𝑷𝑹𝑶𝑻𝑬𝑪𝑻𝑶𝑹 || 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘂𝘀 𝗦𝗻𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗮𝗯𝘆 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟕.

The train ride had been uneventful, Harry having slept the whole way. All in all, Snape felt it was going much to smoothly. Not only that but the sun was shining. The whole situation was much too encouraging. Snape took a deep breath and raised his hand to knock. He'd been standing awkwardly on the Malfoy's front step long enough, and the albino peacocks strutting around the yard were starting to give him strange looks. As if they had any right to look at him that way.

"Bee bee!" Harry squealed suddenly, tapping Snape's shoulder with excitement.

"Calm down, Harry," Snape instructed, repositioning him on his hip. It was time. He knocked resolutely on the door. There was no turning back now...

"Hello sir," said a voice as the door swung open. Snape looked down in distaste. A house elf. He understood their uses in the Hogwarts kitchens, but thought their presence in Wizarding homes to be somewhat disconcerting.

"I'm here to see your masters," Snape said. "I presume they were expecting me?"

"Yes sir," the elf said, nodding. "Right this way."

Snape entered the immaculately clean house and glanced about casually. It was nothing like his home on Spinner's End. The front entryway was large and open, two staircases emptied grandly into the middle of the room from either side. A large fountain bubbled and frothed in between them, the water shimmering and changing colors from one moment to the next. Snape resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The Malfoys redecorated, or redesigned, their manor every couple of months. Just because magic made it easy, didn't mean it was necessary. Harry, however, was captivated by the fountain.

"Whassat?" he asked excitedly, pointing to it.

"That, Harry, is an ostentatious display in the form of a water fountain. In the front room of a house,"

Harry nodded, as though he'd understood every word Snape said.

"Ah, Severus," a smooth voice floated through the air. Snape turned to see Lucius Malfoy walking towards him with an air of purpose. "We've been expecting you."

Snape nodded in greeting. "Lucius,"

Mr. Malfoy's eyes took in Harry and he raised his light, slender eyebrows questioningly. "We have much to discuss," he said simply. "Right this way."

Snape followed the slightly taller man through glass doors to the side of the room and entered a parlor adorned with dark couches and heavy green curtains. Narcissa Malfoy, who had been sitting on one of the couches rose as the men entered the room and extended her hand to Severus. He took it lightly and bent over it. He couldn't bend very far though, or else he would have spilled Harry to the ground. As it was, Harry quite enjoyed it.

"Whee!" he cried happily as Snape straightened back up.

"Please have a seat, Severus," Narcissa said quietly, sitting back down. Lucius sat down beside her, and Snape sat down on the other couch, facing them.

"How are things at the school?" Lucius asked politely, picking a slender goblet up from the dark wood coffee table between them. He took a drink from the glass, but his eyes watched Snape keenly over the rim as he did so.

Snape sighed. "The school is just lovely," he said sarcastically, but in his normal blank tones. "Now, I mean no disrespect, but we all know that this is not a social visit. I would like to explain the situation,"

Narcissa's eyes clearly showed her relief. Lucius' face remained the same, but a certain heaviness dropped, now that they were no longer forcing pleasantries and dealing with the matter at hand.

"I trust that's the boy?" Lucius said, getting right to the point. Harry was sitting next to Snape on the couch, and as Lucius asked the question he smiled and flopped over, landing his head on 'Napey's lap.

"Correct." Severus responded.

Narcissa tilted her head. "Severus, we hold you in the utmost respect. We normally would not be questioning you... we're friends. However, there are those who-"

She was cut off as Lucius said, "There are those among us who question your loyalties. What exactly is going on?" Lucius voice was loosing its control, but it wasn't anger that tinged his voice. It was worry. Though he was Severus' senior, they had become very good friends.

"Lucius, you know I was left in a precarious position to spy on Dumbledore, and that my ability to stick in that position was one of the things that made me valuable to the Dark Lord,"

Lucius nodded waiting for Snape to finish.

"Well it was Dumbledore who asked me to get the boy. Killing Potter off would certainly not keep me in Dumbledore's good books."
At hearing the word "Potter", Harry smiled and whispered to himself, "Potpot."

Snape continued, "In fact, it would probably lead to another scouring of the Death Eaters,"

Narcissa winced at the thought of that. She knew her husband had been lucky to evade prison. Her sister had not been so lucky.

"I understand that," Lucius said. "But the others aren't going to accept it. They aren't going to like it."

Snape shook his head. "There is nothing to be done. Besides," he added. "Under my care, is it not imaginable that he could be turned into something useful?" a slight smile twinged at the corner of Severus' mouth as he looked across the table at his friend, willing him to trust him and to let the matter go. He was prepared for further debate but he didn't want to do it.

A slight smile then passed Malfoy's features as well. "Well that could prove most...ironic." he said.

Snape shut his eyes for a moment in relief and smiled again, this time it was just as small, but genuine.

Suddenly Narcissa sat up straight and her eyes widened. "Excuse me," she said. "I'll be back in just a moment,"

As she left the room Snape looked at Lucius with one eyebrow raised. Lucius smiled and took another drink from the goblet which was still in his hand. After swallowing he answered, "She must have heard Draco crying. How she hears him from upstairs I don't know, but she does. And she refuses to let the House Elves tend to him whenever he wakes up," though his words could have seemed like he was mocking, Lucius spoke fondly, and when Narcissa came back into the room, baby in arms, Lucius smiled warmly at her. He set his glass down and held out his arms to take the boy from his wife.

Narcissa smiled and put Draco onto Lucius' lap as she resumed down next to him. Harry had been very still while the adults talked, his head was still resting in Severus' lap, but when he saw another little person he sat up and started tapping Snape excitedly on the arm.

"Beebee!" he exclaimed. "Beebee!" he pointed to Draco with his other hand. Harry was enthralled. He kicked his legs up and down and looked with wonder between Severus and the little blond boy.

"Yes, Harry," Snape said, grabbing Harry's hand gently so he would stop hitting. "It's another baby, like you,"

Draco had been sitting facing Lucius and was patting his face over and over with his hands, but at hearing the other voices he turned his head.

"Baby!" he cried, pointing at Harry, his face breaking out into a grin.

"Oh dear," Narcissa said, smiling. Turning to Lucius she finished, "It looks like our son might want to make friends."