Look At These Photographs

I've always wondered about the album that Hagrid gave Harry, full of photos of Lily and James, and whether or not Hagrid asked Snape for photos of Lily. Did he think about asking him, but then decide not to? Or if he did ask him, what was Snape's reaction? I've always been curious about this, and I've found almost no HP fics about it. I would love to get your take on it.

-o-O-o-

Hagrid hovered outside of Severus's office. He looked down at the nearly full photo album he held in his hand and then back at the professor's door. Drawing his heavy brows together in thought, Hagrid contemplated if he truly wanted to ask if Severus had some old photos of Lily he wouldn't mind sparing for the album he was making for Harry. One didn't have to be a genius to see Severus wasn't fond of Hary. In fact, he almost seemed to loathe the poor boy.

He couldn't say he approved. Harry was a good lad, maybe a bit cheeky, perhaps something of a troublemaker at times, but he was humble, sincere, and by far one of the most courageous boys Hagrid had the pleasure of knowing in a long while. If Severus would just look a little deeper than Harry's parentage and house, he might even see that. But he didn't and Hagrid reckoned it was really not his place to say anything.

They got on well enough as far as colleagues went, but their mutual interests started and ended with the possible merits of creatures' properties in potions, spells, and other magical rituals. Hagrid had considered bringing it up to Albus, or even Minerva, from time to time, but he held doubts about how well they'd get through to Severus about Harry. The two were a little too biased toward Harry's side (not that Hagrid wasn't as well, but he knew he was; he wasn't so sure Albus or Minerva recognized they were as well).

Hagrid raised his hand, ready to knock. There was only one way to find out if he had any photos to share and that was to ask. However, before his knuckles could connect with the wood of Severus's door, he hesitated once more. What if asking only served to spark Severus's grief anew? Hagrid was well aware Severus had been badly hurt when Harry's mum died. As he should be, they'd been good friends once, and he never got the chance to reconcile with her, but since then, Hagrid had come to notice Severus didn't deal well with remembrances of her or her absence. Sometimes, reminders of Lily made him inordinately angry. A furious Severus was not a pleasant man, especially when he decided to focus his rage on another.

Hagrid wasn't really looking to be verbally torn apart or worse by Severus should he upset him over asking for a few photos.

For a second time, he looked down at the album. He had got some good photos already of Lily from when she was young from Florence Vane and Jennifer Brown. Perhaps he could go hunting for yearbooks from James and Lily's time at Hogwarts and find some pictures from there to fill in the space left instead. That way, he didn't have to inadvertently upset or anger Severus in the process of looking to fill the album. But as Hagrid was about to do just that, Severus's office door swung open.

For a moment, the two of them just stared at one another, neither quite sure what to do or say.

Finally, Severus cleared his throat and said, "Hello, Hagrid… to what do I owe the pleasure?"

Hagrid tried to hide the album. "Nothin'," he answered while knowing full well he looked as guilty as a student caught with contraband.

Severus noticed his attempt and being the sharp man he was, asked, "What, pray tell, is that?"

"An album," Hagrid answered sheepishly as he reveals it to the professor.

The other man's eyes roved over the brown leather cover as he began to frown. "Of what? To whom does it belong?"

"'Harry an' his friends, mostly," he replied with great reluctance. "But it has a bit o' his parents too. I'm makin' it fer 'im, yeh see. Harry doesn' have any photos o' them."

Severus's face turned infinitely colder at this admission. "I see."

Seeing as there was not much reason to not ask now that the professor knew what he was doing and was already displeased, Hagrid inquired, "I was wonderin', actually, if yeh migh' have some photos o' Lily yeh wouldn' mind sparin' fer it."

Briefly, the man looked conflicted. As if he wasn't sure whether he should be outraged by Hagrid's audacity or moved that Hagrid remembered he and Lily were once friends and wanted photos he had of Harry's mum. In the end, Severus settled for something close to sour, but agreeable. "Yes, I suppose there are some I can spare," he says. "Come in."

Hagrid squeezed in his shoulders and ducked his head as he followed the professor into his office. Once past the threshold, he relaxed and tentatively glanced around the fair-sized room. Two of the walls were entirely made of shelves storing what seemed to be mostly books. Though, some of the middle shelves on the right appeared to hold a decent stock of potions ingredients, tools, and a few potions as well. Briefly, he wondered if Severus brewed in his office in addition to his classroom. It didn't seem like a terribly safe thing to do, but then Hagrid knew he was the last wizard who should be throwing bludgers.

At least Severus had managed to not make himself the talk of the staff table from his pastimes.

Suddenly, the other man came back into Hagrid's line of vision with an old, dented Muggle biscuit tin in hand. Severus set it on his desk and took a seat in his chair. Hagrid ambled forward and watched on as the professor opened the tin and started to sift through the contents. It looked to be mostly old letters with a few odds and ends, such as a child's drawing, some kind of toy rocket, and a smooth, reddish stone that seemed to him like it could be from the seaside.

"Here we are," Severus murmured, pulling out a slim stack of photos bound together with one of those stretchy manila Muggle strings. Carefully, the other man undid the string. Hagrid took in the photos as Severus carded through them. The first few were of a Muggle variety, photos of children who could only be Severus and Lily and, maybe, given the pinched expression, Harry's aunt.

In the first one, he saw Lily and Severus were playing on swings at what looked to be a Muggle park, in the next, they were smiling as they sat posed side by side on the bonnet of a car, Harry's aunt standing beside Lily; her arms crossed huffily in front of her chest. In the last Muggle photo, they were at King's Cross, shoulder to shoulder, beaming from excitement, with Lily's sister standing just behind them, her expression one of teenage disgruntlement.

The next were all magical. A few were from their early days at Hogwarts, one featured the two waving to whoever was taking the photo as they walked by them on their way to a class, another showed the pair sitting beside each other out on Hogwarts lawn, in the next Lily and Severus were leaning on brooms as they appeared to discuss something. In the last couple of pictures, they were older. They didn't look as joyous as they did in the earlier ones. Hagrid couldn't help but feel a bit sad about that; it was not difficult to tell that the Gryffindor and Slytherin house rivalry and the coming war managed to poke holes in what was previously a strong friendship.

In the final photo, they stood against a wall, heads bowed together, oblivious to the world around them. However, neither Lily or Severus was smiling. In fact, they looked frustrated and upset. As if they were in the midst of an argument. He wondered how long before their final fight this was taken. It couldn't have been too long, Hagrid reckoned. They appeared nearly grown in the photo.

Briefly, Severus spread out the pictures on his desk. With deft fingers, he plucked a few from his collection. He put them aside before he wrapped up the remaining with the Muggle string. Hagrid put out his hand and started to say, "Thanks, Sev'rus, yeh're doin' me a real–"

"Just a moment," the professor cut in.

Hagrid fell silent as he watched Severus draw out his wand and point it at the photos, carefully vanishing himself from the pictures. His jaw dropped in horror. "Yeh don'–" he began, only to be cut off once more by the other man.

"Yes, I do," he insisted. A sneer started at the corners of his mouth. "The last thing I need or want is for Potter to come pestering me about his mother and father."

He frowned, but stayed silent. Personally, Hagrid thought it would do Severus good to have someone he could talk about Lily with. Merlin knew there were few out there who would drink up his stories as thirstily as Harry. Unfortunately, it was not up to him to decide this. If Severus didn't want Harry to know about his friendship with the boy's mum, it was not Hagrid's place to disregard his wish.

"Thank yeh, Sev'rus, I 'preciate yehr help," he said as he tucked the photos behind the album's cover.

Severus scoffed as he put the lid back on his biscuit tin. "Think nothing of it," he told Hagrid. "Truly," he added with great emphasis while placing the tin on one of his higher shelves just behind a strange, oblong bottle.

Hagrid nodded agreeably. "I'll see yeh later," he concluded as he left Severus's office.

On his way back to his hut to finish Harry's photo album, Hagrid couldn't help but think, in spite of what Severus wanted, he wouldn't be able to hide his friendship with Lily in a biscuit tin for forever. Soon, someone would let it slip or Harry would find something, and he would want to know more about his mother and the friendship she once had with the troubled, intelligent Slytherin boy Severus used to be.

Someday Severus would have to face the fact that Harry was Lily's son too, not just James's.

How'd I do on Hagrid's accent? This one-shot was written for rebecca-in-blue based on the prompt at the start of the fic. I hope you enjoyed my take on your prompt, Rebecca.

And to everyone else, thank you for reading, I appreciate it :)