The Third Time is a Charm

Posted: 10 March 2010

Chapter 84 Family Birthdays

The tall dark haired man stood in the doorway watching a seventeen year old boy with two children in his arms. The dark haired baby boy in his right arm was dressed in an all in one the color of royal blue, and had gold caldrons swirling around in silent animation. The little girl was dressed the same in a soft royal purple of silk with little crowns and scepters denoting her as a little princess. He knew his children would have a much different childhood than their parents, but he also knew that as they grew older, he would not be able to protect them from heartbreak. He resolved he was going to give it a bloody good try.

The man holding the babies was a teenager, but had lived through so much. Right now he was reading out loud from a journal given to him by a mother he would never know. He was reading the children to sleep.

“July 31, 1980 - I cannot express the feelings that filled my heart when you were placed in my arms for the very first time. You were a little wrinkly and had just a tuft of black hair on your head, and I knew that you were not blessed with my hair but cursed with your father's wild bird’s nest. All I can tell you, son, is to grow it long and find a good hairdresser.

You wrapped your little fingers around my pinky and held on tight with all your strength. I can only say that meeting you for the first time, was the most wonderful experience I have ever had. You could never understand until you have children of your own, but believe me, darling, it is worth all the pain to receive the joy...”

Harry's voice continued on, in some places you could tell he was choked up with the emotions it created. The babies were sleeping now and he didn't even think the young teen knew, so wrapped up was he in the book he was reading.

The tall dark man moved silently into the room and drew nearer to the younger with his two children. The teenager, unaware of the other adult continued to read to the sleeping infants. Just as the older man got close enough to touch the teen from behind, the book was dropped and as he looked to the occupants in the oversized rocking chair he knew that all three had fallen asleep. A warm smile graced the face of the older and almost turned into a chuckle as he watched his family sleeping together. He snapped a picture with a magical camera and placed it back in his pocket. One of the children moved around to snuggle closer into the chest beneath him and a soft coo seemed to come from the little puckered mouth.

Very carefully he picked up the little girl and laid her down to sleep in the crib. She was getting heavier and bigger every day he thought as he smoothed out her hair with a gentle hand. He then lifted the young boy and laid him in the second crib in the room. He gazed over them fondly as two snakes slithered into the cribs to keep their masters safe.

Soon it would be the little boy’s first birthday and a big celebration was in the planning stages by all the adults and elves that were entrusted with the children's care. He knew next year, there would be another to celebrate birthdays with and he paused to briefly mourn the loss of a dear friend.

Looking at the teen still sitting, in the chair that was spelled to gently rock back and forth, he allowed his heart to swell with the love he had for his soulmate. It was indescribable to him how he went from abused, and yes in some cases abusive, to having a loving husband and two children. He would do anything to protect them.

He placed the monitoring spells on the room and slowly got a grip on the teen, then lifted him into his arms. Harry was still lighter than he should be, but he had a good healthy look of one that was well cared for. Those Dursley people had never been able to break his spirit and now he was as whole as anyone else.


A murmur was heard coming from the teen, but he unconsciously wrapped his arms around the older man’s neck and settled more firmly into his grip. As he was laid down on the bed, after a wave of the man’s hand had pulled back the covers, a soft spoken “Sev” was sighed from the slightly parted lips. Another wave of the older man’s hand and the teen was clothed in his night wear and covered in the downy comforter. About ten minutes later he joined the younger man for the night, smiling as the smaller frame curled into his, and rested an arm across his chest. Not for the first time did Severus Prince breath a prayer of thanks for his new and growing family as he drifted in a peaceful sleep.

The morning of July 31, 1981...

Prince Manor was a whirlwind of activity. For security reasons no one, but the closest of friends, were invited. But the number was not a small one. There were a host of people that had already sent presents that were secured in one of the reception rooms to be checked for anything untoward that could hurt the children or even take them by portkey to somewhere else. Even the ministers from some of the other countries had sent a small gift. The strangest present he received was a small acromantula spider. Aragog sent it for the child’s protection as a gift.

Evan of course could sense the excitement of all the adults around him, but he didn't have a clue to what was going on. The pool room was again set up in a decorative atmosphere, but this time with a small merry-go-round with six hippogriffs and some other small children's rides. It was a good thing they could shrink them and resize them later. A small unicorn was portkeyed in so the children could also have pony rides.

The Malfoys had come as well as Sensei and all the original people from Becca's time line. Regulus, Moony and the Lupins were there as well as Snape and some of the war counsel. The children were definitely out numbered by the adults at least three to one. It was a real treat for everyone to just relax and visit as opposed to planning missions and worrying about what Voldemort was going to do next. Things had been relatively quiet for now, but they knew that would not last too long.

Becca watched on as Harry and Severus got on the small rides with the children. Holding them in place and generally enjoying the time as a family. Narcissa, who was now three months pregnant for her fourth child, was sitting next to Becca as she said, "I'm not sure who is having more fun, the kids or the adults." They both laughed as they watched Severus talk Lucius into getting on the ride with one of the twins while the Nanny Elf had the other one. Tonks had volunteered to take Draco as Remus Sr. was holding onto Teddy.

Everyone looked and laughed when Severus picked up Lillian and growled into her stomach as she squealed in giggles and said "Da". It was her first word. Evan had said it a few weeks ago, so they had expected her to follow. Harry smiled and thought he had never seen Severus so carefree and happy. The children were really changing him more and more each day. Only occasionally would he see a shadow of the old Professor Snape that greeted him in his first year.

It had been nearly two years, actually one year eight months, since they had come to this time line. Harry had never been a part of such an extravagant party. Actually, he couldn't remember, ever, being a part of a child's birthday party, except to help set up Dudley’s a few times. He questioned briefly if this would have been a party his parents would have given him had they lived. He shook his head to clear his mind of such maudlin thoughts and focused back to Severus and their daughter. Evan was riding the unicorn with Teddy and they were trying to make it "giyiup" as Teddy was saying. The unicorn was one of the young ones from the two adult unicorns that participated in the wedding.

An alarm went off and Becca got up from her seat. "That will be our surprise guests; I will see to them and be right back." Harry looked at Severus with a puzzled expression on his face and Severus shrugged his shoulders as if to say 'I don't know'. Everyone they had invited was there and they were not expecting anyone else.

As Becca made her way up to the receiving room on the upper floor, her heart was pounding in her chest and her hands were sweating. She knew she should not be nervous, but it had been weeks since she had seen the two guests that were waiting for someone greet them. Salazar had followed her and whispered in her ear, "They love you, why are you nervous?"

"I have made so many mistakes. This was not the original plan and I wonder if they will be upset with me for changing things. They didn’t know all the changes when we met before, but now that they have had time to think about it… I’m just worried." Becca said nervously.

"Everything will be fine." Salazar said as the lift door opened and they stepped out.

"Grandfather!" cried Becca as she ran to them. She had wanted to see them before now, but other than that one visit, hadn't had the chance to go when Voldemort had been so active. She felt their arms close around her and hold her close. She knew that, no matter what, she was loved by these two men.

"Spitfire!" Silver said "It is good to see you"

"Nice place you have here." said Black.

They talked for about fifteen minutes before Salazar interrupted them, "I hate to disturb you, but there is a party downstairs and a certain couple may be wondering where you are and if you were kidnapped." he said with a smile.

"Do they know we’re coming?" Black asked.

Becca shook her head 'no' and pulled them toward the lift.

When the four adults stepped out, Harry and Severus, each with a child in their arms, looked toward the lift entrance to see who had come to join the party.

They were stunned. Standing next to Becca and Salazar were their carbon copies only older. Snape who was sitting and talking to Lucius had an odd feeling of déjà vu with seeing yet another older version of himself, and couldn't help but wonder what power he hadn't tapped into yet that these men obviously had.

There was a shock throughout the room as introductions were made. When they got to the table where the Malfoys were sitting, Lucius was the one who asked, "Why Silver and Black?" It was the only name everyone had been told to use. The two men stared at each other before separating from the table, and in a flash, flying through the air, were the most magnificent phoenixes that anyone had ever seen.

They flew around the room, which got the children's attention and came to a stop in their original places, changing back as if they had choreographed it to happen at the same exact moment.

They had a good visit; including giving the children rides in their phoenix forms. That is Silver gave the rides while Black put the sticking charm on the kids and showed them how to hold on around the neck and leave the wings free to fly. When Harry protested about the kids being too heavy, Black reminded him about a phoenix being able to carry ‘immensely heavy loads’.

The children all had an early night of it. The Malfoys were staying in guest quarters so they could visit with the adults. It was at dinner after the children were put to bed that they were able to speak freely about the war effort.

Snape had been listening quietly as he sat next to Moony and asked, "So I am assuming that you are married and even though you were introduced as Silver and Black because of your animagus forms, you are also named Harry and Severus." The older men nodded. "Then am I also meant to marry the same Harry counterpart in this world?" He was worried, he and Moony had gotten to be quite close and he couldn't imagine having to marry someone he didn't even know.

"Bond with, not necessarily marry." The oldest man said. “In each time line the power of light and the power of dark are meant to bond to protect the world. This is what each of us has done.”

"I don't understand." Severus replied

"There are many different types of bonds. You may bond as a husband, but you may also bond as a friend, business partner or as a father or godfather figure. Don't limit yourself to what has gone on before. As Time Spirits, we are commissioned by fate and time to change things in a certain way. We are given permission to help mankind correct mistakes that could be detrimental for the existence of the world. There are things we can do to effect change and there are those we are forbidden to change. But always one change can affect something else, like little ripples in a lake when a rock is thrown into it."

“How do I know what is right for me?” the youngest Severus Snape at the table asked.

“Only you can decide what is best for you. We have made our choices but they don’t have to be your choices. We have changed things so that you have more to chose from. Just because Silver and I are soulmates and Harry and Severus are also, does not mean you have to find another Harry. Most soulmates are born that way but our soulmate bond was forged* a different way. We were raised in a very similar manner and therefore became soulmates by our experiences. In some ways, it was better like that, but I would not wish our childhoods on anyone. Do you understand?”

Snape nodded his head and said, “Your bond was created by your mutual suffering, survival and sacrifices, not necessarily because fate chose you beforehand.”

The black phoenix animagus nodded as he saw the understanding in the young man’s eyes.

It was Severus that brought up a question they had all been wondering. “How long will you be able to stay with us?”

Silver answered, “Until everything is settled, or we are told to be elsewhere. We would like to be here to help you with your current situation and also for Becca’s wedding. That is something we don’t want to miss. We will live at Between Manor though and coordinate things from there. You currently have over fifty incarcerated Death Eaters and we can keep watch over them so your attention need not be divided. We know that Voldemort has been quiet for a little while, but it will not stay that way. Based on the other time lines, things are going to heat up soon.”

“Do you know when the attacks will start…” Harry started to say but, in the middle of his sentence, he was interrupted with plop, plop, plopplop. The last two papers dropped almost simultaneously. There, in the center of the table, were several Daily Prophet newspapers about Death Eater attacks in the next two weeks.

Silver and Black looked over at the headlines on the papers and the dates. “Nice little trick you’ve got going there; untraceable time turners and portkeys. Who thought of that one?”

“Gorbink” responded several of the people in the room at once.

“It’s a good thing he’s on our side.” Silver observed with a small laugh.

“Well, gentlemen,” Silver stated as he rose out of the chair, “we need to be leaving; it is way past our bedtime.” It was only one in the morning. “Just send us the prisoners and we will interrogate them and separate the ones that can be purged of the dark mark.”

“My love, are you ready?” Silver asked his husband of over one hundred years. He offered his hand to help the man out of the chair.

The man accepted the help even as he looked at everyone around the table. “We will be in touch and will come to visit when we can.” He then looked at his husband and said “Yes, we should be getting to bed.”

Becca got up from her chair to get a hug from them before they left and then they spoke in unison when they said, “Goodnight everyone.” With a silver and black flash of fire they were gone.

That same day at the Potter household…

“James Potter! I can’t believe you bought a broom for our one year old child.” Lily was livid. Even the toy store said it was for children three and older. She was imagining all kinds of horrible things happening to her son on the confounded thing.

“It will be alright, Lils. Look he is a natural on it, and he likes it.” James pleaded with his wife. He knew she wasn’t going to be happy about this, but when he had taken his son to the toy store, he knew it was just the thing for him. The look on Harry’s face when the broom was flying around with him on it was worth all the trouble. His face was euphoric at being above the ground, even if it was only fifteen centimeters.

As he and Lily were arguing about the broom. The baby’s godfather Sirius Black was following the infant around, wand at the ready, to make sure he didn’t get hurt. Sirius had already cast several cushioning charms on the low table in front of the sofa. Not only did he not want to see the baby hurt, he also didn’t want to have to deal with Lily if the child did have an accident.

Moony had come in earlier and dropped off a present for the little one. It was a magical Hogwarts Express engine car that would go ‘Choo Choo’ and blow smoke and was big enough for Harry to ride. It had a safety strap that automatically clicked on the child when seated and a sensing spell that prevented it from running into anything. It would turn around and go back the way it came when it got ten centimeters from an object.

Moony had said something about his boss’ son also having a birthday today and a party later that he was required to attend. Sirius was still doubtful about those Prince people that he worked for, but he was willing to give the man credit for doing something with his life. When they were in school, Moony had always been worried about finding work because he knew that being a werewolf would greatly limit his opportunities.

Peter had also come earlier that day. He had brought a little stuffed animal for the child and stayed and spoke with Lily, James and Sirius. Peter, however, didn’t stay long as children were obviously not something he could relate to.

Three days later…

Marlene McKenna’s family was sitting at the dinner table when Regulus Black came knocking on her door. She had not expected to see him as he had left Hogwarts before finishing school. They were told he had gone to another school for ‘special training’ She had assumed that meant he had joined the Death Eaters as many of the Slytherin families had.

About fifteen minutes later they were attacked by four Death Eaters. Voldemort had decided to start attacking known members of Dumbledore’s Order of the Phoenix to find out more about the prophecy. Marlene was badly hurt, as was one of her two younger brothers. The family of five was very confused when they were portkeyed for medical treatment along with a trunk. Not to St. Mungo’s, as they would have surmised, but to two older gentlemen in a place they had never seen. The black phoenix animagus recognized the wounds of the Sectumsempra spell and immediately called over his mate for help.

“This will be much easier if you transform and cry on the wound.” His mate nodded and a silver phoenix appeared to place tears along the slash on the woman’s arm and stomach. Afterwards she was given a pain reliever and dreamless sleep along with the rest of her family. The important thing was no one was permanently injured nor had they died.

Four days after that it was the Prewett twins…

A week after that it was Edger Bones and his family…

Voldemort still didn’t know how his people were disappearing. He only told those going on the missions, at the very last minute. He also didn’t tell anyone who they were attacking or when.

A/N Because I know that some of my readers use English as a second language, I wanted to explain the word forged in the conversation with Silver and Black. *Description of forge - American Heritage® Dictionary NOUN: 1. A furnace or hearth where metals are heated or wrought; a smithy. forgeability, forgeable, forger To give form or shape to, especially by means of careful effort: forge a treaty; forge a close relationship.
Thank you to all who have reviewed. I had one reader ask if they could put me on their recommended reading list and I wholeheartedly say YES! It warms my heart to know that people like to read my story. Especially as this is the first one I have ever tried to do.