!
What now? If Peter wasn’t there, was he in the hands of Death Eaters? Oh no! James! Sirius apparated to the Potter Cottage at once. The house was not whole! A huge hole in the roof gaped into the thankfully clear and starlit night sky. At least, there was no dark mark above the house! It was usually cast after all inhabitants had been killed.
He noted that he did not have to think about the home of the Potters specifically like he did need to when the Fidelius Charm was active and started running.
“James! Harry! Lily!” He yelled while bursting through the open doorway into the entrance hall.
“James!” He cried out and fell to his knees next to his lifeless friend. He touched James’ face, his chest, feeling no heartbeat, and grabbed his friend’s shoulders shaking him.
The only sound in the house was Sirius’ sobs as he broke down crying, lying on James’ cooling body.
It was so quiet, that it was clear that Lily and Harry were either gone or... no. He didn’t want to think about it.
He wished he had cast the traditional spells on Harry that pure-blood godparents always cast on their godchildren. He hadn’t even been allowed to swear the godfather-oath! Damn Dumbledore and his twinkling reassurance, that the Potters were safe!
He could hear heavy steps on the gravel pathway to the house. Who could that be? Was the Fidelius really gone? He sat up and held out his wand and held it pointed to the door, while he rubbed his left sleeve over his eyes, getting rid of most of the wetness there.
It was Hagrid of all people, who entered carefully but still breaking the entrance door fully out of its hinges.
“Sirius?” Hagrid asked while carefully leaning the door against the wall.
“Hagrid. What are you doing here? Where’s Albus?”
“Professor Dumbledore sent me to get Harry,” Hagrid said in explanation, looking sadly at James.
“Harry. And the others?”
“He said they were dead.” Fat tears rolled into Hagrid’s bushy beard.
“How did he know? Where is he?”
“He’s Albus Dumbledore, and he’s at Hogwarts,” Hagrid said as if that explained everything.
“But he thinks Harry is still alive?” Sirius jumped up and ran up the stairs to burst into the nursery, which had seen fighting as well.
Lily lay there, eyes closed, the crib was blood-spattered and empty and, on the floor, lay Peter! With the same sign – that Sirius had seen numerous times over ruined houses – on Peter’s bare left arm!
“Aaaaaargh! You traitor! Avada-” His arm was pushed to the ceiling as he finished the spell, “Kedavra!” The green spell hit part of the ceiling that was still intact in that part of the room and plaster rained on Sirius and Hagrid, who had obviously stopped Sirius from getting revenge!
“Let go of me! I need to kill the traitor!” he screeched, spittle flying everywhere.
Hagrid’s deep voice said gently, “Calm down, Sirius. I need to get Harry. Where is he?”
Sirius was effectively distracted by that question and looked to the empty crib, to the lifeless Lily, and back to the crib. Was that blood?
He ran to it.
“Hagrid, where is he? There’s blood!”
“But I need to get him to Hogwarts!”
“You sound like a broken record! Harry is obviously not here. Point-me Harry Potter.” The wand spun as it had with Peter.
“A record? You mean from a phonograph? I don't understand.”
But Hagrid was ignored, as Sirius stalked back to Peter and cast a quick “Enervate.”
The traitor blinked his eyes open and seemed to notice his predicament quickly. He stared up into the enraged face of Sirius Black. “Sirius? Er... ah... save me! The Dark Lord-”
“Figures that you’d call him that, you traitor! Where is Harry?”
“I don’t kn... uh, I’ll tell you, as soon as you unbind me!” The rat said, looking shifty.
“Right, dream on, where is he? Tell me, or you will start losing limbs!”
Peter shivered at the crazed look in Sirius’ eyes and said, “He was in the cot when I came in.”
“And then?” Sirius bellowed.
“I tried to pick up the Dark Lords’ wand and everything went black.” Peter said and added, “Someone must have stunned me in the back, …that coward!”
“You traitor calling someone else a coward. That is rich.”
“Sirius!” Peter whined, “I had to! There was no other possibility! He would have hurt me!”
“Coward!” Sirius bellowed at Peter. “When did you become a Death Eater?”
Peter, faced with an enraged Sirius, did what was the only thing he could do, he answered truthfully, “Since the beginning of this year.”
“So, Marlene, the twins, Dorcas, Benjy… Did you betray them all?” Sirius asked very quietly now.
Peter nodded, relieved that the storm had passed.
Sirius got up and did the one thing that saved him from decades of imprisonment; he cast “Expecto Patronum – Alastor, come to the Potters at Godric’s Hollow, bring trusted reinforcement. Death Eater attack. Lilly and James are dead, Harry seems to have been kidnapped. Caught the Death Eater that was the spy in the Order we were looking for. Hagrid’s here on Dumbledore’s order already.”
He turned and told Hagrid, “Don’t touch anything. The Aurors need to investigate this.”
Hagrid nodded and pulled his hand back from picking up the broken wand pieces.
Sirius swallowed and said, “Let’s go downstairs and wait in the living room. Hopefully, they’ll find Harry.”
Peter started when realizing at last what was going to happen now and cried, “Sirius, you need to free me! They will imprison me! Please, have mercy!”
Sirius huffed and cast a spell on the traitor, which would inhibit any transfiguration, and stalked out. A rat! How did they not see that coming?
Hagrid was unsure what to do. He had expected to find Harry and Portkey back to Hogwarts, even if Portkeys were bad for babies.
When he had told Dumbledore that – great man – he was told that Sirius might be there and offer his bike and to take the man up on that offer, but to bring Harry whatever the cost, even if Sirius protested. But there was no Harry here! So, should he go back and report, or wait? What to do? ‘Whatever the cost...’ hm, better wait then.
They moved downstairs and sat down on the reinforced couch and waited for half an hour. Sirius had gotten up at one time, to go to James and close his eyes and say a prayer to Magic for save passage for the man.
Then Moody and the other Aurors came, and the typical investigation was going on. Sirius and Hagrid were questioned, and Peter was brought into a holding cell, with magic suppression cuffs, due to Sirius’ warning.
Severus arrived on the steps of Gringotts and before the goblins could react and fine him for the abrupt arrival that was against goblin rules with one exception, he made use of that one exception and called out, “Sanctuary, please! For me and this child!”
He stayed where he was, waiting. Harry, hating the feeling of the apparition on top of anything else, was wailing and clinging to Severus. The dark man patted the child’s back murmuring gently at it with little success.
No wizard or witch was witness to this, as the enchantments on the stairs had put a notice-me-not ward around the area he arrived at as soon as he was there. Only the goblins could see him now. This was an age-old tradition no one ever questioned, even if some criminals escaped that way. Not that many did, as goblin justice was much harsher than the human one, and everyone requesting sanctuary was investigated and questioned on the truth stone by the goblins. Everyone knew that.
He then was ushered through the Door of Sanctuary, which only appeared in instances like this, and breathed a sigh of relief when it closed behind him.
“Come, wizard,” One of the goblin guards barked at him. He and Harry -who still sobbed but looked around curiously as well- were led through winding hallways that made no logical sense at all. Soon the halls became tunnels and Severus, and his charge was led into a big cavern. It had a stone chair in the middle and a half round of seats, looking like an amphitheater.
He was told to stop when he was still close to the entrance and a huge gong was struck.
DAAANNNNGGGGGgggg
The child shrunk into Severus, unsure of what was happening.
Now, Severus was led to the chair in the middle of the room, Harry, blue-pink bag, and all and was told to sit down. At the same time, many doors opened, and goblins came in and took seats in the arena.
In the lowest half-round, very old and well-dressed goblins took their seats, and the higher up the tiers, the younger and less elaborately dressed the goblins got.
This took only about 5 minutes and soon an armored goblin banged the back end of his spear on the stone floor and yelled, “Behold! Sanctuary has been requested from this wizard, for himself and the child.”
All the goblins stayed quiet and stared at the two, who stared back waiting.
The most important-looking goblin sitting in the middle of the lowest tier said, “What is your name, wizard?”
“My name is Severus Tobias Snape, and this is Harry James Potter.”
“Why are you asking for sanctuary?”
“I do not know whom to trust, except the goblins, and I needed a safe place for the child.”
“Are you aware that we will question you extensively and that you might land in our dragon pits shoveling dung for the rest of your life?”
“Yes, sir. I don’t care. The safety of this child is more important. But if I need to do forced labor, please note that I have a potions mastery. You might want to make use of that. Or not. Whatever.”
“Why is the child’s safety more important than your own? It is not yours.”
Severus swallowed. He hated the fact that Lily had chosen Potter over him! But that was not what was important.
“I swore an oath that I will do all I can to make sure this child is safe. It is the child of my best and only childhood friend, who died a short while ago. I need to save what she loved most.”
The last sentence was forced out of him. He was sitting on the fabled truth stone, it seemed. At least the truth stone did not make him babble on and on at open-ended questions!
“What do you want from us then?”
“A safe place for Harry to grow up, to become the best wizard he can be and healing for him.” He added the last at the sight of the angry wound on the child’s forehead.
“And for you?”
“I would like to brew in peace and develop potions, but it is not a necessity. I don't really care what happens to me.”
The goblin in charge gave a sign to the guard with the spear, who banged it on the floor and called, “First ruling on the request for sanctuary!”
The old goblin stood up and said, “Sanctuary is fully granted to Harry James Potter. He will receive all the opportunities and services you requested and more. Sanctuary is granted to Severus Tobias Snape preliminary. He is to be questioned and investigated thoroughly. Until a long-term decision has been made, he will assist our potions master Gribnuck. So mote it be!”
With that, the goblins started to disperse, and the guards led Severus and his now sleeping charge out of the cavern again through another door.
The way was much shorter, and they arrived at what Severus figured was the healing ‘wing’ of Gringotts. He was led to a cot and asked to lie down. Someone would look after Harry and his wound.
He had a hard time letting go of the child, even if there was no warning that Harry was in any danger. The opposite was the case: his magic hummed in contentment when he handed over the child to a female goblin in green clothes.
As soon as his head hit the cushion, he fell asleep.
At Hogwarts, an old man waited for Hagrid to bring the poor child that had survived his parent’s unfortunate but necessary demise.
It became quite obvious that Hagrid must have gotten the bike from Sirius, and it was taking him a long time to arrive at Hogwarts.
Maybe he, himself, should go to sleep? Yes, it was a better idea. He had lots to do tomorrow, after all.