Disclaimer: I own nothing but this story :)
Warning: OOC Severus (just how I like it), I apologise for any spelling or grammar errors.
This story is dedicated to YenGirl, who writes awesome fanfics and shares a love of cuddly snakes :)
I hope you all enjoy this re-edited story :)
Harry had just finished a long morning of teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts and was looking forward to seeing his beloved husband at lunchtime. He was packing up all the teaching equipment used during the last class when the classroom door opened and he smiled as Remus walked into the room.
"Remus, how nice to see you," Harry said, grinning at his Godfather.
"And you Harry" Remus replied as he greeted his godson with a hug.
"So what is the reason for your visit?" Harry asked as he put away a stack of textbooks.
"Harry, there is something weird going on with Sev so I think it would be a good idea for you to come back to your quarters with me" Remus said, his golden eyes filled with concern for his Potions Master friend.
"What do you mean 'weird'?" Harry asked as they left his classroom and headed for the quarters that he shared with his husband.
"Well, Sirius and I decided to visit Sev as I know he loves to see Tiny and we were enjoying a nice bottle of red wine when we realised Tiny was not in the room so Sev said he would go and look for him, he was gone for ten minutes when Tiny finally reappeared without Sev" Remus started to explain.
"So obviously, Sirius and I decided to look for him. We found him just as he was leaving his bedroom, he closed the door behind him and asked us to politely leave but something in his demeanour was off. It was if he was upset but not in his usual brooding 'he's going to cut us up for potion ingredients' upset, there was a look of pure sadness in his eyes" Remus finally finished as they reached the portrait guarding the door to Harry's quarters.
"That is strange, was he okay before he went to search for Tiny?" Harry asked before giving the password to the portrait, that guards their rooms.
"Definitely, we were discussing his new developments with the Wolfsbane potion and you know how excited he gets when he's on the verge of a break through" Remus replied as they walked into the living room.
Harry nodded in agreement, as a World renowned Potions Master, Severus certainly did get excited about breakthroughs in his chosen field.
Harry and Remus found Severus sat on the sofa looking into the fireplace and Harry could definitely tell something was wrong.
"Are you ok Sev?" Harry asked his voice tinged with concern as he sat on the sofa next to his beloved husband.
Severus didn't say anything for a moment before turning to look at Harry "I'm fine, Harry".
Harry was shocked at the level of sadness that was evident in Severus' eyes "Sev, I know something is wrong so just tell me, you know you can tell me anything"
Severus let out a resigned sigh as he knew he couldn't hide anything from Harry so instead of answering, he stood up from the sofa and motioned for Harry to follow him. Severus led Harry to the bedroom, acknowledging Remus with a nod as they passed him. Harry opened the bedroom door and they walked inside. Once inside their bedroom, Harry realised what was upsetting his husband.
"Oh Sev, what happened?" Harry asked as he sat down on their bed and picked up the two pieces of Severus' cherished cuddly toy, Snakey.
Severus sat on the bed next to Harry and explained the events of the morning.
"Remus and Sirius came over with Tiny as they know I love that puppy. After fussing over Tiny for a while, we all sat down for a nice glass of red wine. After quarter of an hour, we noticed that Tiny wasn't in the room so I went looking for him and found him in here with the remnants of Snakey next to the bed, Tiny must of seen him on the bed and thought he was a toy but Snakey is so old and fragile that his stitching torn right through the middle" Severus explained, his normally smooth voice tinged with sadness.
"Aww Sev, I'm so sorry" Harry said softly as he wrapped his arms around his husband and gently pulled him into a comforting hug.
"I know I shouldn't be so upset over a stuffed animal, I'm a grown man for Merlin's sake, not a child" Severus said quietly as he melted into his husband's embrace.
"It's okay Sev, it's understandable. We all have our treasured items so its nothing to be ashamed of" Harry replied as he rubbed Severus' back in the soothing way he knew his husband liked. "We could fix him, you know. A quick 'Reparo' and he's good as new"
Severus shook his head and let out a sigh before whispering "He won't be the same"
He turned his head so that Harry could hear him better "Snakey was the last reminder of the time when my childhood wasn't, for want of a better word, crap" Severus explained "My mother gave me Snakey when I was a few days old and I always had him with me as a child, he was a great comfort to me when my father became abusive. I would cry silently after my father beat me and when I cuddled Snakey, I always felt a little better no matter how much pain I was in"
Harry held Severus a little tighter as his protective instincts overwhelmed him at the mention of Severus being hurt. Harry had sworn to protect Severus at all times and even made it one of his vows at their wedding, Severus had been hurt too often in his past and Harry was determined to ensure his beloved always felt safe with him around.
"So why don't you want me to fix him with magic, Beloved?" Harry asked.
"I am truly proud to be a wizard, however, Snakey was given to me before it was discovered I was a wizard, when my life first was happy. My father only started to beat me and my mother when I first began to display magical tendencies so Snakey is a reminder of when I was innocent and loved by both my parent" Severus whispered "I can't taint him with magic"
"I understand, Beloved. I understand completely" Harry replied softly, kissing Severus on the forehead.
Harry then moved Severus so he was looking into his obsidian eyes that were glistening with unshed tears "Do you trust me, Sev?" Harry asked as he cupped Severus' cheek with one of his hands, stroking his husband's soft skin with his thumb.
Severus lent into the touch and whispered "Always" letting out a content sigh, Harry was the only person he truly trusted.
"Will you trust me not to use magic on Snakey?" Harry asked, a hint of determination in his emerald eyes.
"yes" Severus whispered honestly before handing the remains of his beloved soft toy to Harry.
"Ok, I want you stay in here whilst I work my non-magical magic on Snakey" Harry said chuckling.
Severus nodded in agreement "I suppose it will give me time to read the latest 'Potions Weekly'" Severus said as he sat comfortably on the bed, picking up the magazine from his bedside table.
"That's the spirit" Harry replied before kissing Severus again on the forehead then headed back out to the living room to attempted to complete his mission.
Before he left the room Severus asked if he could send Remus in for a moment, which Harry said he would.
Harry walked into the living room and found Remus still waiting.
"I wanted to wait to see if Sev was ok" Remus explained as he noticed Harry enter the room.
"Thank you for waiting Remus, He wants you to go see him" Harry replied as he carefully placed the two halves of the cuddly toy on the sofa before walking to his desk and rummaging around, trying to find some muggle equipment he had.
Remus left the room and made his way to the bedroom chuckling as Harry triumphantly said "Ah-ha, there you are" as he found what he had been looking for.
Harry sat on the sofa and set to work, carefully sewing the two halves of the cuddly snake back together.
"What are you doing Harry?" Remus asked intrigued as he re-entered the room.
Harry just looked at him with a grin on his face "I, like any good husband, am attempting to make my husband smile"
"Ahh, rule number one in the husband handbook 'Always keep thy husband happy' " Remus replied with a chuckle.
"Exactly" Harry nodded as he put his muggle skills into good use "And I think my husband deserves to be happy because, Merlin knows, that man has had more than enough heart ache and sorrow in his past" Harry said solemnly.
Remus nodded in agreement "I don't envy you Harry, I mean this is Severus Snape we are talking about, he isn't known for smiling alot" Remus said making Harry chuckle.
"I have my ways" Harry replied with a Severus like smirk making Remus snort out a laugh.
Half an hour later, after several incidents of pricked fingers and a swear word or two, Harry gave out a whoop of triumph as he showed Remus the fruits of his labour.
"He is going to be so chuffed, Harry. Well done" Remus said with a grin.
"I'm going to show him now, you can go home if you like. What did he want you for before?" Harry asked as he got up off the sofa at the same time Remus did.
"Just to apologise for cutting the visit short and he explained what happened, which of course resulted in me apologising profusely and me saying that he could use me as a guinea pig from his Wolfsbane experiments" Remus said as he hugged his Godson goodbye.
"Ahh, well at least you will be in capable hands" Harry said with a smile and waved as Remus flooed to his own home.
Harry then made his way to the bedroom and couldn't help but smile to himself as he found Severus snoozing, the potion's magazine laying forgotten in his lap. Harry walked over to the bed and sat down next to his sleeping husband.
"Sev, love. Wake up" Harry said softly as he gently shook Severus awake.
"Harry?" Severus replied sleepily as he blinked his eyes open and stretched causing the potions magazine to fall onto the floor.
"I have a surprise for you" Harry said with a grin before presenting Severus with a fully healed Snakey.
"Oh, dear Merlin, you fixed him" Severus replied in shock as Harry handed Snakey over to him.
"Yep and fixed the muggle way, no magic what so ever" Harry replied, feeling quite proud of himself.
"I don't know what to say" Severus whispered as he ran a finger over the fresh stitching that circled Snakey's body.
"I know he isnt as good as new as he has his own war wound now but I figure you could use the 'scar' as a reminder" Harry said as he took one of Severus' hands in his own.
"A reminder of what?" Severus asked looking at Harry.
"A reminder that you will always be loved, Severus" Harry replied, his eyes filled with pure love for the man before him.
"You said Snakey reminded you of when you were first loved?" Harry asked, Severus nodded in agreement as he gazed into Harry's emerald eyes.
"Well now, when ever you look at his scar, you will be reminded of the person whom will forever love you unconditionally, with every fibre of their being and with all their heart and soul" Harry said, tears building in his eyes as emotion overwhelmed him "You will be reminded that I will always love you, I will never, ever hurt you and I will do my utmost to make every day of your life a happy one as you truly deserve happiness, Sev"
"I know he's not the same as before…." Harry said before he was interrupted by Severus.
"He's perfect" Severus said before wrapping his arms around Harry and pulled him into a hug. "Thank you so much, Harry for fixing him and for understanding how much he means to me. For not judging an old man who got upset over a cuddly toy"
"Severus you are not old, how many times do I have to tell you?" Harry chuckled making Severus smile.
"But on a serious note, I would never judge you Sev. I understand completely how much Snakey means to you, there is no need to be ashamed. I love you Beloved" Harry said as he pulled away from Severus and captured his lips in a tender, loving kiss.
Severus sighed contentedly as they broke the kiss and whispered "I love you too, Harry"
Harry pulled Severus into another hug, Snakey, their new soft and green symbol of their forever bond and ever growing love, nestled between them both. Severus' reminder of a past that will never be forgotten and now, of the man that healed his long ago, broken heart with unconditional love and unwavering support.
The man, who will do anything to make him happy.
Harry, his well deserved future.