Storytime with Rachel F Hundred

Christmas Eve, 1981

It is late in on Christmas Eve when Albus finally makes his way to his office. There is a cheery fire alight in the hearth, giving the room a warm glow. Fawkes is asleep on his perch, his feathers sparking with muted light; he is due a burning. Most of the portraits are sleeping or absent.

Albus takes a moment to enjoy the quiet after the commotion of a Hogwarts Christmas Eve dinner. It had been loud and cheerful with the staff filled with Christmas spirit.

There are only a few children left in the castle for the first time in years. It is finally safe enough for all but a few to go home. Voldemort is gone and his followers have been scrambling to save themselves from Azkaban since.

Albus sighs heavily.

He has spent the past month arguing to keep Severus Snape out of the prison. He has used up a lot of political capital in that one act and he had finally had to concede to Severus serving a six-month term in the better part of the prison manned by wizards rather than Dementors that morning.

He has no idea why Lord Arcturus Black had emerged from Castle Black determined to hold the Death Eaters to account given the wizard’s own traditionalist politics, but Black’s drive for justice has seen Death Eaters Albus thought likely to squirm their way free, including Lucius Malfoy, sent to Azkaban. Unfortunately, Albus’ championing of Severus has been regarded poorly by his own allies in the face of such a comparison.

He needs Severus though. He needs someone marked by Voldemort, but who is bound to Albus. Someone who can be part of the Dark Lord’s inner circle again in the future because there is no doubt in Albus’ mind that Voldemort, or rather Tom is not entirely defeated yet.

In many ways, Albus knows Severus is a detestable human being. He’s seeped in Dark Magic use. He’s killed and tortured wizards and witches, muggles and muggleborn. He gave Tom enough of the prophecy that the wretched wizard targeted a child, a baby. He bears some responsibility for the deaths of James and Lily Potter and for the injury to Alice Longbottom in the subsequent attack by the Lestranges.

But Severus deserves the chance to redeem himself. He is truthful, at least, in his love for Lily Potter and his horror that his action brought her to harm is very real. Albus knows that Severus undoubtedly promised both himself and Voldemort undying allegiance for the chance to save her. A true double agent, Albus muses. He crosses the office to stare out at the dark grounds and the falling snow.

Severus will join the staff once he’s free of his prison term. He’ll take over from Jiggle as Potions Professor. That will be a weight off Albus’ shoulders. Horace had gone into hiding the year before and Albus has struggled to find a decent replacement. Jiggle is lacklustre and had only got the job because nobody else applied. In comparison, Severus is a wonderfully talented potions master, and hopefully he will make a decent teacher. The position also places Severus well to help protect Harry in the future, to keep his vow to help him.

Harry.

Albus closes his eyes briefly at the thought of the Potter boy.

He had obliviated Poppy of her examination of the child with her permission. No-one needs to learn that a soul fragment of Voldemort has leeched onto the child’s magic. There is nothing to be done. All Albus has ever read about such incidences has meant the death of the vessel. They cannot remove the leech without killing Harry.

He is certain some might take that choice, but Albus refuses to believe that he will not find a way to save the child in the future. With Severus’ situation handled, he may now spend some time considering the matter.

In the meantime, Harry is safe enough behind his mother’s wards and with family. He knows that Lily’s family were not mentioned in her Will, but that first night he had sought only to protect Harry as quickly as he could. Alice and Frank had been under the Fidelius, he had believed that Sirius was the Secret Keeper and the spy within the Order, and all the others mentioned were problematic in some way. He had landed on Petunia as the best choice. Lily had informed him that she had placed wards around her sister after the death of her parents.

Petunia was Harry’s family, estranged from his mother, her sister, unquestionably, but family nevertheless. Albus knows if Aberforth had ever told him about Credence, about Aurelius, that Albus would have raised the boy himself. Petunia will do the same, Albus thinks tiredly. Harry is all that is left of Lily, how can she not? And Petunia had once been enthralled with magic herself enough to write him. It will work out. He is certain of it.

Of course, Minerva had been scathing about Petunia and her family, but Minerva is a stern woman with high values. He has no doubt that the others who were on the list may have received the same condemnation of character that she had given the Dursleys. Although, Albus considers with some bemusement, she had been strangely supportive of Sirius Black after Halloween, even praising the young man for his decision to go abroad.

Albus would never have left Harry with the boy’s godfather. Sirius is too ruthless, too reckless. He is as much a Black as any of them regardless of his Gryffindor sorting. Albus can concede that Lily may have changed the Secret Keeper without Albus being aware of the shift. He can even concede that perhaps Sirius did not betray the Potters to Voldemort, that it was the weak-willed Peter Pettigrew who did so, but he cannot shake his suspicion that Sirius is more naturally inclined to Dark Magic. He reminds him too much of a young Gellert, albeit without his past love’s insanity and ambition.

No, Albus muses, leaving young Harry with Sirius was never something he had considered, even when he’d seen him named in Lily’s Will.

Perhaps if Alice Longbottom had survived the awful attack from the Lestranges with her mind and body intact…

The Longbottoms would have been better placed to raise Harry alongside their own Neville, and Alice had certainly been vociferous enough in her argument with Albus about his decision to place Harry with Petunia. Yet Albus cannot help but think it is better that Harry is away from the wizarding world.

It is awful to consign the child to the muggle world, Albus thinks wearily, heading to his desk. That is his only regret in leaving him there. Harry will go for many years without knowing the joy and wonder of his magical birthright. But with the kerfuffle with the Longbottoms, and the ever-increasing public adoration for Harry as the Boy Who Lived – a truly awful moniker for the poor lad to be saddled with – Albus is certain that he is better growing up away from the hullabaloo; better to have a normal childhood. And under Lily’s wards, there will be no safer place for Harry from the Death Eaters.

Still, Alice had made a valid point when she had remonstrated with him. To abandon Harry completely without any kind of monitoring is a terrible idea. Of course, Albus had already cast a series of linking charms from the wards to some devices he’d taken with him when he’d left Harry on the doorstep of Petunia’s home. He casts a glance towards three silver instruments on the top shelf of the bookcase across the room.

One device monitored the wards themselves to alert him if they were ever triggered. Another monitored Harry’s living status and was a very binary alive and dead switch. The final one gathered the alert of any accidental magic and kept it from appearing on the records of the Ministry. It had been sheer luck that the Department had been so busy celebrating the demise of Voldemort that they hadn’t noticed anything prior to Albus’ intervention.

After being upbraided by Alice, Albus had thought that perhaps he should also place someone like Arabella Figg into the neighbourhood, but then the issue with Severus had arisen and the thought had been pushed to the back of his mind. Perhaps it is unnecessary, Albus thinks. Petunia had written to him to confirm that she was Harry’s legal guardian. That surely was a good sign.

Of course, she had also asked about a stipend and about Harry’s formal documents. The latter he cannot give her as the documents are magical and they would break the Statute of Secrecy. As to the former, that is not truly not in his own hands but that of the Potters’ goblin account manager. They had been unwilling to compensate any guardian not mentioned explicitly in the Will.

Albus is certain all will be well. The Dursleys have a wonderful little muggle home. He’s certain that they will be fine financially; the boys are of a similar age.

He taps his fingers restlessly against his desk for a moment. Perhaps though he will ask Minerva to pay another visit in her other form. If she feels that their behaviour is still too awful, or worse, if Harry is truly suffering in the Dursleys’ care, then he can go ahead with his plan for Arabella to keep watch and make certain Harry’s time with the muggles is not too difficult.

Tom may have marked Harry as his equal, but Albus will hope that a childhood with muggles will not lead Harry down the same dark path as Tom. Arabella can be trusted to know if Harry is growing up as a good and decent boy or not.

Yes, Albus determines. He will ask Minerva and make his final decision on her findings. He rises from his desk and heads to the door to his quarters. It has been a long day, a long year. He needs a good rest before Christmas morning arrives with all its usual festivities.

He is gone from the room when Fawkes catches afire and burns; the baby phoenix emerging from the ash anew.

fin.

Next story: A Promise of Support

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