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Staring at the Daily Prophet that had just been delivered to his kitchen table, Severus was torn between a myriad of emotions. He thought that he would never have to look at Sirius Black’s face again, that he would never have to deal with anyone associated with James Potter (other than Harry, of course) ever again.
And now, in the same year that Sirius Black escaped Azkaban, Severus would have to face Remus Lupin as Hogwart’s Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Honestly, he had no idea what Albus had been thinking.
The thought of facing one of his old bullies was increasingly frustrating. When he had been a student, learning that Lupin had been made Prefect for Gryffindor house had seemed like a death sentence. Potter’s gang had been able to get away with just about anything when they had Lupin to conveniently look the other way.
Now Severus would have to face him as a coworker.
And Black…
Severus could only think of a handful of people whom he despised more than Sirius Black. The man was supposed to be Potter’s best friend, and yet he had sold him out, as well as Lily and Harry, to the Dark Lord. And then he had become unhinged and went on a killing spree. Honestly, Severus had known that it would have only been a matter of time before Black went off the deep end. He just wish he hadn’t caused Lily’s death, as well as her husband’s.
Now reading that he was out and that he might possibly be after Harry…he would need to be on his guard to keep Harry safe.
With a sigh, Severus resigned himself to a miserable school year, making his way to the Great Hall. He would have to discuss the matter of Sirius Black with Harry after dinner. It had been decided before Harry began Hogwarts that he would ride the train with the other students so that he could socialize with his classmates. So Severus hadn’t seen his son all day.
So when he heard whispers throughout the Great Hall that there had been Dementors on the train, and worse, that Harry had fainted, he was worried. And when Severus met his son’s gaze from across the hall, the look on his face only confirmed the rumors.
Great, the trouble was already beginning, and the Sorting hadn’t even begun.
To Severus’s annoyance, he was seated next to Lupin. Even more annoying, he had been on the train with Harry and his friends.
“The Dementors affected Harry differently.” Lupin told Severus, “He should be fine now.”
Like he was going to trust the monster who had nearly killed him. Especially when it came to Harry.
But it wasn’t until Harry returned to their rooms in the dungeons that he could finally talk to Harry about what had happened. And the look on Harry’s face when he entered the room told Severus that he knew that.
Harry looked down at his feet, “So you heard about the Dementors?”
Severus nodded, pouring himself a drink. He could hear his son swear under his breath and mutter something about Malfoy making his life miserable. But Severus couldn’t be worried about his son’s language or the pigtail pulling relationship with Draco (he would need a stronger drink to handle that debacle). First he needed to figure out how to handle the Dementors that would inhabit the school, “Do you want to tell me what happened?”
After a moment, Harry sat in the chair opposite his father, “I don’t know…it just got really cold, and I just felt like I would never be happy again…” he took a shaky breath, “Then I heard a woman scream my name…then I fainted.”
Severus felt his blood freeze in his veins at the implication of what his son was saying, “Who was screaming, Harry?”
“I don’t know, Dad.” Harry shook his head, “I asked Hermione and Ron when I woke up, but they said that there was no one screaming.” He looked up at his father, brow furrowed with worry, “Do…do you think I was hearing Mum?”
There was a part of Severus that desperately wanted to tell Harry that he wasn’t hearing his mother call to him from beyond the grave. No child (even if Harry was starting to leave those years behind him) should have to bear that burden. But then again, life had not been exactly fair to Harry so far…Severus took a long drink from his firewhiskey, “Dementors feed off happy feelings, Harry. Often times, victims can be forced to relive their worst memory…”
The pained look on Harry’s face was enough to break Severus’s heart, “I was listening to her die, wasn’t I? I was reliving her murder, even though I couldn’t remember it from when I was a baby.” He pushed up his glasses as he covered his eyes, “I couldn’t remember before, but now I can never forget.”
In that moment, Severus didn’t know who he hated most: the Ministry of Magic, for thinking it was a good idea to have Dementors anywhere near a school full of children; Sirius Black, for causing all the chaos with his escape; or himself, for being able to say anything that could possibly comfort his son.