The next morning when Harry woke up, it took him several minutes to remember where and when he was. It was still weird to think about a time when he wasn’t technically born as the ‘present’. Harry got up and put on some of the clothes Severus had given him to wear. He made his way downstairs and found Severus’ mother working in the kitchen. She was waving her wand at the food, and it seemed to be preparing itself. Seeing magic in use was an amazing experience for Harry, and he couldn’t help but think about how much his aunt and uncle would freak out if they saw this display.
“Ah, you’re awake! We’re going out to Diagon Alley today. Do you have anything specific you want for breakfast?”
Harry wasn’t sure how to react to the question. Nobody had ever asked him what he wanted to eat. It was usually his relatives telling him what they wanted to eat, not the other way around. He wasn’t even sure what he wanted to eat because he’d never really thought about what he liked before.
“I think I’ll just have some toast and eggs,” Harry finally said, picking out things that were already prepared, so he wouldn’t feel like a burden.
“Sit down and I’ll fix your plate,” Mrs. Snape told him.
Harry sat down and watched as the table seemed to be setting itself. After a few minutes of watching Severus’ mother work brilliant spells, she came to the table holding a plate with bacon, eggs, toast and sausage. Harry smiled brightly and thanked her; he had never been given so much food to eat. He was halfway through when Severus made his way into the kitchen, and a few seconds later was presented with a loaded plate of his own.
When they had almost finished their breakfast, an owl fluttered into the dining room, carrying a large package. Harry found it remarkable that the owl was able to carry such a heavy burden.
“That’s for you, Harry. It’s your nutrient potions.”
Harry took the package from the bird, who snatched a piece of bacon off Severus’ plate and flew quickly out the window. Inside the package were ten individual doses of a brown liquid that hopefully tasted far better than it looked.
“You should probably pinch your nose when you take those,” Severus said as Harry was slowly preparing himself to swallow the potion.
Taking a deep breath, Harry plugged his nose and sent the whole dose down his throat without any of it touching his tongue. Unfortunately, he could taste it in his throat and it was horrible.
“That was nasty!” Harry gagged, causing Severus to chuckle slightly.
“At least the ones you have are only once a day. I had to take some after a really bad bout of the flu, and it was three times a day for five days,” Severus told Harry, who flinched at the thought.
“Alright boys, get ready; we’re leaving in five minutes!”
Harry and Severus went upstairs and cleaned up quickly. Then they joined Mrs. Snape, who was waiting by the fireplace with a pouch full of powder identical to what Dumbledore had used last night.
“We’re going to floo?” Harry asked nervously. Despite having seen Dumbledore do it, his mind was still having trouble with the idea of stepping into a live fireplace. It must have been obvious that he was nervous because Severus smiled and patted him on the back.
After explaining how the floo network functioned, Severus stepped into the fireplace and demonstrated the process.
“Make sure you speak very clearly,” Mrs. Snape told Harry once her son was gone.
Harry nodded and took a hesitant step towards the fireplace. He stepped into the fire and threw the powder into the flames and cried out, “Diagon Alley!”
It felt as though the world had disappeared from under his feet and that everything was spinning, until suddenly he was back on solid ground, down on his bottom. Harry looked around and found himself in a room with several fireplaces and a door that clearly led outside. Severus was waiting by the door and somehow wasn’t covered in as much soot and dirt as Harry.
Severus smirked at him and signaled to wait by the door for his mother. “Welcome back to Diagon Alley, Harry!”