Work Text:
( Harry / Lily / James / Sirius / Remus )
11:25 am: Hello, love! Are we still planning on meeting you at the park this afternoon and then we will meet Draco and his godfather for supper?
11:26 am: Yes, that’s the plan. He, Draco’s godfather, insisted on us all having supper at his house.
11:27 am: We are looking forward to it! You speak very highly of him, well, most of the time.
11:28 am: We will meet you at the park at 1. Have a good morning!
11:29 am: See you soon, we miss you!
11:30 am: We saw each other last night? You guys have been here for two days already…
11:31 am: Fine, I didn’t miss you. I take it back.
11:32 am: You’re so dramatic, Sirius *rolling eye emoji*. Should we bring anything for dinner?
11:33 am: Good idea, Lily! What can we bring, Pup?
11:34 am: I don’t think there’s anything you guys need to bring. I’m bringing what I normally bring but I can ask?
11:35 am: Please do, Harry.
( Harry / Severus )
11:35 am: Hey, Sev. My mom and Uncle Moony are insistent about bringing something tonight. What can they bring?
11:40 am: They don’t need to bring anything. They will be guests in my house and that doesn’t imply that they must bring something.
11:41 am: Uh huh, cool. So… wine?
11:42 am: Red.
11:43 am: Thank you!
11:44 am: Have you told them who Draco’s godfather is yet? You’ve had weeks to tell them and I do not feel like greeting your father and Black at my door without them knowing that I am the godfather.
11:45 am: See, here’s the thing… I have to get going but I look forward to seeing you tonight!
11:46 am: You are insufferable, child.
11:47 am: :)
( Harry / Lily / James / Sirius / Remus )
11:46 am: Red wine! Probably two or three bottles because there will be seven of us.
11:47 am: We will buy some on our way over to the house.
11:48 am: See you soon. Also, we may need your help picking out the best wine that he will like. I’m assuming you will know?
11:49 am: Yep, I know what to get. See you all soon!
“Hey, Prongslet!” Sirius exclaimed as they entered the park and saw Harry sitting on one of the benches. “How are you?”
“I’m good,” Harry laughed, being embraced by his family in a hug. “Do you guys want to walk around the park?”
“That sounds great,” James responded as the Marauders let Harry take the lead. “So, tell us some more about the godfather.”
“Yeah,” Sirius agreed quickly. “Can we at least know his name? You’re not really giving us anything important that we should know about him.”
“Uh… well,” Harry began slowly, not completely sure how to tell his family that the godfather used to be best friends with two of them and was bullied by the other two. “He… has had a hard life?”
“What does he like to do?” Lily asked as she shared a look with the others as they all picked up how nervous Harry was.
“He teaches chemistry, he’s actually really good! He’s pretty much the only reason I’m passing my chem course-”
“You’re doing more than passing, Harry. Don’t sell yourself short,” Remus smiled. “What else?”
“He reads a lot,” Harry continued. “He’s not much of a sports person but he’s really good at chess, solitaire, crib, any of those types of games he’s amazing at.”
“That’s good,” James said. “What else about him?”
“I… I really don’t know,” Harry sighed. “I mean, I know but I just… sorry.”
“You’re really worried about tonight,” Lily commented as the family sat down at one of the picnic tables. “Why are you so worried?”
“I’m just really worried that you guys will hate him and the dinner won’t go well-”
“Why would we hate him?” Sirius asked with a confused look. “We don’t even know who he is.”
“See… that’s where you’re wrong,” Harry mumbled, rubbing his scar. “You do know him.”
“Harry,” Lily began cautiously, “who is Draco’s godfather?”
Harry mumbled the name quietly but none of the Marauders understood what he said.
“As long as it’s not Peter Pettigrew then I think we will be fine,” Lily said, still staring at her son.
“Or Snape,” Sirius added, James nodding in agreement.
“We told you,” Remus said with a glare at the two men. “Severus had a hard life and we don’t know...”
The four friends all whipped their heads and stared at Harry when the connection was made in their head. Draco’s godfather had a hard life and so did Severus Snape. Severus’ favourite subject was chemistry in school and he was good at it, Draco’s godfather was a chemistry teacher. Remus and Lily would talk about how Severus always beat them in card games and Draco’s godfather was good at those types of games. Severus Snape, the man who no one talked about because of the tension the topic caused, was Harry’s boyfriend’s godfather.
“Shit,” James and Sirius mumbled.
“Sev?” Draco called from his seat next to the window. “Harry and his family are here!”
“Great,” Severus muttered under his breath. “Well, let’s go greet them.”
As the two men stood in the entrance hall, Draco could notice the already building tension and could only hope that the meal would go well.
“Sev? Are you-” Before Draco could finish his question, a sharp knock came from the door and Severus gave Draco a stiff nod.
“Welcome,” Draco smiled as he opened the door. “Please, come in.”
“Thanks, love,” Lily whispered to Draco before her eyes shifted to her former best friend. “Sev?”
“Lily,” he whispered back. “Please, hang up your coats and take off your shoes. Make yourself at home.”
“Hey, Sev,” Harry smiled, holding up a bouquet of flowers. “May I go put these in a vase?”
“I’m running out of vases,” Severus replied with an eye roll. “The other bouquets haven’t died yet.”
“That’s on you for inviting me over so often,” Harry laughed as he walked past Severus and towards the kitchen.
“You’re insufferable,” Severus muttered under his breath while shaking his head slightly.
“The feeling’s mutual!”
“Come in,” Draco laughed, grabbing the wine from James and guiding the Marauders into the house. As they all stood in the living room, Draco cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow in question to the tension.
“Please sit,” Severus finally said, breaking some of the tension but his face remained impassive. “I need to continue with dinner-”
“Harry and I will do that,” Draco said with an eye roll.
“But-”
“Severus!” Harry called from the kitchen. “Stop arguing with Draco, I can sense the tension from the kitchen.”
“He’s right,” Draco smirked. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I should help my boyfriend make supper. Play nice.”
“You have a nice place,” Remus began in an attempt to start a conversation.
“Thank you, Rem. Sorry, Remus.”
“You’re welcome, Sev,” he smiled back.
“It’s good to see you,” Lily added. “I’m… I’m not really sure what to say and I’m sorry about that. We didn’t know until about an hour ago-”
“It’s not your place to apologize,” Severus replied stiffly with a small frown on his face. “I… it’s no excuse, but I thought what I did when I was younger to you was the only option. I didn’t want to put you in harm's way, Lily, but I did and I’m sorry. I took advantage of your trust in me and I’m deeply sorry for that.”
“May I ask why you thought it was the only option?”
“Of course,” Severus replied instantly, looking at James and Sirius quickly before clearing his throat and putting on a cold face again.
“Would you like us to leave the room?” Sirius asked slowly, not sure how he felt about sitting in the same room as Snape.
“You don’t have to,” Severus answered, shaking his head before turning back to address Lily and Remus. “When I was first approached by members of the Death Eaters, they told me that they could get me away from my father. In the first year of high school, I didn’t think too much about it but then… things got worse. I was approached and other members told me that if I joined, I could leave the UK and leave my father the day after high school ended and that was the only way I could get out from underneath my father’s thumb.”
“I could have tried to help you,” Lily whispered.
“No, you couldn’t have,” Severus replied. “There was nothing anyone could do and I was stuck there unless I could leave permanently.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you,” Remus said with a mirrored pained look.
“You were going through your own stuff,” Severus said with a shake of his head. “You didn’t need more on your plate.”
“May… May I ask a question?”
“Of course, Lily. I owe it to you.”
“You had your reasons,” Lily shrugged. “Are you still with them?”
“No.”
“When did you leave?”
“Last year.”
“Wait,” Sirius interrupted, ignoring the glares from his husband and sister-in-law. “So you knew that it was wrong but you didn’t leave those people until last year.”
“Sirius!” Remus and Lily exclaimed in horror.
“Yes, Black,” Severus replied coldly. “I don’t owe you answers but I will tell you why I stayed that long. I stayed with that terrorist group for that long because Draco, my godson, was born. I stayed because I knew that if there wasn’t someone he could turn to when his father inevitably forced him into the role, that he wouldn’t have a chance to leave ever. I stayed in that godawful role because I knew that Draco, who I think of as my own child, would be forced into that role with no way out if I left. He didn’t have a choice and I wasn’t going to leave that innocent boy with the group we both know is capable of unmentionable things.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know-”
“I didn’t expect you to know,” Severus continued with a glare that Medusa would be proud of. “I made my choice, Black. Would you have done the same if the roles were reversed?”
“Uh… dinner is ready,” Draco quietly spoke up from the entrance to the living room.
“Let’s eat before it gets cold,” Severus replied, standing from his chair and motioning towards the dining room.
“Hey, Sev?” Harry asks after 10 minutes of unbearably uncomfortable silence.
“Yes, Harry?”
“Hypothetically if I told you that there’s an exam on Wednesday in chemistry and I need help studying, what would you say?”
“Hypothetically,” Severus retorted with an eye roll, “I would tell you that Draco already told me and you two are coming over for supper on Monday night to study.”
“You are the best person in Scotland,” Harry breathed out in relief, making Lily and Remus laugh while Severus offered a tiny smile at the boy.
“Uh, I am also in Scotland,” Draco adds with an offended look on his face.
“Yeah, but you’re not the one keeping me from failing!”
“Sev was always good at chemistry in high school,” Remus states. “Saved my ass on many tests.”
“You got the hang of it pretty quickly,” Severus shrugs. “You just spent most of the time in class reading The Maze Runner under your desk.”
“It’s a good book!”
“Mhmm,” Severus acknowledges.
“Sev isn’t wrong though,” Lily mumbles.
“Wow… okay,” Remus frowns, looking between the two friends. “This is just like middle school all over again.”
“Those were good times,” Severus nods.
“They were,” Remus and Lily agree.
“Harry has told me that you two are the new co-owners of The Order?”
“We are,” Lily laughs. “Well, new as in 20 years ago, but yes.”
“New news for me,” Severus shrugs.
“Hey, Sev?” Harry asks as he and Draco make their way towards the free couch to sit down. “Do you have any more vases?”
“No,” came the reply with an eye roll. “I told you, you keep bringing me more flowers before the other ones can die!”
“Why do you bring him flowers?” James suddenly asked, earning him a warning glare from his wife.
“Because?” Harry answers with a confused look. “I just always bring them when I come over. Mum always brings flowers or something when we go over to other people’s houses so I just do the same.”
“But… he’s… well...”
“I’m what, James?” Severus asks with a raised eyebrow, ignoring the glares Remus and Lily were giving James.
“That came out wrong,” James mumbled.
“Harry is a lot like Lily,” Severus continues as he stares at James. “When I found out that my godson was dating Harry Potter, the only thing I could think of was that he was dating my childhood bullies son.”
“You were-”
“But I had to do my best to overlook that,” Severus continued, not believing that he was having to defend himself from both Sirius and James within an hour. “When he first came over and Draco introduced us, my godson left us alive in a room and I was very content to not talk at all but your brat of a son wouldn’t let that happen.”
“I’m not a brat!”
“Sorry, I meant an insufferable child. Is that better?”
“Yep,” Harry nodded, laughing. “Just making sure you don’t forget.”
“I don’t think I could ever forget,” Severus muttered under his breath as he ignored the amused looks from Lily and Remus. “He told me that he knew how you and your brother treated me and he knew the stories that Remus and Lily would tell about me and he hoped that I could think of him as Lily’s son until I got to know him well enough to pass judgement on him for myself. I made one comment at some point about bouquets, I don’t remember what it was but whatever it was made Harry believe that he should bring me flowers every time he visits.” Taking a moment to breathe, Severus gave Harry a tightlipped smile before continuing. “Although he may push all possible buttons he can to bother me, I think very highly of him. He brings me flowers because he is the son and godson of Lily and Remus.”
“Sev?” Remus asked as everyone made their way to the front door later that evening. “May Lily and I talk to you for a moment?”
“Of course,” he replied, motioning back to the living room. “What is it?”
“I don’t know if it’s too late,” Lily began as she shared a look with Remus, “but… we forgive you and if you’re in the London area or if we are here another time, we would love to hang out again.”
“Are you sure?” Severus asked as he tried to hide his surprise.
“Yes,” Remus nods. “James and Sirius… they will be getting an earful once we get back to the hotel, especially Sirius. Believe it or not, Lily and I have talked about you a lot since we last saw you and we wished things played out differently.”
“We miss you, Sev,” Lily added with a small smile. “Here,” she continued, passing her phone to him. “Add your number and we will get in touch soon.”
“Do you still have me blocked?”
“I have a new phone,” Lily laughs. “Your number won’t be blocked.”
“I’m still very sorry,” Severus whispers. “I don’t think I will ever stop being sorry.”
“All is forgiven. I don’t think things will ever be okay between our husbands and you, but things are okay between the three of us.”
“Thank you for a second chance.”
“Thank you for helping take care of my son,” Lily smiled. “We will see you hopefully soon.”
“Of course,” Severus said, offering a small smile and walking them back to the door. “It was good seeing you two.”
“It was good seeing you as well, Sev,” the two friends laughed.
“Harry?”
“Yeah, mum?”
“May Remus and I ask you a question while James and Sirius are out?”
“Sure,” Harry replies, finishing his text to Draco and turning around to give his full attention to his mom and uncle.
“Do you… do you remember what the comment was about the flowers?” Remus quietly asks.
They had been at the hotel for a couple of hours and James and Sirius had just stepped out to pick up some ice cream for the family. The tension was tight in the room after this evening, but Harry and Draco both agreed that it had gone better than they expected.
“I do,” Harry nods.
“Are you allowed to tell us?”
“It was because of you two,” Harry says with a small smile. “Sev said that you two would buy him flowers secretly and pass them to him through his window when he was having bad days. You two never told him that it was you but he knew. He said that they were the only highlights of his childhood and I guess it stuck with me and now I just always bring some flowers with me.”
“That’s very sweet of you,” Lily whispered with tears in her eyes.
“I was raised well,” Harry whispers back.
“You and he seem to have an… interesting friendship,” Remus adds.
“He’s a good man,” Harry nods. “Once you get past the cold exterior, he cares very deeply. Did I tell you that he saved my ass one night?”
“No...” Lily answers in a worried tone.
“I was out one night and I was walking but a car was following me,” Harry began to explain. “It was dark and late and I knew that he lived close to where I was so I called him and he picked me up with no questions asked. As soon as I told him that I thought someone was following me, I could hear him rushing around and grabbing his keys. As soon as Severus reached me, the car sped off.”
“I didn’t know that happened to you,” Remus frowns. “I’m glad he was there.”
“Me too,” Harry smiles. “He may call me a brat and an insufferable child, but it's how he expresses his care.”
“I’m glad we got to see him, he takes good care of you.”
“Have you guys missed him?”
“More than we thought we did,” Remus laughs. “He’s still Sev and he has a secret heart of gold.”
“I’m glad you get to see him how Rem and I saw him when we were younger.”
“Me too. Will you guys stay in touch with him, do you think?”
“We are going for a walk tomorrow afternoon with him if that answers your question,” Lily smiled. “While you and the others are at the football museum, we will be hanging out with Sev.”
“He’s a good guy. He’s missed you two a lot,” Harry said. “He would tell me stories about you three hanging out and I’m glad you’re giving him another chance, he really regretted what he did.”
“We’ve missed him too.”