Keeping The Dark Lord (on his toes)

Chapter - 13 Say what now ? ( 14 Feb + 1993 )

Harry stared in horror at the monstrosity that the Great Hall has become before taking one step back, turning around, and then fleeing to the Chamber of Secrets. He really didn’t want to relive the Valentines fiasco that happened during his original second year, and although he didn’t blame this Ginny for the misdeeds of her counterpart… he still avoided her like the plague.

He wasn’t surprised when a snake Patronus sought him out hours later, but he was surprised that it carried Severus’ voice and not Salazar’s. “I guess the study about one’s Patronus changing when you meet your soulmate just got proven…” He sat up to hear what his godfather had to say, but it seems the man had merely used it to track him down as the Patronus hovered for a moment after greeting him before disappearing and a few seconds later, Severus entered the study.

Harry was surprised when he didn’t see Salazar, but the man merely pointed to a runed leather band around his wrist. The band held a metal snake that seemed to be dormant and Harry was sure that it was charmed to speak the phrase that opened the Chamber of Secrets. “Salazar decided that I needed a safe place that I could escape to if something happened, so he gave me this.”

The man lowered his sleeve before sinking down into the couch next to Harry, resting his head back, and closing his eyes. “I take it that you’re hiding here because of some strange type of PTSD connected to this particular day…?”

Harry gave a snort of laughter, “You could say that…”

Severus opened his eyes and turned his head towards him, “Does it have anything to do with a certain redhead that has been prowling around the castle and dragging a dwarf around behind her?”

Harry winced before suppressing a full-body shudder, “It might.”

Severus grinned slightly, “Are you going to tell me what happened, or do I have to confiscate the letter she is carrying.”

Harry grimaced, “And maybe give some of the other students a chance to see the letter in the process? Hell no…the letter contains a very, very, very badly written poem comparing my eyes to a pickled-toad and my hair to a blackboard before it indirectly asks me to be her boyfriend because I conquered the Dark Lord.”

Silence filled the study and the poem almost made up for the embarrassment it caused him as he caught his godfather trying to keep in his laughter before failing miserably and Harry decided that, even if he did nothing else, he would at least make sure that his godfather had more opportunities to just relax and enjoy himself.

The man was already happier, and Harry could see that Salazar used everything he could to make up for Severus’ hellish past.

The man finally calmed down, and the smile lingered on his face before disappearing. “I guess I can see why you’d rather skip the day, but I doubt that she would stop unless you outright tell her to, and I have noticed that she’d been called into Dumbledore’s office a few times so I doubt it was originally her idea…given her age and how shy she usually is.”

Severus reached into his pocket before taking out a leather band, quite similar yet different to his own. “Salazar and I made this. I know your rings protect you but we don’t exactly know the extent of the protections. This band will protect against most minor spells and hexes, just like your rings, but it will also heat up if it detects a questionable substance in your vicinity.”

Harry carefully allowed the man to fasten the band around his wrist, “You think that she might use love potions?”

Severus gave him a pointed look, “We both know that Dumbledore would do anything to further his schemes and I would rather be overthinking things than having to drag you away as you are making kissy-faces at someone that closely resembled your mother.”