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Promises of Forever	By : Ravenheart Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Snape/James Views: 18939 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from this story and no copyright infringement is intended

Chapter List
- 21
- 22
- 23
A/N: I'm sorry!! This
chapter took so so so long to write you have no idea!!! And yes I'll
completely understand if you guys reach the end and want to rant at
me... if you plan on throwing food though, make sure that it's not
rotten food...

Tittle: Promises
of forever

Chapter: 22
– Trial

Pairing: James
Potter & Severus Snape

Summary: James
survived that fated Halloween night, now with an infant by his side
he has to face adulthood and a world that demands his son. Thank
goodness he has Severus Snape on his side.

Warning:
Character Death, OOCness, cuteness, AU, Harry's three months old
instead of 15 months. Manipulative!Dumbledore, Evil!Tom Riddle

Disclaimer: This
is a work of fiction, written to win the NaNoWriMo challenge. No
money is being made from this and no copyright infringement is
intended.

Previously: “I'm
sorry.” He whispered, not looking at James, his elbows resting
on the table as he hid his face in his hands.

Trial,
part II

The only reassurance
James gave him was a painful squeeze of his knee before standing up
for his own testimony.

James stood up on shaky
knees and sat down on the witness stand. If anyone asked, he wouldn't
be able to say what the questions had been, he would only be able to
say that Harry had fidgeted in his sleep, on still shaky legs he
returned to the defence table, staring ahead as the Minister gavel
sounded twice through the court room.

“This trial will
recommence tomorrow morning, at 8am sharp.” And she stood up,
leaving the room and being followed by the Wizengamot.

James came back to
himself as they left the courtroom, and came face to face with bright
green eyes as Severus held Harry on his shoulder, and his boy was
staring directly at him.

“Hello again
Kitten.” he murmured, his hand playing with his boy's curls,
and getting a laugh and a few babbling words from the baby.

“Well.. we'll
have to see about that, won't we Mr. Mini-Potter?” James said
with a sad smile, fingertips caressing his son's face as the child
giggled, trying to catch his hand.

“Mr. Potter.”
He heard someone calling him from behind, only to see a junior auror
running up to catch up with them, his knew crimson robes flapping
behind him and making the dark-skinned auror look like a schoolboy.

“Can I help you
auror?” He stopped, his hand taking hold of Severus' forearm to
stall his leaving as well.

“Ah... yes sir...
you see... what happens is that...” he trailed off, seeing the
dark look on Severus' face.

“Speak up auror,
we do not have all day.”

“No sir, I
mean... yes sir... I mean... I mean... I'm supposed to accompany
you.” the junior auror mumbled, looking down at the floor.

“I see... to
prevent us from leaving the country I suppose.” James said
tiredly, shaking his head.

“Who are you
auror, and who's responsible for this travesty?” Severus
hissed, glaring at the man in front of them as he fumbled with his
robes.

“Kingsley
Shacklebolt sir and... and... it was the Minister's decision.”
he mumbled, only just daring to look at former auror Potter.

“The Minister's?
Very well... you'll have the guest bedroom them Shacklebolt.”
James said, running a hand over his hair, messing it up more than it
was.

“He's coming? But
James!”

“No use arguing
Severus... It'll just lead to trouble, it's better that he stays with
us than have Dumbledore or, Merlin forbid, the Minister on our backs
for not following the rules.”

“The rules? You
mean... you mean you knew about this?”

“I knew there was
the possibility of it happening, yes, but I wasn't sure if they would
actually call us on it.” the younger wizard shrugged, his hand
still resting on Severu's forearm as Harry looked around, trying to
take everything in.

Severus kept quiet as
they stepped over to the fireplace – placing a piece of fine,
baby cloth over Harry's face so he wouldn't inhale the ashes. As soon
as they landed – Harry roughly taking the cloth off his face
with a big grin to Severus – the elder man turned to his lover,
his eyes narrowed as he heard the Ministry lackey flooing over to
James' house.

He decided to disregard
his appearance as he stared at James.

“I'm sorry...”

“I know you
are... and I won't pretend I'm not mad but...” He took a
shuddering breath, staring at Severus again. “I'm too tired to
stay mad. We all had an awful day and it's too much trouble to
continue being mad at you, your turn's over and done with, nothing we
can do.” He shrugged, throwing himself at the couch and
extending his hands and silently demanding Harry.

Without arguing Severus
held the infant to his father, watching as James' face lit up as he
held Harry's hand and helped him with his steps.

He just knew that Harry
would stay between them that night, and he wouldn't have it any other
way.

Turning to the junior
auror he was pleased to note the uncomfortable expression on his
face, it would serve him well! This was a private affair after all
and he had no right to stand there and intrude.

“Auror
Shacklebolt... your room is this way.” He said, just loud
enough to attract the man's attention, silently he led him to the
second floor, leaving the auror at the end of the corridor, on one of
the guest's room that still had to be properly furnished, he knew it
was petty of him, be he couldn't help it. He auror was intruding.

Silently, and wearily,
James and him made their way to bed – as he predicted, with
Harry between them – only to have nightmares all night long and
James waking up at least twice with a scream or a plea dying on his
lips.

The next day wasn't
that better, with Severus waking up to a cold bed, fortunately the
smell of fried bacon had him getting up faster than he would have
otherwise, and 15 minutes later he walked in the kitchen to find
James feeding Harry some goo or other and the auror making them
breakfast, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage and tea already on the
table as he prepared the toast and Harry's fruit salad for later.

He supposed that, just
for the tea and the bacon, he could forgive the auror, just a bit.

As they left for the
Ministry, James with his heart on his throat, he couldn't help but
smile at the scene in front of him, Severus with the blue baby bag on
his shoulder, looking for Harry's bottles and Kingsley holding Harry,
the baby eyeing the stranger thoughtfully before raising a tiny hand
and slapping the auror directly on the nose, drawing two shouts of
'Harry James Potter!' for his efforts.

And James couldn't help
but remember that scene hours later as he sat at the defence table,
staring as Healer Michael sat on the witness stand, recounting the
night of October 31^st.

“He brought Harry
at around 3am, and we – Jack, Ashton our junior Healer, and I –
could see it was right after the attack. The infant had a crushed
feet, a concussion and the traces of Dark Magic on him.” The
healer ignored the mutterings and gasps from the crowd.

“The situation
with the infant was dire, so we had to ask for skelegrow, blood
replenishing potions and a blood transfusion. After that Ashton asked
Mr. Potter the infant's medical history and what had happened, and we
learned that You-know-who had attacked them, killing Mrs. Potter and
trying to kill the infant.”

“And when did you
find out which spell had been used on young Harry?” Dumbledore
asked, thoughtfully, and James couldn't help but hate his old
headmaster.

“When we were
doing the usual detection charms, we found the lotion spell, the
Quiesco Curatio and the Killing Curse.”

“In that order
Mr. Barton?”

“Yes.”

“And what do you
believe might have saved young Harry from the killing curse?”

“At first, we
theorised that it might have been the number of times the healing
spell had been chanted to him. The Quieco Curatio is a special spell.
It's power builds us the more it is chanted. As Mr. Potter chanted it
over and over, he told us no more than 10 times, it's possible that
the healing spell was the only thing standing on You-know-who's way,
the only thing that saved him.”

Albus cleared his
throat, uncomfortable. “You said, at first... is there a second
option? Like, perhaps a mother's sacrifice?”

The healer couldn't
help but snort, staring at Albus.

“There are
thousands of options, not just one or two... some even theorise is
the boy's own power that saved him from the Dark Lord.”

“And which do you
believe in?”

“I believe in the
healing spell... it's much more plausible than Mrs. Potter's
sacrifice.”

Frowning, Albus turned
his back to the Healer, dismissing the witness.

Frowning, Vendevie
stood up, staring at said Healer.

“Mr. Barton, you
said there were thousands of options and that Mrs. Potter's sacrifice
to save her son was, essentially, meaningless... would you care to
elaborate?”

“To start with,
thousands of mothers have sacrificed themselves in this war, if
You-know-who was to be vanquished by a mother's sacrifice to save
their child, it would have happened in the mid 70's during the
Leonheart raid, another thing is that...” he stopped mid
sentence, staring at James. He would not say anything on the subject
unless James gave him permission to do so... he would not tarnish
Mrs. Potter's memory like that.

Nuzzling Harry's hair
as his child sucked on Severus' invention – which was better
than dummies any day – James looked up at Michael, Harry's
doctor.

“Mr. Barton?
Please follow up on your thoughts Mr. Barton.” the goblin
growled, his claws drumming on his leg, slowly wasting away the
fabric, but still... still Michael Barton stared at James, waiting
for an answer.

“Mr. Barton?”
Came the soft voice of the Minister, and Michael breathed a sigh of
relief as James finally nodded, pained that their most well kept
secret was about to be released to the press on a silver plate.

“Forgive me...
Mrs. Potter couldn't have saved Harry because... because she was
suffering from postpartum depression.” He said, closing his
eyes as the audience and the press started talking, and shouting and
denying the information.

“Order! Order!!”
The minister shouted, the gavel banging over and over and the sound
of clicking cameras and shouts of horror, and Harry's sudden and
startled cry all mingling together... Michael chanced a look at
Dumbledore, the Hogwarts' headmaster was frowning, talking to one of
his female teachers before a look of sudden and horrifying
understanding came on his face.

Clearly, he hadn't know
about Lily's depression. And by the looks of it, he wished it had
remained a secret.

Slowly the room became
quiet, only an infant's sniffing could be heard along with the deep
voices of two men, both trying to sooth the distraught babe.

“Shh... it's okay
now Kitten. Shh, no one's yelling anymore.” he heard James
saying to the infant, and for a moment he pitied the father. He was
alone, taking care of a baby with the occasional help of Severus
Snape and Harry had acquired the trauma – along with Neville –
of loud, raised voices, it must have been a nightmare to stay in this
room.... where every single sound was magnified.

The crying gave way to
hiccuping and Michael saw Severus getting a bottle with milk for
Harry, Michael didn't even start as he saw the pink hue the milk had.

It was Dark Magic, he
knew, but he wouldn't say anything unless someone paid close
attention to the stuff they were feeding the boy-who-lived, and he
knew that, with the subject of Lily Potter and a Healer as the
witness, no one would even notice it.

“Another ruckus
like this and you'll all be out! Press included!” He heard the
Minister hiss and he sighed, his testimony was about to restart.

“Please go on Mr.
Vendevie.”

“Thank you, your
honour.” He goblin said, loud and clear before turning to him.
“So, Mrs. Potter had Postpartum Depression... how does that
affect the theory that it was her sacrifice that saved her son?”

Michael took a sip of
water, his mouth suddenly dry as he looked around the room.

“Because...
well... to start with, let me explain that mothers with PPD –
as we call it – are extremely vulnerable, we questioned most
patients with that disease and we came to the conclusion that most of
them feel guilty that they should be happy and love the infant in
their care and in reality, they're not. It could be a number of
reasons for this but, most of all, it's because a newborn is
overwhelming. The change of routine, of sleep and awake hours and
tiredness... everything can and will be overwhelming to any parent.
The mothers with PPD are clearly and extremely overwhelmed with their
change of circumstances.”

He cleared his throat,
taking another mouthful of water.

“Lily... Mrs.
Potter was trying her best. I treated her along with Harry and she
was trying her best... but sometimes it was not enough. At the middle
of October she stopped with her medication and started to slowly, but
surely lay the blame of her mental situation on her son.”

“So she was a bad
mother?” Vendevie asked, his voice sounding bored as he stared
at the Healer. He was unprepared for the indignant and furious look
from the Healer.

“How dare you?!”
He hissed, glaring at the goblin. “The fault does not lie with
those mothers, they are just weighted down by circumstances, it does
not make them bad parents... none of them can be considered a bad
mother. So no, Mrs. Potter was not a bad mother.”

“You just said
she was transferring her resentment over to her son, Mr. Barton.”

“She was, because
of her illness... not because she was a bad parent!” The Healer
hissed, glaring at the creature.

“She needed help,
surely... but she loved her son, loved him enough to die for him.”

“So, Mr. Barton,
you agree with the theory that Lily's love saved little Harry?”
Came Dumbledore's strong voice, cutting through the Wizengamot.

“No, I don't.”

“So... what do
you believe in Healer Barton?” The goblin inquired, he knew
that the Healer's opinion could – and would – change the
Wizengamot's opinion on the whole trial.

“Honestly? I
think Harry survived due to a number of factors... you're all trying
to pin his survival on one element but it's just not possible to do
that. The death of Lily Potter helped her child survive? Absolutely,
but was it the only thing? Of course not.”

He took another
mouthful of water as he stared around the room, “I believe
James Potter's healing charm also helped, along with the infant's
innate magic and the wards around the Potter's house, I believe that
his parents love for his was what guaranteed his survival, however
far-fetched this theory might be.” he said, his voice strong
with righteous conviction.

As the murmurs started
once again around the room, the sound of the gavel hitting wood
sounded twice before the Minister stood up, followed by the
Wizengamot, as she addressed the whole room.

“We've heard
enough, we shall discuss this before we give our decision.” she
said before allowing the Healer to step down and leading every single
remaining member of the Wizengamot to the jury room.

James barely kept
himself upright as they left, gazing upwards and only just hearing
Severus moving beside him.

“I think I'm
going to throw up.” He muttered.

“No, you're
not... if you do you'll get Harry dirty and we will all end up
covered in water.” Severus replied, hi voice sound just as
tired as James felt.

“I thought you
liked being wet around us.”

“Us??”
Severus said, and James could just imagine that eyebrow going up,
questioningly. “No, only one at a time... both of you wet at
the same time equals either a prank or Harry having one of his
moods... personally I just prefer you wet and naked and Harry
sleeping on his cot.”

And, again, James could
feel the amused smirk coming from Severus, and he couldn't help but
roll his eyes and cuddle his boy close, waving his wand and conjuring
brightly coloured soap balls, watching amused as Harry laughed and
tried to tackle one, no doubt to suck on it.

“Honestly
Harry... Sev has no appreciation of your naked form. Personally I
think it's absolutely edible... specially these cheeks.” He
grinned, putting Harry up and biting the full cheek, grinning as his
son giggled and swiftly grabbing the wrist that was flying up to his
face, before biting the rubber band wrist as well while Severus
watched indulgently, obviously ignoring the nickname.

The fond look slipped
from his face as he watched Dumbledore and Minerva talking, with
another woman listening in and sometimes uttering a sentence or two,
which only led to the two teacher furiously talking to each other.

Minerva had that same
sour look on her face that Severus remembered so well from his few
and far in between detentions with the woman, while Dumbledore had
that look of concentration on his face, the same one as the night he
had gone to the headmaster, pleading for Lily's life.

Severus shook his head
at the stray thoughts, instead searching the room for Harry's Healer
as he found him – surrounded by other Healers and mediwitches –
he got up, giving James' shoulder a quick, reassuring squeeze before
leaving to talk to Michael, Harry was due to an appointment any day
now...

Down the Jury room, the
Minister stared at the parchment in front of her, the decision had
been quick – if not painless – and the parchment was full
of votes, some in Albus' favour while others were neutral or in Mr.
Potter's favour.

She sighed, she had to
come to a decision, and soon...

Swallowing, she put
quill to paper as she wrote down her own vote and her final decision
regarding the supposed to be hearing, it had escalated to a full-on
trial and she couldn't help but resent Dumbledore at the moment.

'You won't be here next
election, relax... you'll get to enjoy your family... relax...' but
through the mantra she couldn't help but think she still had four
years ahead of her.

With a sigh she stood
up and stared at every single member of the Wizengamot.

“This is my
decision, based on your own votes... he's an important child and we
can't take any risks, do any of you have any questions or
suggestions?” She asked, handing the paper to the nearest
person and aware that she had just reduced someone's child to a
simple thing.

She hated herself at
that moment and couldn't help but think of her own children... and
her own mother at the time of her brother's birth.

The only difference
between her own mother and Lily Potter was that her mother had killed
not only herself but her brother as well...

She decided not to
think about that event, instead she focused on the parchment,
swallowing again as she noticed that not one vote had changed and he
decision had remained unchallenged, sometimes she wished this body
would go against her decisions... and this was one such time.

Mustering the courage
she didn't really have – she had been a Slytherin at Hogwarts,
not a Gryffindor – she walked back inside the room, eyeing the
prosecution and the defence. Eyeing the baby, his father and the
unusual babysitter and attorney. Then she looked at Dumbledore and
she could feel her stomach revolting in answer to her own anger.

“We have come to
a decision regarding this... hearing.” she sneered the last
word, and glared at everyone in the room pointedly, she couldn't wait
for this to be over.

She stared
as James Potter gripped the hand of Severus Snape, at the same time
as he held his son, she saw as Dumbledore leaned forward for the
decision and, finally, she opened her mouth to deliver the verdict.
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Promises of Forever