A new home

Chapter 29

'It's Sunday!' Was the first thought that Harry had that morning. Sunday means Scouts—his first!

He quickly slid off his bed and ran straight out and down to the kitchen.

"Professor!" he exclaimed at the standing man near the stove, then remembered his manners.

"Um... sorry, I mean, good morning, professors," he said timidly to the men standing around the kitchen.

Albus smiled brightly at him.

"Harry, what got you so excited?"


"It's Sunday! First meeting today!"

"Then let's get you ready. It starts in an hour and a half", Severus said as he scrambled the eggs on the stove.

30 minutes later, Harry ran up to his room after eating, with Severus following closely behind. He was so excited to put on his uniform.

"Let's use the bathroom first, Harry."

The boy complied, too eager to start the exciting day.

After helping Harry take off his pull-up and clean up, Severus held another one in front of the boy, and Harry hesitated.

"What...what if they noticed?"

"They won't. Don't worry. They look like normal underwear. I'll keep another pair in your backpack in case you have an accident, alright? Remember to tell an adult when you need to go."

The boy just nodded and stepped in. He trusted his guardian.

"All done. Now brush your teeth, and we'll get you dressed."

After 5 minutes, the boy walked into his bedroom in just his pull-up. Severus was already sitting there with the ironed clothes next to him on the bed.

"Let's get you in these"

The man helped Harry put them on, while the boy was constantly babbling about how excited he was and how he hoped he would make friends and how he wanted to collect all the badges.

"You look really good," Severus said as he finished and asked the boy to step back a little.

"Really?" Harry asked with wide eyes as he ran to the big mirror in the bathroom for a look.

"Wow. This is so cool" - he admired himself.

"Let's go downstairs. Albus would dote on you." Severus nudged the boy and led him down.




"Oh, my!" Albus exclaimed from his place on the couch, reading The Daily Prophet.

Harry smiled shyly. He still wasn't used to being this close to his Headmaster.

"Um. Thanks, professor"

"Can you come here? Can I give you a hug?"

Harry looked at him curiously, but he did anyway. Albus gently pulled him into a hug and couldn't think how unfair it had been for Harry, a child who had gone through so so much. Now, seeing him being like any other child, excited to play and explore, reminded him how much of his childhood had been robbed away. And he vowed to himself to help the boy make the most of whatever was left.

"Headmaster?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. My grandson just looks too handsome," Albus said as he released Harry, and Severus just rolled his eyes.

Harry looked surprised at that, though. There was a twinkle in his eyes when he heard himself being referred to as a grandson.

"That's enough. Let's go, Harry. I wanted us to take a slow walk there, not a rushed one. And it's always best to be early on your first day."

"Okay," Harry said happily as he went to grab his backpack.

As they walked, Severus couldn't help smiling at the sight of the little boy skipping happily next to him. It was a normal thing for other children, but it was probably rare for Harry.

When they arrived, there had only been a few other kids and the adult ones.

"Hi there, Harry. Welcome to your first meeting, Don, the director, said.

"Good morning, sir," Harry said shyly, half hidden behind Severus' legs, looking at the other kids who were also staring curiously at him.

"Hey, kids, this is Harry. He'll be joining us starting today. We'll officially introduce him later. Come here and welcome him," Don said to other children.

The kids immediately came over.

"Hi, Harry"

"Wanna see my Good Deeds book?"

Severus tried to gently nudge Harry forward to talk properly with the kids. Harry was a little underdeveloped socially, so hopefully joining the Scouts would help him.

"Um... what's that?" Harry asked.

"That's a book you write about the good things you do every day!"

"Alright, alright. Let Harry say goodbye to his uncle, and then you can show him your book." Don said.

Harry turned back to Severus, and the man kneeled down.

"Have fun, ok? I'll be around here for the first day, but remember to tell an adult if you need anything, alright? I'll pick you up when you're done."

"Yes, sir. Goodbye"

Severus softly patted Harry's head, nodded at Don, and walked out of the area. He would stay here for the first meeting, but out of Harry's sight. So he chose a bench in a corner and got out his monthly potions journal, which he charmed to look like a book on philosophy.

He had only been there for 20 minutes when Don approached him.

"Hi, I forgot to ask you something."

"Yes?" Severus said, putting away the book.

"Is there anything we need to take note of about Harry? Allergies, for example. And his parents passed away in a car accident. I think we should take note of his triggers, if he has any."

"Umm, he doesn't have any triggers, as far as I know. But he has some health problems, and I trust that this information will only be disclosed to his direct caretakers? He wouldn't appreciate it being the topic of gossip."

"Yes, don't worry."

"Some events led him to have bladder problems. He's currently having accidents at least once a day. I put him in his pull-up, but he might need help changing if he has an accident. I'll always pack a spare pair in his backpack."

"Oh, that's alright. We can handle it. He's not the first kid to have that problem here. Is that it?"

"Yes"

"Thank you; I'll see you again after the meeting. He's doing very well."




As Severus waited, he thought about Albus' constant nagging him to take them on a vacation. They were 1 month into summer, and he thought they could spend the last 2 or 3 weeks of July on vacation. He wanted Harry to experience it. It was likely his first time. He would need to do tonnes of planning, though.


Since the meeting was finished, Harry had been a chatterbox, literally. The boy was talking all the way home. It had clearly done Harry good.