Severus stood with the small sleeping boy in his arms as Charity opened up their front door to be greeted by their eager children. Both boys are a spitting imahe of their dad, though they did have some of their mother's features. Although everyone is thankful that the signature Snape nose skipped a generation.

"You're back!" shouted one of the raven haired boys, fourteen year old Oliver. "Mum said something about a matter being urgent. Is everything alright?" the other boy, fifteen year old Thomas (or Tom as his friends call him) spoke. "Shh, you have to be quiet. We have a new guest staying with us, and I'd rather him not wake up yet," Charity replied in a hushed voice to her two sons.

It took a moment for the information to sink into the two boys' hyperactive brains as they looked over to the young boy in their father's arms, who stirred before settling down to sleep again.

"He's so dirty!" Oliver exclaimed though it was more of an observation than a complaint.

"I know. Now keep your voices down," Severus hushes the boys again before making his way upstairs. "I'm going to put him in the spare room, and when I get back we're all going to have a chat," he told them before disappearing out of sight with the boy in tow.

"Right, you two, lets go make drinks and get some snacks. We have a serious matter on our hands so no funny business when your father comes back," Charity scolds, though she had a hint of humor in her voice. The two boys nodded and went to go help their mum with the drinks and snacks, something they tend to do for serious discussions like the one they were about to have.

~

Upstairs, Severus lays the child down in the big double bed, pulling the large, soft duvet over the small boy before standing back and admiring the young lad. "You're safe now, little one," Severus commented before kissing the boys forehead and walking out of the room, leaving the door open just a crack so he would be able to hear it when he woke up.

Heading back down to the front room, the raven haired man is then met with his family sat on the sofas with drinks and chocolates, patiently waiting for him. "How is he? Did he go down alright?" Charity worried. Severus rolled his eyes playfully as he sat down in his signature seat. "He went down perfectly well, Charity. Now let's get to the matter at hand before he wakes up," the man declared before taking a sip from his cup.

"So as you can probably already tell, we have a new guest with us," Charity began. "This young boy has been tied to a wall by a chain, and his relatives are at fault for it," tears began to form in the woman's eyes.

"Y-you mean he was treated like a d-dog?" Thomas spoke up with furrowed brows.

"Seems so. It also looks like he's only allowed dog food and water in a bowl. The boy hasn't even had a decent meal, not to mention the food he did get must've made him sick from time to time," Severus continued, both Thomas and Oliver taking on disbelieving looks.

"Your father and I have rescued him and we have decided to take him in as another Snape. Adoption papers will be coming around tomorrow with other information and we will be the boy's new legal guardians," Charity told the boys excitedly, and Oliver and Thomas shared an excited look themselves. "I know it's going to be a rough few weeks, but you need to be careful and patient with him. We don't know what has happened to him while living next door and anything could set him off," Charity became serious, and Severus agreed with everything she said. "We will mum. We'll be the best big brothers ever!" Oliver claimed, giving his mum a hug.

"Yeah, Mum. I'll watch out for him, and, and- I'll get to teach him some things! This is gonna be so awesome!" Thomas fist bumped the air and hugged his mum and dad. "How about we watch a film until the boy wakes up. It shouldn't be long now until he does as he's been asleep for a while now. This seems like the only sleep he's gotten in a while, though," Severus realizes, setting the TV up to watch a film. "Do you not know his name, Dad? You keep calling him 'the boy'?" Thomas asked curiously, sitting down next to his mum and getting comfy as Oliver sat on the other side of her.

Come to think of it, they hadn't seen the boy before or even knew he existed. Everyone knows of their son who, at such a young age, is already turning out to be a bully. It's almost as if their neighbors didn't want other people to know the other child existed. "No, I don't know his name. I can't say I have ever heard the neighbors talk about him or even see him about. I think they have tried to hide him away," Severus confessed, his two boys not liking the answer.

Settling on a movie, Severus pressed play before settling down with his family.

~

Sometime later, the small raven haired boy had begun to stir awake, eyes wide as he noticed the softness from underneath him, something he's never become accustomed to feeling. Sitting up, Harry looked around to see a room he didn't recognize and began to slightly panic as he had no idea where he was. Squirming around, he soon noticed the feeling of wetness between his legs and the cold dampness that clung to him.

It wasn't a surprise, as he has wet the bed on more than one occasion, but to have wet someone else's bed terrifies him. God knows what the owner will do to him once they find out.

Sliding off of the bed, the boy starts to strip the sheets off of the bed. He doesn't want to get into any more trouble.

~

"I think he's awake. I can hear movement coming from upstairs," Charity declared after hearing the floor above them creak again.

"I'll go up," Severus replied as he begins to stand up, only to get pushed back down by his wife.

"I'll go this time. You finish watching the movie with your sons," Charity raises an eyebrow in challenge, but Severus sighs and allows her to go. Charity carefully made her way upstairs and entered the guest bedroom only to gasp at the sight before her.

"Darling, what are you doing?" She softly spoke, though the boy had jumped out of his skin and started to back up against the wall. "Hey, hey, shh. I'm not going to hurt you," the brunette woman coos, gently sitting in front of the boy and letting a small, gentle smile grace her lips. "Come here, sweet heart, hm?" Charity cooed again, opening her arms for the boy only for him to flinch backwards.

"I am not going to hurt you, little one. I'm here to help you. Can you tell me your name?" Charity asked softly, attempting to gain the boys trust first even if it's only a little bit. Harry looked up at the woman and softly started to cry. Although he was told numerous times that freaks like him are not allowed to cry, he couldn't help himself. He's frightened and confused. He doesn't know where he is. He doesn't know who this woman was. He has no clue what he's supposed to do or what's going on.

Did Vernon finally sell him?

Could he trust her?

Does he run, kick and scream for help until he can scream no more?

Is she anything like his aunt and uncle?

Or can he run into her arms crying for the help he never received before?

Harry didn't know, but he soon finds himself bringing a small tentative hand toward the kind lady, fingers shaking in fear as he reached out. She could lash out at him at any second. Charity smiled and held out her own hand, watching at the boy looked at it before hesitantly taking a hold of it as his other hand went to his mouth to suck his thumb, a comfort mechanism he had since he was two years old.

"That's it, good boy. Now what's your name? I'm Charity."

Harry looked into the woman's bright blue eyes to find his fear slowly drifting away. "F-freak," the young boy replied, his heart pounding in his chest.

Charity is slightly taken aback but knows that with physical abuse, mental and emotional abuse can't be too far behind.

"Do you have another name people call you? Maybe at school or if you go to the park?"

"D-don't go to school. Freak has t-to cook and c-clean," he answers while ducking his head. This woman is being so nice and he can't even answer a simple question.

Charity frowned sympathetically as she notices the boy's wet clothes, or rather the remnants of what use to be clothing. "Would you like to get changed sweetheart? I can't see those wet things as being comfortable," she gently fussed while also changing the subject. There is no way in hell she'd call a child Freak. the young boy looked away as his cheeks glowed a bright red.

" 'M sorry! I-I didn't mean t-to!" he cried, attempting to pull his hand out of the woman's much softer one, though she wouldn't let go and instead brought him closer to her chest. The next thing Harry knows, her arms are wrapped around him, her comforting voice whispering sweet nothings into his ear. "It was an accident, darling, nothing we can't sort out. It'll all be okay."

Harry starts to cry. All of the comfort and fussing was overwhelming to him, and the poor boy didn't know what to do or how to cope with it all. Despite this, he finds himself gripping the woman's shirt as he cries onto her shoulder.

Charity stroked the boys greasy hair to try and calm him down, and eventually, his sobs were reduced to small hiccups and sniffles. "There we go, all cried out now, huh? You just needed a good cry, didn't you?" Charity cooed, realizing that the boy poor boy was in dire need of a bath. "Sev! Can you come up here please?" the woman shouted, Harry flinching as shouting always brought something bad along with it.

~

Severus stretched out before standing up, frowning with concern when his wife calls him upstairs. The credits are just starting to roll so he faces his boys, "You two stay here. I'm off to help your mother."

Oliver and Thomas mock saluted, watching as their father disappeared up the stairs.

"Yes, Charity? What seems to be the- oh," Severus's eyes travelled down to the boy in his wife's arms, whose red puffy eyes are closed shut as silent tears slide down his hollow cheeks. "He had an accident, but it's going to be alright because it's just a mere accident," Charity cooed as she felt the boy flinch in her arms.

"Indeed it is. I guess you need me to run a bath then? You alright getting him undressed?" Severus managed to say, saddened that the boy looked so small and frail. "If you don't mind. He won't let go of me, so it's going to have to do."

Severus nodded, kissing his wife's cheek before heading off down the hallway.

~

The man soon finished running the bath, feeling the water one more time before calling his wife through. "Bath's ready!" Severus shouted, and within another two minutes, footsteps could be heard approaching the bathroom. "We're here. Shall we get these clothes off of you then, darling? We can't put you in the bath with them on, can we?" Charity chuckled as she sat on the closed toilet seat, Harry in her lap as Severus stayed knelt on the floor beside the bath tub. The poor chuld was trembling halfway between snuggling into Charity and leaning away. Seeing the bubbly water in the big bath tub, Harry couldn't help but become nervous and fidgety.

"Sweetheart, are you alright? What's wrong, hm?" Charity questions as the boy struggled to sit still. Harry however simply shrugged his shoulders and turned away from the water. Charity only smiles at the boy before sharing a concerned frown with her husband.

"Right, let's get you out of these clothes then. Stand up for me, sweetie."

Harry does as he's told despite his hesitance to leave the comforting arms of the kind woman. "Lift your arms up, love. Harry lifted both up, and his ragged top was thrown straight into the bin. He then stared at the bath, frightened. He was definitely not alright. He wasn't even close to being alright. Everyone else may think that bath time is all fun and bubbles, splashing about and giggling, but for Harry... for Harry it resurfaced memories, flashbacks, fears. Harry couldn't stand the thought of having a bath right now!

He simply couldn't bring himself to go near it. He didn't care if he was in a stranger's house. He would not be going in. His phobia of the bath is due to his aunty and uncle... These nice people wouldn't dunk his head under the water, would they? They wouldn't let him freeze in cold water either, he thought. Would they?

There was only one way to find out, but poor little Harry wasn't quite brave enough. Although, the luxury of having bubbles was quite inviting. It didn't compel him to warm up to the idea of the bath, though. "Legs out next," Charity snapped him out of his thoughts, and Harry stepped out of his secondhand underwear and trousers as the woman pulled them down, not in the least embarrassed about having his lower regions hanging out for these strangers to see.

However, as soon as Charity excluded the boys clothes, she and her husband couldn't help but let their jaws drop to the floor. The boy was covered in blisters, scars, cuts and bruises. The worst of it might have to be the red, raw, angry rash that covered the boy's entire lower region. It looked horribly, painful, and Charity felt a pang of synpathy for the boy. "Oh, darling, that must be so painful."

Harry chooses to ignore the comment. Besides, even if it does hurt a teensy tiny bit, he's grown used to it by now. It doesn't bother him anymore.

"Right, let's get you into this bath and we'll take care of that later, shall we?" Severus suggested, overcoming his shock before picking the boy up by his armpits and attempting to sit him into the water. Still, the boy did not move and clung to Severus's shirt as he curled his legs into his chest, not wanting to touch the water as his heart rapidly pumped in fear. "Harry, boy, come on now. We need to get you washed."

Harry surprisingly shook his head 'no' before freezing his actions and beginning to cry, hiding his face in the man's neck as he gripped tighter.

"Hey, hey. Come on now, what's bothering you?" Severus swayed a little to help calm the shaking boy. "Do you not like baths?" Severus concluded, only receiving a nod in reply as the boy sucked on his thumb. "Did, err- did your relatives ever do something bad to you in the bath, Harry?" Severus asks again, only receiving another nod in reply. "Well, this one is a fun bath. Look at at all these bubbles!" Severus excitedly coos, picking up a handful of bubbles and bringing them to the boy's face.

Harry looked up at the bubbles before looking to Charity. "It's okay, sweetie. Try and touch them. They won't hurt you."

Harry glanced back at the bubbles and tentatively reached out his left hand to touch them, letting a little small grace his lips as he touched the weird substance. "See, there's nothing to be afraid of. Bubbles are fun and so are baths when they're used correctly," Severus explained, kneeling down so Harry's head was in height with the side of the bathtub. "Look."

Harry watches closely as Severus dips his hand into the water and splashed around.

The next thing Harry knew, Severus was quickly moving his hand and splashing the kind woman who had joined them on the floor. "Sev!" giggled Charity, wiping at her face and giving Harry a smile as she caught the boy looking over at her with eyes mixed with surprised and worry. "See, it's just water. You wanna try?" Charity tried, gently grabbing the hand that wasn't stuck in Harry's mouth and sticking it into the bath water. She then moved his hand around before moving it to splash Severus.

"Haha! You cheeky little rascal," Severus chuckled, now wiping at his own face and tickling Harry, who let out little squeals of laughter. Severus and Charity smiled, as it was the first time they had heard the boy actually giggle. If they were honest, they couldn't feel happier. "Right, now how about we get you into the bath," Severus suggested, lifting the boy up and gently standing him in the bath. Harry made no attempt to move as he looked up at the two adults and back down at the water again.

The water was warm, whereas his aunt's baths were always cold.

There are bubbles, whereas his aunt's bath never had any.

The dunking of his head under water never came, whereas his aunt dunked his head in at the first chance she got.

Maybe this bath really was going to be different. Maybe with a lot of reassurance, Harry would be able to enjoy a bath without getting hurt. However that seemed never to be, as as soon as his bottom made contact with the water as he decided to sit down, he couldn't help but let out a scream of pure pain.

"Hey, hey, little man. It's alright." Severus soothed as he wrapped an arm around the boy's waist to keep him from slipping in the bath. Harry, however, is having none of it and continues to cry. He was in so much pain, and the rash felt like it was burning him. "Out! I wan' out! Please!" the boy sobbed. He just couldn't take it. "Oh, honey, just give it a moment, hm? The rash will settle down, but we really do have to get you washed up."

Harry tries to taper his sobbing, he really did. Saliva and snot flew everywhere, and his eyes became red and puffy. He had no idea what had provoked it, but for once in a very long while, he trusted the kind woman and allowed the water to touch his very sore bottom and bits. Eventually, like she had told him, his rash did indeed stop hurting, and now he'll hopefully be able to enjoy the rest of his bath.