Lily's Charm: The Gift

Chapter 32: Metamorphosis

1996

Fear prickled Harry's skin as he tried to make himself stop looking at Dawn. As if caught in a trance, she stepped toward him.

"What are you doing here, Dawn?"

Dawn's head jerked sideways, away from Harry. Sirius was gazing at her curiously, and Harry felt an odd relief at that.

Dawn's fluid steps had stopped. Her face eased into a smile for Sirius. "I thought you and Harry could use some help."

Sirius' brow wrinkled as he gazed back at her. "How did you find it, though...?"

Dawn smiled again. "It was easy enough to find it in the Hall of Records...I wanted to surprise you..."

There was a loud crack. A panic-stricken Remus appeared in front of them. As soon as he saw Dawn, he stepped in front of Harry, blocking Dawn's view. Harry could see his fingers curled around his concealed wand.

Harry put his hand on Remus' arm. "Remus," he tried to protest, but Remus quickly moved his arm so that he was grasping Harry's arm instead.

"Not another word, Harry," he ordered tersely, emphasizing his words with a quick squeeze that was actually painful. Harry fell silent, stung by the unmistakable rebuke--and the anger in his friend's tone.

"Moony," Sirius interjected, glancing at Harry's face, and then back again to Remus'.

"From you either," Remus snapped, not even looking at Sirius. Sirius looked a little crestfallen at that. To Dawn, Remus said, "Severus made it perfectly clear to you and to your clients that he does not wish you to speak with Harry."

Harry watched Dawn's gaze flick toward him. She studied Harry, her eyes narrowed, but then she looked back to Remus, and smiled very slightly. "I didn't think that request had anything to do with personal associations, Remus. After all, I am planning on spending the majority of my time with Sirius..."

Remus' back muscles tautened. But before he could say anything, Sirius stepped up to Dawn. He bent his head close to hers, and spoke quietly enough that Harry couldn't hear. Remus was still holding his arm; he shifted a little, but immediate pressure from Remus' hand stilled his attempt to move away.

Whatever Sirius said, Dawn sighed. Sirius pulled back and Dawn's eyes immediately found Harry again. But only for an instant, before she said in a long-suffering voice to Remus, "I certainly wouldn't want to upset Harry's father." She smiled. "Severus would be devastated if something were to happen to his son...wouldn't he?"

Her blue eyes pierced Harry's again and he shivered as a cold wind rushed across the property, ruffling his hair.

"I'll see you soon, Sirius," she whispered, still looking at Harry as she caressed Sirius' stubbled jaw with her fingers. And then she turned on the spot and Disapparated from their midst.

As soon as she disappeared, Remus rounded on Harry. "You were told not to go off by yourself."

Fully irritated now that Dawn had gone, Harry shook his arm loose, and stepped away from Remus. "I wasn't by myself," he pointed out, trying to keep his tone neutral even though he could feel his face flushing.

"Don't be smart," Remus snapped, making Harry's stomach swoop and whisked his irritation away. "You had no business coming here without me."

"Remus, he's perfectly all right, just like I told you he would be," Sirius interjected quickly, looking surprised. Harry was more than a bit taken aback himself; it had been quite some time since Remus had scolded him, and never in that sort of tone.

Remus turned sharply; his eyes boring furiously into Sirius. "What the hell did you think you were doing?" he demanded. "Did you think Severus was merely being playful when he came to warn you not to see Harry alone?"

"Dawn wasn't supposed to be here," Sirius defended himself. With a scowl, he added, "And I still think Snape is being unreasonable and daft. Dawn wouldn't hurt a pixie, and even if she could, I think I can handle it."

"Are you blind, Sirius?" Remus asked intently. "There's something very off with that woman. The way she moves...the way she speaks. And the way she looks at Harry makes me believe that Voldemort could have been reincarnated into her body. How can you not see it?"

It should have been a funny image, but Harry couldn't crack a smile.

Sirius shook his head in slow bewilderment. "I think your associations with Snape over the last few months have sent you round the twist, Moony. Dawn isn't a Death Eater. And she certainly isn't Voldemort."

Remus scowled fiercely. "She's working for Lucius and Bavister Simon, and you know very well what Simon wants for Harry."

Sirius glared at him. "I already refused his request, Remus, what else do you want me to do?"

"His guardianship request?" Harry tried to ask, but both men ignored him.

"I want you to stop seeing her , Sirius!"

"Oh, you do?" Sirius shot back. "And why is that, eh, Moony?"

Remus' lips were set in a thin line as he glared at Sirius, but instead of answering, he swung back around to Harry. "We're going back to Hogwarts."

But Harry shook his head. "Remus, I-"

A reverberating whoosh echoed through the quiet field. Three red-headed Weasleys appeared in what would probably be Sirius' kitchen. All of their smiles faltered as they took in the scene in front of them. Ginny stepped toward Harry, but her father's hand on her arm stopped her.

"Is everything all right?" Mr. Weasley asked.

"Unfortunately, no," Remus told him, with a narrow-eyed glance at Harry. "Harry and I are just leaving."

"We don't need to leave," Harry said hastily. "You're here and Dawn isn't-"

"You can't honestly believe I'll allow you stay here after you deliberately defied your father?" Remus asked incredulously.

"I didn't-"

"You were told over and over that you weren't to come here without one of us," Remus interrupted again, making Harry feel like a child. "And I can't believe you'd treat Severus with such disrespect, after all the leeway he's given you over the past months. Especially," he added with a severe frown, "as you know how difficult it is for him to make any sort of restrictions on you."

Harry's cheeks prickled with embarrassment. "I thought he'd understand if I just explained-"

Remus nodded brusquely at him. "He's been far too lenient with you, Harry, which you are taking advantage of." He took Harry's shoulder as Harry deflated a little at Remus' sharp and very public admonishment. He ducked his head from Ginny's and Ron's stares--and Sirius', who was gaping at both of them. "Now, we are leaving and you can explain to your father just why you decided to disobey him." He turned to go, but Sirius held out a hand to stop them.

"You aren't his father, Remus, and Harry can stay if he wants to," he said with a scowl. "He's with me, and perfectly safe. Since when don't you trust me with Harry?"

"Since you prioritize a woman you barely know over your godson's safety," Remus said quietly, his face and voice full of soft hurt.

"He is safe here, Moony," Sirius said, his voice almost plaintive as Sirius took Harry's other shoulder. "He's not a child," he went on. "If he wants to stay here, it should be his decision, not Snape's."

Remus opened his mouth, and then simply shook his head and shut it very slowly again. "Let's go, Harry," he said wearily. Harry bit his lip, waffling between arguing with Remus and simply allowing Remus to take him home where he would no doubt insist that he explain every misstep in the past hour to his father.

Looking carefully at Remus, he tested the waters. "But it's all right now, Remus-"

Without a word, Remus turned both of them away from Sirius. Resigned, Harry let himself be prodded.

"What's going on?" Ginny asked worriedly as Harry passed.

"Yeah, what happened, mate?" Ron wondered, still beside Mr. Weasley, who was looking on.

"Nothing," Harry lied quickly as he tried to downplay what had quickly turned into a humiliating spectacle. "I can explain everything later to my dad, Remus, if we can just-"

"No, we cannot 'just' anything, Harry," Remus said shortly. "And you will explain everything when we get back to Hogwarts."

"I believe I would prefer an explanation now."

Harry, and everybody else, turned.

Severus, his black robes whipping in a storm of fabric around him, was standing just off to the side, though how he'd managed to appear so silently, Harry had no idea. He hadn't any time to ponder on that particular conundrum however; his father's grim features immediately took all of Harry's attention.

Silently, his gaze fixed on Harry, Severus lifted the small green crystal which they'd used at Riddle manor, to prove his identity, but Harry had no trouble identifying his father, simply by the low thrum of anger pulsing against Harry's storm.

"Instituo," Severus said, turning to Remus, who nodded. The crystal swung against Severus' chest as he turned back to Harry. "You were told to wait," he said in a low voice, obviously attempting to keep some measure of privacy in the overcrowded, unfinished sitting room.

Harry tried to ignore the quiet irritation in his father's voice, but it was rather difficult as it felt like his dad's black eyes were boring holes into him. "I know, but I couldn't find Remus, and-"

Severus' eyebrows rose in surprise. "How did you get here without Remus?"

Harry stared at his father, trying to figure out how to explain.

"I brought him here."

Severus took a slow breath through his nostrils. Harry felt his father's irritation flare into a brief fury as he turned to Sirius, but Severus' face was eerily still.

"You brought him here?" he repeated dully.

"Dawn wasn't supposed to be here," Harry hastily tried to explain.

Severus stared at him, his face slumped with hurt, but then the muscles around his eyes and mouth tightened minutely. Harry throat burned as he tried to loosen his tongue. But Severus said quietly, "We need to return home."

"But wait...I can explain-"

"Enough, Harry James," his father interrupted quietly. His dark eyes were soaked with disappointment, and Harry closed his mouth slowly as a slow burn crawled up his neck and spread through his cheeks. His stomach churned with shame as he stared at his father.

Severus' lips were pressed in a thin pink line as he gazed back at Harry. And then, he pivoted slightly on his heel and stepped off the bare floor of Sirius' new sitting room and into the soft grass. He turned and waited silently, his gaze directed above Harry's head.

Harry swallowed hard.

Sirius was staring at him.

Harry bowed his head and walked over to where his father was standing. Severus put a hand on Harry's shoulder and turned him face-first into his chest. The ache in his own chest deepening, Harry's shoulders slumped; Severus pulled him close, preparing to cushion him against the impact of Apparition. And then Severus turned on the spot and they were whirled away from Sirius' new home.

Sirius watched them go, his anger completely drained away.

Remus put a hand on his shoulder, but Sirius shrugged it off, not really even realizing he had made the movement as he stared, trying to understand how it was that Snape could have changed so much.