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"Hey, could you and Ron look after Severus tonight, Harry? Professor Dumbledore wants Malfoy and me to go to the Ministry for the exhibition they're having about Old Magick," Hermione said, walking over to Harry.
The Great Hall was hustling and bustling with activity; students hurried to get to their friends, owls hooted as they flew overhead, and the ghosts chattered noisily as they floated around the Hall. To her amusement, the noise reminded Hermione of a fish market — which coincidentally was the simile most often used by teachers in every class.
Harry placed his textbook down and grinned at Hermione. "You want Ron and me to watch over Snape? Are you sure about that?"
Hermione rolled her eyes and said, "Well, mostly you, yes, but I'm not so sure about Ron. Still, could you please do it? The other professors are busy as the winter holidays are coming up and —"
Harry chuckled and said, "I'll get Neville to help me, Mione. Ron's busy tonight anyway — he's got a date with Lav-Lav."
Hermione shook her head and said, "Thank Merlin! So, you two can care for him, right? I mean, he's three years old and —"
"I'll be honest, Mione. I've got loads of better things to do than babysitting Snape, but you're my friend and I know how much Snape's come to mean to you… That sounds inappropriate on so many levels, but hey! That's the truth!" Harry patted Hermione's arm lightly. "When do you want me to come by the Heads' dormitory?"
"We're leaving at five-thirty, so come by at exactly quarter past five. Got it?"
"Will do, Mione. Now, leave me alone to die… This Transfiguration homework is killing me!"
Hermione giggled and affectionately mussed up his hair. She waved at him as she walked out of the hall in search of Severus and Draco.
It had been almost a month since Professor Snape had been de-aged in the accident caused by Seamus, but Hermione had come to realize it wasn't as bad as it had seemed in the beginning. True, she was caring for the black-haired toddler with Draco Malfoy, but the Potions accident had ultimately brought the two Head Students closer.
Ever since she had realized that Snape had been abused, or, at the very least, neglected by his parents, Hermione had decided to shower the poor kid with as much love and affection she could — before he could change back to his usual dark and brooding self.
During the past three weeks, Sev — as the toddler liked to be called — had done many things Hermione thought were normal but he hadn't ever gotten the chance to. They'd played in a Transfigured sandbox, read bedtime stories together, snuck in chocolates to eat later — oh, wait, that had been Draco's doing, not hers — and even rode a bicycle near the Forest.
Hermione reached the dormitory that she shared with Draco and Severus — a fact that she herself wouldn't have believed if anyone had informed her a month ago. She had already come up with all sorts of new ideas to tell Severus they could do soon, but when she entered the common room, all thoughts of taking Severus out to fly kites fled through her head.
"Oh, Merlin, what did you do to the room?" she cried, her mouth agape with incredulity as she looked around at the countless paint splashes on the wall. She turned her head and found Draco and Severus covered head to toe in various paints.
"Sowwy, Mine-ee," Severus whispered, tears forming in his eyes. He still expected either of his caretakers to suddenly turn on him; he may trust them both, but the effect of his father's lack of affection still reared its ugly head at times.
"Hey, why are you apologizing, kid? This is our common room — we can do whatever we want in here." Draco rolled his eyes, ruffling his hair gently. Over the past few weeks that they'd spent together, Draco had grown more affectionate with Severus.
Hermione snorted and shook her head slowly. "Sev, it's alright, don't worry. We can clean this all up after you're done. I was actually talking to Malfoy — he was responsible here."
Draco frowned and retorted, "Just because you were off gallivanting who-knows-where, that doesn't mean I have to —"
"No fight, pwease," Severus whispered, gazing up at them hopefully. He always feared their fights would get out of hand one day. He feared that Draco would hit Hermione — even though Draco had promised him that a real man never raised his hand at a woman.
"We're sorry, honey," Hermione murmured, getting down on her knees in front of Severus. She carefully pulled him into her arms, and Severus felt his heart soar in his chest at the glorious feeling. He loved it when Hermione hugged him; he was so touch-starved he often snuggled up to Hermione when they were in bed — not that Hermione had any problems with it.
"Want to paint on the walls with us, Granger? Or are you too scared of defiling the room?" Draco taunted, waving a large paintbrush at her teasingly.
Hermione knew he was goading her on, but the expectant look in Severus' eyes forced her to agree. The child was already a Slytherin — even at the tender age of three. She sighed as she grabbed the paintbrush from Draco and asked, "So… What are we painting?"
"Evythin'!" Severus exclaimed as he hopped in excitement. He stumbled over to the wall and waved his brush in their direction. "Mista Dwaco, draw dwagon!"
Hermione grinned and said, "He doesn't know how to draw a dragon, Sev. give him something smaller."
"B-but… I want a dwagon," Sev whispered, his shoulders slumping in disappointment. Draco scowled at Hermione — he knew what she was up to — and said to Sev, "Fine, I'll draw a dragon for you, but only if Granger draws one too."
Hermione groaned under her breath, but she started painting on the walls of the common room, silently cringing at the mess they were making; she had never had the courage to dirty the walls of her bedroom — let alone the common room. But she had to admit that the look of pure awe and adoration in Severus' eyes when he saw the bizarre dragons they'd painted was definitely worth it.
"Sev, honey, Malfoy and I have to go to the Ministry tonight — we told you about this a few days ago, remember?" Hermione said gently, crouching down beside Severus. His tear-stained face caused her to feel guilty for leaving him with Harry and Neville for the night.
"Yes, don't go," Sev mumbled, trying to wipe his eyes with his hands. "Stay?"
Draco noted the uneasy look in Hermione's eyes and quickly gripped her arm. "I'll handle this." He looked at Severus and said, "Okay, I'll be honest. We need to go to the Ministry, and Potter and Longbottom will be taking care of you. If you want to harry them, that's perfectly fine with —"
Hermione smacked his head and cried, "Malfoy! Behave!" She pulled Severus into her arms and said gently, "Don't listen to him, honey. Harry and Neville are very nice. They'll take care of you, but we'll be back soon. We promise."
"Cross your heart," Sev demanded, his lower lip jutting out in a small pout.
Hermione smiled and crossed her heart. "I'll tuck you in bed — like I always do. I promise."
"Still, kid, you can trouble Potter and Longbottom. You've got my permission," Draco whispered to him when Hermione had her back turned towards them. Sev grinned mischievously and nodded.
Harry and Neville entered a few minutes later, and Hermione explained to them everything they would need to take care of Sev. The boys patiently listened; they knew Hermione hadn't left Severus alone with anyone else before and that she was secretly panicking.
Draco leaned against the doorway in his immaculate black robes, his hair perfectly coiffed, with a look of disinterest on his face. He watched Hermione ramble about feeding Sev properly and how, if he got sick, they should take him straight to Madam Pomfrey. He glanced down at his watch and called out, "Merlin, Granger, I really hope these two aren't as thick as you assume them to be — because if they are, there's no way Sev's going to survive the night with them."
Hermione blanched at his remarks and stammered, "I just want to be sure that —"
Neville smiled and stepped forward. He placed his hands on Hermione's shoulders and murmured, "I might be frightened of Snape, but I think Harry and I can handle him for the night."
Draco scowled at Neville as he thought of the best way to break Longbottom's hands. Sev noted the look of distaste in Draco's eyes and decided, 'If he doesn't like them, I don't like them.'
Hermione sighed and dropped down onto her knees beside Sev. She hauled him into a tight hug and mumbled in his hair, "We'll see you soon, Sev. Be good for them, okay? I'll bring you back something."
Once they had left, Sev turned to look at his babysitters and puffed his chest up, trying to look intimidating to them. But now that Harry and Neville were considerably older than him, his posturing didn't have any negative effect on them.
Harry said, "So, Severus, what do you want to do first?"
Sev mumbled, "Dunno…" He glanced at Neville, who was looking at him like he was a specimen of a plant he had never seen before. "You're Longbottom?"
"Neville, and yes, my last name is Longbottom."
Sev snickered. "Tha's funny."
Harry grinned and said, "It is, isn't it? But we're not going to make fun of his last name. Come on, we'll go out and do something fun."
"Like what?" Sev asked curiously, following Harry into his bedroom.
"You'll see." Harry Accioed Sev's black sweater and boots, and the two boys helped him put them on — even though Sev lied that he could do it himself. When he was ready, they left the dormitory and walked through the hallways.
Many students cooed over Sev, but they knew they shouldn't step too close to him. A few days after Severus had de-aged, some Hufflepuff girls had tried to pinch his cheeks. Chaos had erupted as Severus had panicked and let his magic loose upon the girls; the girls had flown back and crashed into the wall, breaking several limbs in the process.
"Are we going to the lake?" Neville asked when they reached the gates of the castle.
"Yes, we'll play with the Giant Squid," Harry said with a grin.
Sev looked bewildered and asked, "Giant Squid? Wha's that?"
"Oh, it's very, very big! It's got eight arms and two tentacles," Neville said, extending his arms out to reveal the size to him. "But you don't have to worry, it won't hurt you."
Sev swallowed nervously, but he continued to follow them towards the edge of the water. Neville asked Harry to whistle and call the Squid out of the water, and Harry let out a piercing whistle that made Sev cover his ears with surprise.
The water gurgled and bubbled as the Giant Squid rose from the depths towards the surface. Stunned, Sev stared at the huge tentacles rising from the water and splashing back into the lake. "Is that the Squid? It's so big!"
"Yeah, it is, isn't it? You want to touch it?" Neville asked with a grin. Sev gaped at him with shock.
"T-touch it?"
"Yeah, it's a very friendly squid. You can even feed it if you want, but we don't have anything to feed it at the moment. How about you just touch it?" Harry asked, reaching his hand out towards Sev.
Sev looked terrified at the thought, but he didn't want to look like a wimp in front of the two older boys. He nodded and grasped Harry's hand shakily. Harry motioned for Neville to call the Squid closer and stepped towards the edge with the toddler.
When the squid swam towards them and reached its tentacle out, Sev almost burst into tears in fright, but Harry maintained a hold on him. "Go on, Severus, you can do it!"
Sev wanted nothing more than to run away from them and call Hermione back, but he took an unsteady step towards the water and moved his hand towards the squid. Harry and Neville saw the utter terror in Sev's eyes and thought, 'Maybe this wasn't a good idea.'
But Severus had already poked the squid's tentacle with his delicate finger. The squid startled at the sudden movement and almost lashed him with its tentacle. Severus cried out in fear and tried to run.
Neville grabbed him by his arms before he could run too far and said, "Hey, hey, it's okay, it won't hurt you."
"It's scawy!" Sev screamed, tears forming in his eyes, as he attempted to escape Neville's grasp.
Harry sheepishly said, "Sorry, kiddo, I guess we didn't think this through… How about we go do something else?"
"I want chocolate!" Sev demanded suddenly, scowling up at Harry. "Or I'll tell Mine-ee!"
"Woah, he's threatening us, Harry," Neville exclaimed, stunned by Severus' attitude.
"Figures… He's a Slytherin — and he's living with Malfoy," Harry muttered under his breath, but he accepted Severus' terms.
They went back to the castle and found their way down to the kitchens. Inside, the house-elves were ready to provide as much food as the boys could possibly require. Neville asked Severus, "What would you like to eat?"
Sev thought for a few moments and declared, "Hot chocolate!" The house-elves hurried to make him a cup of hot chocolate and handed it to him, staring at him hopefully.
Sev sipped on his drink and hid his smirk from the boys. Mista Dwaco's going to be very happy. He leaned back in his chair and continued to drink the delicious chocolate. The boys stood around, chewing on the little cupcakes the house-elves had brought for them.
After they were done eating and drinking, Sev announced, "We read now. Libwawy."
"Uh, how about we go and read in your room instead?" Neville suggested, thinking of the last time Madam Pince had kicked him out of the library for disturbing the students. Sev sighed but agreed.
They walked through the corridors with an armful of chocolates — the house-elves refused to let them leave empty-handed — and entered the dormitory. Neville asked, "Okay, what book do you want to read?"
"Where the wild things are," Sev declared, jumping onto the couch. Harry Accioed the book from the shelf and settled down beside Severus.
"I've never read this before," Neville said with a frown.
Sev said nonchalantly, "Mine-ee said it's Muggle book. I love it."
Harry shrugged and said, "Okay, Nev, I'll be Max, the mum and the wild things — you'll be the narrator." When Neville agreed, Harry handed the book to him. Neville started reading, "The night Max wore his wolf suit and made mischief of one kind… and another, his mother called him —"
"WILD THING!" Harry's high-pitched voice startled Sev, but Sev couldn't help but shyly smile at him.
"— And Max said —" Neville trailed off pointedly.
"I'LL EAT YOU UP!" Harry roared, pretending to claw at Sev, who giggled softly at his antics. Maybe Harry wasn't too bad…
"Now 'nother!" Sev pleaded, pouting at Neville, who was tired of rereading 'Where the Wild Things Are'.
"How about we read something else?" Harry tried compromising, but Sev was adamant on reading the story again.
"No! Again!"
Harry and Neville silently groaned as they wondered exactly how Hermione seemed to manage him so easily. They opened the book again and started to read it for the twelfth time. Neville's throat was sore, and Harry wanted to light the book on fire.
Sev smirked as he snuggled deeper into the couch, pulling his blanket up to his chin. Hermione would always read different stories to him, and Draco would distract him with something else, but these two boys were so scared he would complain to Hermione that they agreed to all of his demands. Hmm… what should I do next?
When the story was over, Sev said, "I want owange juice."
At the opportunity to leave, Neville promptly shot to his feet and said, "I'll get it!" Before Harry could pipe up that he would get it instead, Neville had darted out of the common room.
"Do you want another story?" Harry asked hopefully, trying to hide the dreaded book from Sev's sight.
Sev turned to Harry and said, "Matilda."
Harry hurriedly Accioed the other book before Severus could change his mind and opened it to the first page. "It's a funny thing about mothers and fathers. Even when their child is…"
"...Miss Honey was still hugging the tiny girl in her arms and neither of them said a word as they stood there watching the big black car tearing round the corner at the end of the road and disappearing for ever into the distance. The end." Harry breathed out a sigh of relief as he placed the book down on his lap.
Neville's eyes were drooping and Severus was already asleep beside him. Harry chuckled softly and nudged Neville. "Hey, you up?"
"Am now," Neville grumbled, squinting at Harry through bleary eyes. "Is the story over?"
Harry nodded and glanced at the clock on the wall. It was almost midnight, and Hermione wasn't back yet. Harry yawned and picked Severus up, carrying him to his room. But when he tried to tuck him into bed, somehow Sev understood that it wasn't Hermione tucking him in.
His eyes snapped open and he shot upright. "I want Mine-ee!" he screamed, his eyes wide with no hint of sleep in them any longer.
Neville tried to console him, but Sev refused to get back into his bed. He screamed bloody murder as he sprinted out of the room, dodging Neville and Harry as they attempted to apprehend him.
"Seize him! Don't let him get away!" Harry yelled, running after Severus.
"I want Mine-ee!" he wailed, ducking under the table and jumping over the armchair. He stumbled, almost skidding on the carpet near the fireplace, but he kept on running around the room. "I want Mine-ee!"
Neville tried to grip his arm, but Severus burst into tears and wailed louder. Harry winced at the temper tantrum and thought, 'At least one day I'll be able to say I witnessed Snape bawling like a baby.'
Neville tried to distract Severus by waving his wand, but Severus refused to settle down. All he wanted was Hermione to tuck him in and give him his daily goodnight kiss. Was that too much for him to ask for?
Harry signalled to Neville to corner Severus from the other side of the table, and Neville nodded, slowly inching towards the child. But Severus had seen Draco try that trick on Crookshanks earlier, and he copied Crookshanks' reaction.
He waited for Harry and Neville to come closer to the table. When they lunged at him, he shrieked and startled them into crashing into each other. He took the opportunity to scramble under the table and run towards the door, intending to search for Hermione.
Just then, the door swung open, and Harry yelled, "Catch him before he gets out!"
Draco swooped down and picked Sev up by the back of his shirt. He grinned at him and teased, "You troubled them enough, kid?"
He was about to answer in the affirmative, but when he saw Hermione enter behind Draco, tears began to stream down his face. "Mine-ee!" When he extended his arms towards her, his eyes glistening with tears, Hermione promptly wound her arms around his waist and pressed him close to her chest.
She kissed the top of Severus' head and asked, "Why are you crying, honey?"
"You left! You didn't tuck me in! No goodnight kissy!" he wailed, burying his face in her shoulder and sniffling pathetically. He was supposed to be a big boy — oh, his father would be so mad at him when he found out — but he hadn't been able to stop himself from crying. He had missed Hermione so much and decided he would never let her out of his sight again.
"Aww, I'm so sorry, honey… The exhibition took so much time, and then — You know what? Forget it. How about I tuck you in now and kiss you goodnight? Would you like that?"
"Chocolate!" Sev demanded, pulling back and pouting at her.
"Okay, we'll find you some chocolate, but only one piece. It's very late — how about I read you a story?"
Neville opened his mouth to tell Hermione that Severus already had done both of those things earlier, but Draco raised his hand to silence them. As Hermione carried Severus out of the dormitory to get him some chocolates, Draco smirked and said, "Don't mess up the kid's game, boys. He's a Slytherin."
Harry and Neville groaned when they realized that they had been had. Taking care of Sev was extremely hard, they realized as they hobbled out of the common room, and they mentally applauded Hermione for being able to handle him without going insane.