InsaneJournal

Hidden in the Corners of his Mind
Title: Hidden in the Corners of his Mind
Author: quill_lumos
Summary:You’d think that Occulemency would help Severus to understand Harry, wouldn’t you?
Rating/Warnings:Gen, none
Word Count: 300
Disclaimer All of this belongs to JK Rowling, Bloomsbury books, Scholastic and Warner bros and I make no money from the posting of this drabble.

Notes: This was a hard one! Hopefully I’ve managed to write a clichéd prompt without it being too clichéd. Many thanks to Trufflesmom, for sorting my mixed up tenses and stopping me getting ...er...tense!

This was my entry for the second week of the snarry_ldws fest on LJ. Mucho congratulations Oh Drabble Queen! AKA joanwilder winner once again, I bow to your greatness DQ!







This time walls crumbled, like a sandcastle swept away by the sea, and Severus was washed in with the brine, into the epicentre of the boy’s memory. Now, at last, he saw it all, felt all the emotions that had, until this second, remained hidden in the corners of Potter’s mind.

With a sudden inundation of pain, he saw the boy, Lily’s child… small of stature and brave of heart… and experienced the travesty that was his childhood.

The memories were his now, too, forever etched on his soul and engraved in his heart.

…A whale-like boy kicks and punches, leaving livid bruises, unchecked and unrestrained…

…A savage dog tears at innocent flesh; Petunia watching, face sour and unforgiving, without the merest shadow of pity or remorse…

…Potter’s huge, ponderous uncle grabbing a Harry no taller than his waist, a small, fragile, dark-haired child, and dragging him away, snapping a thick leather belt, ready to apply a beating. “Come on, freak, time waits for no man. Let’s get this over with, there’s something on the telly later.”…

Seeing these images, Severus’ hatred for James’ son washed away in a plethora of sorrow and hurt. At the same moment, he felt himself violently thrown aside, ejected by a torrent of anger.

“NO!” Potter spits, through clenched teeth. “Not you!”

“I’m sor...” he began.

“Don’t, just don’t,” staccato with anguish. “You’re not sorry. You hate me, remember?

Anyway, it doesn’t matter, not now. I know what I am, a weapon, that’s all.”

Potter slammed out of the dungeon, barely able to walk properly, blinded by his tears.

Severus stood… hollow. Aching with pity, frozen in place by an ancient promise he would never knowingly disobey.

“I’m sorry,” he tells the empty room, “so sorry, Harry. I’d have saved you… if I could.”