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Rites to Bind You and Hold You Up 02
Jun. 26th, 2015 12:20 amTitle: Rites to Bind You and Hold You Up
Rating: PG
Author: SoLeo
Word Count: 1,000+
Content/Warning(s): *none yet*
Disclaimer: You know I don't own them.
AN: Assume that years one through four are unaltered from Harry’s perspective. Once we get to year five things will be AU – but I didn’t want anything romantic happening while Harry was too young. So this is a bit of what Severus was doing during those years waiting for Harry to grow up.
Chapter Two: Year One
It wasn’t until ten years later that I laid eyes on the boy again. Dumbledore had refused to allow the faculty to have contact with him, sighting his need for protection against magical perpetrators and it had been kind of easy to forget about the ache in my heart when I didn’t have to see him every day.
I couldn’t see him immediately when he came in the Great Hall, he had been hidden by his taller counterparts. As his name was called and we all waited for the sorting hat to choose his house I could see that he was much smaller than average. Certainly James hadn’t been so scrawny at that age, and it was easy for me to picture his father with his unruly hair and oversized glasses. During the feast I catch his eyes on me. When our gaze lock my magic sings to me. It’s exhilarating. Too bad my mind and body react differently. He is after all a child and I am not a pedophile. If it weren’t for my magic’s reaction to his presence I could write the whole thing off as absurd.
Watching the scrawny eleven year old make his way out of his class room for the first time was much harder than he had anticipated. He almost called out to the boy to remain after class, tell him all the secrets he knew he shouldn’t. One look at the stuck up face of Draco Malfoy cured him of any imbecilic urges. He spoke to Lucius Malfoy often enough, he didn’t need his son tattling on him as well. He just had to keep picturing James Potter whenever he saw the boy and he would be able to get through this.
It was going to be a very long and tiring year.
-/-/-/-/-/-
The boy couldn’t stay out of trouble. He wasn’t sure if he was seeking out excitement and adventure or if it just came to him naturally. There was no reason for him to be out so often after curfew, to be spying on testy potions masters, performing perilous Quidditch stunts, fighting trolls, or being in dangerous parts of the castle. How was he supposed to protect him if he kept running towards danger?
Luckily every day looking at him during meals was enough for now to satisfy that little part of him that longed for the boy. His magic urged him to spend time with the brat, but he was able to deny himself that easily. Dumbledore didn’t know about the ritual still, and he wanted to keep it that way.
He just had to keep up the act until summer. A couple of months away from distractions would do him good. Too bad Quirrell was insisting that he help him with tracking down some of his former associates. He said he had some questions about spells that the Dark Lord had used, but the timing seemed very strange. Only a couple weeks until the end of the year, he could do this.
-/-/-/-/-/-
Severus watched from the Headmaster’s Tower as the train left the station, and he stayed there long after he could no longer pretend that the smoke trail of the engine still appeared in the sky. Dumbledore let him remain lost in his thoughts until evening fell.
“He is a remarkable boy.”
He made a noncommittal sound, already giving away too much with his unusual interest in the Express’ progress.
“I do hope that next year it will be a bit more uneventful. All the excitement of this year made it very difficult for the children to focus on their studies.” Albus made a point of delicately popping a lemon drop in his mouth and offering one from the bowl to Severus.
“And whose fault is that Albus? You take his safety far too lightly. I can’t believe you sent him back to those Muggles after what Pomona told you of his health issues.”
The look of great sadness that passed over Dumbledore’s features did little to alleviate Severus’ fears. His heart did not cheer at hurting the older wizard considering the subject matter.
“As Mr. Potter proved in his encounter with the shade of Voldemort, the blood ward is keeping him safe. It must be kept in place and only by close proximity to his only living relatives is this possible. I wish there was another way.”
He didn’t want to stay here and listen to the excuses any longer. The old fool was going to get Potter killed. He would just have to be more vigilante in guarding the boy until something else could be done.
-/-/-/-/-/-
Summer holiday always began with his least favorite activity; celebrating Draco Malfoy’s birthday. He was required to attend the outrageous event every year. He maintained appearances but listening to Death Eaters going on and on about how much they hated the Potter-brat got tiresome even to the most devout. As Severus’ undisclosed soul bond it was even more grating. He made sure the hosts saw him but he left soon after.
Severus made sure that he stopped by Privet Drive once a day to check on the boy, making sure to go unnoticed with a disillusionment charm. As June turned into July Potter got progressively more despondent. Those useless Muggles had him even tending the garden in the heat of the day. No owls came or went from his window, not that one could get in with the bars, which seemed odd as he was sure that he had made friends with those two Griffindors he was always hanging around with.
He wanted to spend every waking hour making sure the boy wasn’t harmed, but Albus still didn’t know about the soul bond ritual and he wanted to keep in that way so he kept away as much as he could bring himself to. He also had to keep up appearances for his former friends as well. The life of a spy was tiring, putting masks up for everyone that knew you.
When July 31 rolled around he found himself peeking in the front window around dinner, hoping to catch a glimpse of a birthday celebration. Instead the scene that unfolded had him reaching for his wand. He needed to calm down before he did something that would cause him to be sent to Azkaban. He knew those Muggles were no good. He needed to destroy something so he headed to Spinner’s end to vent some of his ire.
Thankfully a few days later those Weasley children saved Severus from killing the Dursleys which would have made the blood protection vanish. Maybe he would be a little less harsh on the twins next year, considering their assistance in the matter. Maybe.
