kbinnz - Harry's New Home

He had reluctantly agreed to leave Harry there until New Year's Eve. Molly had pooh-poohed all of his concerns about homesickness, misbehavior, and troublemaking potential, finally asking point-blank, "Severus тАУ are you worried more about Harry missing you or you missing Harry?"

Snape had of course dismissed such an absurd comment with the scorn it deserved, but he also decided that perhaps his concerns were a trifle excessive. He had even agreed that the visit with the Weasleys was a good time for Harry to make use of his final gift from Snape. It was a trip for five to "Featherbee's Flights of Fancy and Broomstick Arena" тАУ an "adventure playground" that Hooch had promised Harry would adore. It had all sorts of flying courses, magical dueling games, and everything else that would overstimulate impressionable pre-teens. Harry would doubtless invite Weasley, Malfoy, Granger, and Longbottom to accompany him, oblivious to the fact that the latter two were hardly the flying fanatics the others were. Despite this, Snape suspected Granger and Longbottom would accept rather than be left out of the (alleged) fun and excitement.

He'd been a little apprehensive when Molly told him that she and Arthur would, with some of the money Dumbledore now regularly deposited into their account, buy tickets for the rest of their brood, so that the entire family could enjoy the outing along with Harry and his friends. Snape had rather dubiously inquired as to how Molly intended to keep order without his own threatening presence, but she had blithely assured him that Bill and Charlie would be there, pointing out that a dragon tamer and curse breaker should be able to handle a few children. He remained unconvinced until she added that Percy would surely invite that lovely new girlfriend of his along as well. Hearing that Davidella Jones would be in attendance, Snape no longer worried that Malfoy, Weasley, and the twins would lead Harry astray with their mischievous tendencies.

Charlie and Bill would have no qualms about walloping Ron or the twins if necessary тАУ or even young Miss Weasley, should she take after her older siblings as Snape rather feared she did. Similarly, Jones would not hesitate to use her Prefect status to rein in Draco, if the pureblood forgot himself to the point of misbehaving in public. That only left Granger and Longbottom, and even Snape's pessimistic imagination couldn't imagine either of them causing any trouble. He had Molly's promise that if Harry acted up, she would contact him immediately, but he tended to lump Potter in with Granger and Longbottom. He might be a "trouble magnet", but unlike the twins, Potter didn't actually set out to create mayhem. Snape was reasonably certain that Harry would be too awestruck by both the gift and his surroundings to get into trouble, and so he grudgingly agreed to Molly's plan.

On New Year's Eve, he would return to the Burrow and collect the brat, then they would immediately portkey to Switzerland, where they would then spend the next several days celebrating the new year with Black and Lupin. Snape could only shudder at the thought of what outrageous revelries those two had planned, and he had flatly refused allow them to have Harry unsupervised. Of course, much to his irritation that meant that he would be stuck there with them as well. Still, it was better than entrusting Harry to the care of his godfather and then having to deal with the fallout, which could be anything from Black "misplacing" Harry while he chatted up some witch to Harry returning to Hogwarts in a daze induced by fire whiskey and Cornish pixie dust.

Snape growled to himself. The things he did for that brat!

He grumpily drew his robe about himself and prepared to make an appearance at the Farewell Feast. Before he could reach the door, however, there was a soft, tentative knock on it.

"What is it?" he barked, somewhat nonplused to find Percy on his doorstep. What was more, the Gryffindor prefect seemed distraught about something. His eyes were red-rimmed, and his hands shook.

"M-may I speak with you, Professor?" he asked timidly.

"Oh, all right." Snape ungraciously showed the boy to the couch, wondering what he could be doing here. Surely he hadn't just broken up with Jones and had come to beg Snape for either his intercession or advice.

"What is it, Mr Weasley?" he snapped as soon as the boy had seated himself.

Percy took a deep breath. "I'm here so you can тАУ can тАУ " He ground to a halt, his eyes filling with tears.

Oh Merlin, not another one. Snape groaned mentally. "If it is advice that you seek, perhaps you would be more comfortable speaking with your head of House or your father?" he suggested hopefully, trying to forestall an unwanted confidence.

"No," Percy looked surprised. "I'm here so you can thrash me."

Snape's brows drew together. It was one thing to have a reputation as a terrifying instructor. It was quite another to be considered a child abuser. "And why, pray tell, do you imagine I would do such a thing?" he demanded, trying not to show how deeply offended he was.

"Because I nearly got Harry killed. And if you spanked him until he couldn't sit for riding his broom in the Great Hall, I guess you'll probably c-cane me for what I did." Percy looked positively green at the prospect, even as Snape cursed Harry's overdramatic breakfast scene.

"And how exactly did you place Mr Potter in jeopardy?" Snape pressed, though he had a good idea where this was going. Bloody Gryffindors with their bloody over-developed sense of responsibility!

"I was the one who found Scabbers," Percy whispered, staring at his tightly clasped hands. "I begged Mum and Dad until they said I could keep him. It was all my fault that he was at the Burrow. And I made a big fuss when I got my Prefect badge, saying I needed a new familiar. That's why Ronnie got Scabbers. It was all because I thought I was too important to have an old rat anymore. I made my parents hand him down to Ronnie, and that could have gotten my little brother killed. Pettigrew was living in the dorm with them. He could have killed Ronnie or Harry anytime in the last few months."

Snape felt a headache coming on. "Mr Weasley, you were a mere child when you first encountered Pettigrew. You can hardly blame yourself for not recognizing a disguised animagus." But looking at the boy's face, he knew that was untrue. The boy obviously could and did blame himself.

"While you are correct that I am normally highly intolerant of anyone who places Mr Potter in harm's way, even I cannot find you culpable in this case, Mr Weasley."

"But who else is there?" Percy burst out, his eyes bright with tears. "There's no one to blame but me!"

"What about your parents?" Snape cut in. Percy's jaw dropped.

"My parents?" he echoed blankly.

"Yes, Mr Weasley. Why do you find it peculiar that I would look to the adults in the household, rather than fixing the blame on a young child? Do you imagine your parents are in some way intellectually impaired? That they were unfamiliar with the concept of animagi? That there is nothing negligent in allowing a child to adopt a wild creature without so much as having the animal examined to ensure it is not carrying some disease, let alone be a fugitive Death Eater in disguise?"

Percy goggled at him. "But тАУ but тАУ"

"Oh, for Merlin's sake." Snape rose to his feet and stalked over to the fireplace. Snatching a handful of floo powder, he shouted, "The Burrow!" and stuck his head into the flames. "Molly, Arthur. I need you here. Now."

"No, no тАУ I don't want to see them!" Percy gabbled, panicked. "They must be furious with me." He turned to flee, and Snape grabbed him by the back of the robe.

"Oh, no. You stay right there and don't move," he ordered the boy, but the Gryffindor ignored him, struggling to reach the door.