Win The War: Consanguinity

Chapter 4: Training

Tuesday, July fourth 1995

Severus Snape woke up with a headache.

'I'm too old for this,' he thought.

But he was well aware that it didn't matter what age one was; the Dark Lord's Crucio was unbearably painful. Voldemort really hadn't appreciated that the Potions Master hadn't come to the graveyard when he called, and the Dark Lord expressed his displeasure... painfully.

As a Potion's Master, he knew he shouldn't mix a potion for cell regeneration with a pain potion and Firewhiskey. Still, the day before was incredibly trying, and Severus really wanted to zone out as soon as he could. On top of all that, Albus had come up with some babble about Potter.

Lily. She was the sole reason he had sworn to protect the boy no matter what, and now the headmaster was trying to make him believe that the boy-who-lived wasn't her son. He had no idea why Dumbledore would lie about something like that, but it had to be a lie. Magical adoption didn't change character traits, and the whelp had definitely inherited James Potter's genes. He acted as arrogant and audacious as him. Potter strutted around Hogwart as though he owned the school. Maybe he wasn't as cruel as James, but he also had his sidekicks who were there to meet his every whim.

Severus pondered the possibility that Harry Potter wasn't a Potter at all. He shook his head, realizing the absurdity of his thoughts. Surely, somebody would have known about it. Black had to know if the boy was Potters'. It was blatantly obvious that Black loved the child and would do anything for him. Hell, he even broke out of the Azkaban for the boy. Severus didn't believe that Black would care about the child and be so dedicated to him if he knew he wasn't James' son.

'Unless...' continued Severus. 'Unless he's really Black's offspring and, until now, he hadn't informed anyone. But that's absurd. Or maybe he's Regulus' child? The second Black brother's body was never found, and there wasn't really proof that he died.'

Severus decided to stop wasting his time wandering about Potter, Black and speculating about the true parentage of Harry Potter. His thoughts on the subject were becoming more and more outlandish.

HPHPHPHPHP

As usual, Severus spent the first days after the end of the school year completing student reports and documents. Today, he had to just pack up, and he finally could go home.

Not many people knew that Severus was a sentimental person. He didn't have too many positive memories, so the few he did have, he cherished. The man liked to surround himself with things that evoked pleasant memories. That's why when he'd found out that the old Evans' house was for sale after their death, he had to buy it. He'd done everything he could to take out a loan with Gringott's, and the week after, the house was his.

Of course, Severus didn't know whether or not he would survive the war, so it was possible that he wouldn't pay off the entire mortgage. In that case, the ownership would transfer to the Goblins, but that didn't bother him as much because he didn't have anyone who would inherit it anyway.

And today, after many long months, he was going back there.

Many people would also be astonished if they heard that summer with all its sun and cheerfulness was his favourite season. However, the reason was not surprising at all. Of course, it had nothing to do with the sun or the nice weather. It was a more prosaic one: for two full months, he wouldn't have to deal with a bunch of bratty dunderheads and try to teach them anything. The men sighed; there was this one teenager whose company Severus will have to bear, but at least the boy was quite reasonable. Anyway, Severus could now brew potions all day in the seclusion of his own laboratory, read books, and just relax. He hoped that the Death Eaters' and Order's meetings would be rare as well.