It's a Dog's Life – Chapter 5

'Where did I see these eyes before?' he mused as he spelled the fever reducer into the dog's stomach, knowing he was too ill to drink the potion out of a bowl. 'Lily!' he suddenly remembered the day when she had come down with a high fever and he had carried her all the way from the Potions classroom to the hospital wing. The thought, 'Potter nursed me back to health the other night,' penetrated his mind and caused him to make a connection, which could easily be confirmed by a sharp look at the dog's forehead.

"Potter?" Severus asked incredulously, causing the dog to back up in fright and fall from the sofa.

Asbolos let out a small, hoarse yelp and scrambled onto his feet, dragging himself towards the door as fast as his condition allowed him to move.

"Asbolos!" Severus said firmly. "It's all right. You can't go anywhere, you're much too ill. Come back and let me help you."

The dog sat on the floor, anxiously turning his eyes to him.

"Asbolos, or Harry, whichever you prefer, I have no idea why you're here as a dog, but we can discuss that when you're feeling better. Let me put you back to bed, and then you can try to transform back into your human form, because it would be easier to heal you than in your dog form."

The dog didn't move, and Severus gently picked him up and carried him into the living room, transfiguring the sofa into a comfortable bed with a flick of his wand. 'That'll be much more comfortable than the sofa,' he mused, before he queried, "Do you think you can transform back?"

Asbolos threw him an anxious look, causing Severus to sigh.

"I promise it'll be all right, but as I said I need to get your fever down, which is easier in your human form," Severus said softly.

The dog let out a small wince but complied, and seconds later, a boy was lying on the bed, gripping his head in agony.

'He probably has a terrible headache from the transformation,' Severus thought and summoned a phial of the flu potion and a headache potion, spelling both into the boy's system, before he gently draped the covers over the boy, telling himself, 'That's Lily's son and my familiar, Asbolos, in his human form.'

"Thank you," Harry croaked in relief as he felt the headache subside and his foggy mind clear up a bit.

"That's the least I can do, considering you spent the whole weekend here nursing me back to health," Severus replied softly, causing a small smile to play on the boy's lips. "Now, I have to teach my first class. I'll return after each class and check on you. You must stay in bed. You're very ill. If you need me, you can call me; I'll leave the doors ajar. I'll excuse you with Professor McGonagall and inform her about your illness. Try to sleep and don't worry. Everything will be all right."

"Pfessor," Harry mumbled, reaching out for the teacher's cold hand. "Please don't tell anyone where I am and that I'm Asbolos."

"Don't worry. I won't," Severus promised, adjusting a cold cloth on the boy's forehead. With that, he left the room to Floo-call Minerva.

"Mr. Potter? Why is Mr. Potter in your quarters, Severus?" McGonagall queried, feigning surprise.

"Because I noticed that he was ill after his Potions class, which was his last afternoon class yesterday," Severus replied truthfully.

"Very well, Severus. Thank you for looking after Harry. However, don't forget you only just recovered from the flu and still need much rest. If it becomes too much, you have to call Poppy or me, so we can help you."

"Thank you, Minerva. I really appreciate it," Severus replied and cut the connection, knowing that he still had to prepare everything for his first class.

HP

During the next few days, Harry remained very ill. Several times, he changed between his human form and his dog form, knowing that he wouldn't have nightmares about Cedric in his dog form, or pondering if he might feel better in his other form, only to realise that nothing changed except for the fact that the transformations seemed to aggravate his condition.

Severus used the time to ponder the situation of a student living in his quarters as his familiar. 'What was his intention?' he pondered when he recalled the events that led to Asbolos staying in his quarters, realising that he had been the one to bring the dog into his quarters to heal him. 'So he attends classes, does his homework, transforms into his dog form, and spends the time until classes begin in the morning as Asbolos, sleeping in his corner in my living room,' he mused. 'This doesn't make sense. I have to ask him why he spends all his free time as a dog, why he stays with me, and why he arrived at Hogwarts in his dog form in the first place,' he resolved, deciding to speak with Harry as soon as he felt a bit better.

"Professor," Harry croaked, causing Severus to look up in surprise, having not even noticed that Harry had transformed back into his human form. "What's going to happen with me? I suppose I can't remain here at home in my dog form anymore?"

Severus sighed and stepped over to the boy, sitting on the edge of his bed. "Harry, I don't think you're already well enough for this discussion," he replied softly, placing a cold hand on the student's forehead. "You're definitely not, but let me just tell you, "I don't mind you continuing to live here in your dog form; however, I need you to explain the exact reason."

"Can we speak about it now?" Harry asked pleadingly, fiercely rubbing his forehead.

"Very well," Severus replied, causing Harry to explain how he had ended up as a dog and why he preferred to remain in his dog's form. Severus listened patiently, trying to understand what was behind Harry's problem. Due to his own experiences with abuse at home and nightmares concerning his position as a spy and Death Eater he could comprehend the boy's problems only too well.

"Why did you choose to stay with me and not with anyone else, like for example your Head of House?" he queried softly.

"You always treated me as Harry, just Harry, and not as the boy who lived or the boy who killed Cedric or whatever. I don't want anyone to make a fuss about me. I just want to be myself, and I felt I could do that best in your company. Apart from that, it was you who collected me in front of the entrance door and brought me here the first night," Harry explained in a small voice, hesitantly turning his eyes to the teacher.

"Thank you for telling me the truth, Harry. I can understand you well," Severus finally replied. "As I said before, I don't mind you staying here in your dog form; however, I believe I should try to help you overcome your problems, so you'll be able to live in your human form again in the future. Do you intend to return to your relatives in the summer?"

"No," Harry replied, terrified at the thought.

"Very well. In that case, I could offer to speak with the Headmaster and try to apply for the guardianship over you. If I was your guardian, you could officially stay with me, even during the school year."

"I'd like that," Harry whispered, throwing the teacher a grateful look.

"However, you will abide by my rules, which will contain that you spend at least one hour in your human form each evening, talking with me about your problems," Severus continued sternly.

"All right," Harry whispered his agreement, knowing if anyone could help him it was the professor.

"I don't know if the Headmaster will allow it though."

"I'm not sure, but I think Professor Dumbledore knows that I'm Asbolos," Harry croaked, laying an arm over his eyes to keep the light out of his sore eyes.

"I'll speak to him right away," the professor promised. "However, you have to rest now." With that, he waved his wand over the boy to check on him and spell the potions into his stomach, observing that Harry sighed in relief as he felt the immediate effects.

"Thank you, Professor," Harry mumbled, before he transformed into his dog form.

"Good night, Asbolos, and don't worry. Everything will be all right," Severus said soothingly as he gently covered his familiar with the warm blanket, noticing that the dog's mouth pulled slightly upwards as if he was smiling.

The End

I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them.

All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.