For a few moments before he opened his eyes, Harry experienced the terrifying sensation that everything that had happened the previous day might have been a dream. There was complete silence around him, as though he were alone in his bedroom back at Grimmauld Place. All he could hear was the sound of his own quickened breathing.

"James... pssst! James!"

Harry's eyes snapped open, and he propped himself up on his elbows to see over the lump that was Lupin in the bed between him and Sirius. In the dark he could only see Sirius' general shape.

"Think it's time for breakfast yet?"

Harry shook his head.

It took him a moment to realize that Sirius could see him no better than he could see Sirius. "No. I think it's still early."

Sirius' shape flopped back onto the pillow. "I don't suppose you still have your Invisibility Cloak?"

"No," Harry said, once again glad that Snape had taken it and he didn't have to lie to keep it out of Sirius' hands. The thought irritated him, and he shook his head again, scowling.

"Can't you two sleep like normal people?" said Lupin, throwing off the covers and sitting up, sounding ill-tempered. "It's five in the morning!"

"Sorry," Harry said. "Wait... how do you know what time it is?"

Lupin turned in the direction of the bookshelf, which to Harry was just another shape in the darkness. "The clock, of course."

Harry frowned.

"He's a werewolf," Sirius supplied helpfully after a few moments.

"Oh. Can werewolves see in the dark?"

"No," Lupin said, still sounding irritable.

"Better than the rest of us."

"Oh," Harry said again. He wished Lupin wasn't in a bad mood, but he supposed after the night they'd had, it wasn't surprising that he was.

A thin strip of yellowish brightness cut the darkness, making them all look in the direction of the door. A light had come on in the main room.

"Shhh!" Lupin warned, unnecessarily. Harry didn't think any of them were keen on having Snape come in for the second time in one night to demand what was going on.

They could hear Snape's footsteps, his heeled boots clicking dully on the stone floor, but while Snape seemed to walk several times across the room, he never came near the bedroom door.

"I wonder what he's doing up so early," Sirius muttered.

"Who cares, as long as he stays out there."

"He's probably checking his potions," Lupin said. "Now be quiet!"

After another minute of listening to Snape's pacing, Sirius lost interest and lay back down.

Harry settled down as well, and tried to shut his eyes and go back to sleep, but found himself too wide awake to manage it.

Besides, he needed to use the bathroom. Badly.

Great timing.

"I need to use the bathroom," he said to no one in particular.

"You can't go out there."

"Of course he can," Lupin said. "Go on, James. Just say 'Good morning' as politely as you can and ignore him otherwise."

Sirius snorted.

Harry got out of bed and shuffled toward the door. He wished he had slippers, or that he could find his shoes in the dark, because the stone floor sent shockwaves of cold through his feet. The nightclothes Snape had provided were not warm enough for the dungeons, either.

Snape looked up as Harry opened the door, but didn't say anything. Harry ignored Lupin's suggestion and headed to the bathroom without a word.

They had to eat breakfast at a small, round table in the corner of Snape's office. The only sound was that of Snape's quill scratching its way down a length of parchment. Occasionally, Snape would lift the quill long enough to look up and glare at them.

None of them asked why they couldn't eat in the Great Hall. Harry hoped Snape hadn't been serious about not letting them out for meals anymore, and was just making a point.

Their misery ended when McGonagall came in half-way through their glum meal, took one look at them, and threw them out. Before they even knew it, they were standing out in the chilly dungeon corridor with their plates and glasses of pumpkin juice in their hands.

"Nice," Sirius muttered. "That woman...."

"Oh, be quiet, Paddy," Lupin said warningly. His mood had clearly not improved much since their early rising.

They carried the remains of their breakfast up to the Great Hall and joined the children already there.

They happened to sit down facing the doors, which had been left ajar, and through them they saw Snape and McGonagall walking briskly in the direction of the staff room. McGonagall was carrying a stack of official-looking envelopes -- the same sort that Hogwarts students received their school letters in.

"I wonder what that's all about," Lupin said thoughtfully.

"Opening Hogwarts again," Sirius said promptly.

Lupin whirled on him. "What?"

Sirius, who has stuffed more bacon and eggs into his mouth, raised one eyebrow and chewed sloppily, clearly enjoying having their attention.

Harry, like Lupin, couldn't help but lean forward expectantly.

Finally, Sirius swallowed. "Yesterday, after McGonagall was done with me, she stayed to talk to the greasy git. I stuck around, naturally, and heard most of it." He paused maddeningly. "They're planning to reopen it. This year. If they can find enough teachers to cover the core subjects."

"But..." Harry began, frowning. He had been feeling rather safe in the knowledge that Hogwarts would stay closed. No matter what kind of mess his life was currently in, he could at least hope that in a year things would straighten out. "But it's practically October already. And half the students won't come back. They can't expect families to send children back to school after fleeing the country to keep them safe."

He looked at Lupin for agreement, but Lupin frowned and stayed silent.

"Don't shoot the messenger," Sirius said, spearing a sausage with his fork. "Just telling you what I heard."

Harry looked down at his plate, suddenly a lot less hungry than he had been before.

"They said something about you, too," Sirius said, jerking his fork in Harry's direction, "but I didn't hear what, exactly."

Harry sniffed irritably. Of course they had said something about him.

"I suppose..." Lupin began, but shook his head and trailed off. "Never mind."

"What?" Harry asked, his irritation increasing. "What were you going to say?"

Lupin looked down at his plate, as if he didn't want to -- or couldn't -- look at Harry. "Hogwarts has never been closed before, and it was right to open this year. What happened was tragic and terrible, but --"

"Oh, come on," Sirius said, glancing at Harry like he was fearing an explosion. "If it hadn't been opened --"

"Then Voldemort would have found other ways to target the people he wanted to target," Lupin said, raising his head defiantly. "The whole lot of us couldn't hide in our homes and think that just because Hogwarts was closed there wasn't any danger."

They were silent for a long time.

"It's not fair," Harry said finally. "I'll be a year behind everyone if...." He trailed off, unable to voice all the ifs running through his head.

He sighed. He knew he was just one person, and that keeping the school closed just because his life was messed up was not fair to everyone else, but he couldn't completely let go of the idea that in a year things might have returned to a semblance of normalcy, and he could be back at school with all his friends....

All the friends he had left, anyway.

Maybe he knew that nothing would ever be the same again, but could he be blamed for hoping that some things, at least, wouldn't change? He still had Ron and Hermione. Was it so wrong to want to spend his last two years at Hogwarts with them?

"They can't make you repeat a year," Sirius said bracingly. "The worst that will happen is you'll miss a few boring classes and -- Ow!" He rubbed his arm and scowled at Lupin. "What is your problem?"

Lupin ignored him. "Think about it this way, James. Either way you would be sitting out a year, and with Hogwarts open there's at least the chance that you will be able to see your friends. We can't promise that you'd be able to tell them right away, but it's something to think about."

Harry nodded, but he couldn't help imagining what it might be like to see Ron and Hermione every day, but not to be able to speak to them. It might be easier not to see them at all.

They sat in silence for a few minutes longer, and then Sirius pushed aside his empty plate and stood up.

"Come on, it's a fine day out. Let's get out of here."

Harry hadn't finished his food, but he was glad for the excuse to leave the Great Hall.

They went out into the neglected gardens, and Sirius led them down an overgrown path Harry wasn't familiar with. It ran alongside a low, mossy stone wall, and ended in a grove of trees behind the greenhouses.

Sirius sat down on the stone wall and swung his legs. "So. I wonder what they'll do with us."

"Huh?" Harry said, climbing up next to him.

"We're not old enough to start Hogwarts," Sirius pointed out. "Even if it opens, we're still stuck with Pr-- the greasy git."

Harry looked at Lupin, but Lupin shrugged.

"So what do you want to do today?" Sirius asked. "We could raid the broom shed and make a break for Hogsmeade, or --" He stopped, because Lupin was looking reproachfully at him. "I'm joking."

There was a rather uncomfortable pause.

"What's with you two?" Sirius asked, shaking his head disgustedly. "Can't I --"

"Boys!"

Sirius' eyes rolled right up into his head.

McGonagall was bearing down on them, and Harry jumped down off the wall, followed by Sirius, who was muttering mutinously.

"What do you mean by going off without letting anyone know where you are?" she demanded, hands on her hips.

"Sorry, Professor," Lupin said.

She ignored him in favor of taking Sirius by the upper arm and starting to drag him back in the direction of the castle.

Exchanging a helpless glance, Harry and Lupin followed.

"We're going to have to do something about her."

They were sitting in the library, where McGonagall had taken them with the instructions that they were not to budge until the lunch hour.

"What did you have in mind?" Lupin asked without looking up. He was the only one of them with a book.

Sirius snorted and returned to the task of shredding a scrap of parchment into bitty pieces.

Harry was torn between commiserating with Sirius and being glad McGonagall had cut short their morning romp.

The trouble was, he was bored. And if he was bored, so was Sirius. And it was only a matter of time before Sirius found a way to alleviate that boredom.

Sirius heaved a great suffering sigh and pushed away from the table. "That's it! This is intolerable!"

"Well, what did you used to do when you were our age and in school?" Harry asked, a little desperately.

"Oh, don't get him started," Lupin said before Sirius' had time to do more than open his mouth to reply. He let his book fall closed. "He'll tell you we spent all our time hunting for secret passages and stealing from the kitchens --"

"Not a bad idea!" Sirius cut in angrily. "I think I will!"

And that was what they did.

After Madam Pince had thrown them out for making a ruckus, Sirius stomped off toward the stairs, and Harry and Lupin had no choice but to try and keep up.

"I don't think this is what McGonagall had in mind," Lupin muttered as they followed Sirius through the portrait opening and into the dimly lit kitchen.

Harry didn't doubt that, but he figured there was relatively little trouble that Sirius could get into in the Hogwarts kitchen. "It's not like we're leaving the castle."

Lupin frowned. "There are plenty of places right inside this castle I don't think they want us going. Especially him."

Harry shrugged. He could think of a few himself, but the kitchen wasn't on the list and he still didn't see the harm.

"You're right, James," Lupin said, sighing. "Keeping him too tightly reined in might not be the best thing."

Harry nodded, but distractedly. They had stopped just inside the door and he had finally looked around.

Every other time that he had been in the kitchen, it had been bustling with activity. It took him a moment just to realize that no house-elves had come running to see what the three of them needed. In fact....

"What happened to them all?" he asked softly, almost afraid of the answer.

Sirius, who had stopped short a few feet in front of them, turned to hear Lupin's answer.

"Some were bound to Dumbledore personally, and were set loose after he died. Most had been on loan from the Ministry of Magic, and were removed to fill needs elsewhere. Some...." Lupin trailed off.

"So... this is all that's left?" Harry asked, waving his hand to indicate the fewer than a dozen elves working over at the far corner of the cavernous room, where several large cauldrons bubbled over open flames.

"Oh well," Sirius said in a somewhat false tone of unconcern. "Easier to get in, get what we want, and get back out, I say."

Harry watched him gathering an armload of food, taking nothing himself but accepting what Sirius couldn't manage to hold on to. Lupin did the same.

"You two are no fun," Sirius said with a shake of his head. "What's the point of risking life and limb if you're not going to enjoy yourselves?"

"Sorry," Lupin said dryly, "the old zing seems gone. Raiding the school kitchen might be one of those things that only thrill schoolboys."

Sirius stopped, his shoulders drooping, and looked balefully at him. "You injure me, Moony."

They laughed.

Harry frowned, feeling left out of the joke.

"Come on," Sirius said, still chuckling, "we need to stash this stuff before McGonagall can spoil our party."

Harry frowned again. "Where do we stash it?"

"I'm sure we'll find a place," Sirius said, already heading for the exit. He started humming under his breath.

"All right... but...."

Lupin seemed unconcerned as Sirius led them to the second floor, and Harry watched the two of them struggle with Snape's spare wand until a series of raps had the desired effect on a section of wood paneling.

"Welcome to our humble... hideout," Sirius said, bowing deeply before gathering up his load of food and stepping first through the narrow opening into the darkness beyond.

"Come on, James," Lupin said, following Sirius.

Harry hesitated just for a moment. He was sure neither McGonagall nor Snape would approve of the three of them disappearing into some secret room no one else knew of. Then again, if Lupin didn't think it was a bad idea....

He followed them in, bending low to avoid hitting his head. He pushed the panel closed behind him just as Sirius lit a lamp, cutting the darkness with yellowish light.

"What do you think?" Sirius asked after giving Harry a minute to look around. "Nice, eh?"

It was... or at least Harry was sure he and Ron and Hermione would have thought so in their younger years. He imagined that later they would have found the place cramped, but for a trio of Firsties it certainly would have seemed like the perfect little secret hidey-hole to get away from teachers and annoying classmates.

He shook his head to clear the thought. He was there with Sirius and Lupin, not Ron and Hermione.

He let a smile spread over his face. "It's great! I don't recall it being on the Map."

"That's because we'd lost interest in the place by the time we'd made the Map," Lupin said. "There are a few placed we'd left off."

"And some we left off purposely," Sirius added.

"You'll have to show me."

"Gladly!" Sirius said, his grin widening, while Lupin's smile faltered. "Now, look here...."

There was a stash of comics and old magazines that Harry was sure weren't allowed at Hogwarts, old Zonko's products enough to annoy Filch for a full year, a collection of photographs showing various students in embarrassing situations (Snape made a regular appearance), and a number of objects that seemed to be unfinished experiments in enchantment.

Sirius held one up to the light. It was a glass sphere with amber liquid sloshing around inside. "Do you remember what this was supposed to be?"

Lupin shook his head. "No."

"Oh well." Sirius dropped it back in the box. "I don't either. Too long ago...." And his voice trailed off as he stared moodily at the dancing shadows on the wall.

Harry had claimed a spot on an overstuffed pillow, and now he leaned back and shut his eyes.

"I think we'd better go," Lupin said.

Harry reluctantly opened his eyes again. The silence had been kind of cozy.

"Right," said Sirius, "before that old bat starts looking for us."

Lupin gave him a withering look, but said nothing. He stood up and offered Harry a hand. "Come on."

Harry started to follow them out, but stopped short suddenly. "Wait. Aren't we going to eat any of this stuff?"

Sirius waved his hand dismissively without even turning around. "Nah. Can't you hear the clock? It's lunch time."

Harry dragged his eyes away from the mound of food they had disobeyed McGonagall's direct instructions to obtain. Lupin had opened the panel and was checking that the coast was clear. He gave the all-clear signal and he and Sirius stepped out into the hallway.

"Come on, James, before anyone sees us," Lupin urged. "Oh, and get the lamp, will you?"

Snape was looking down his long, crooked nose at them, and the expression on his face was one of barely restrained murderous intent. "Where were you?"

Harry couldn't help letting his eyes dart in Sirius' direction. Sirius appeared to be sullenly studying his shoes, but Harry could see that his fists were tightly clenched at his sides.

"Library," Harry said hastily. "Professor McGon--"

"McGonagall was in here less than twenty minutes ago to tell me you had gone missing once again," Snape said, his narrowed eyes boring into Harry's. "Do not lie to me."

Harry swallowed guiltily and fell silent, dropping his eyes.

"It won't happen again," Lupin offered. He, too, was trying not to look directly at Snape.

"I highly doubt that."

"What's it to you?" Sirius snarled, apparently having reached the end of his tether. "We weren't doing anything that's any of your damn business!"

Harry groaned. He'd known Sirius wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut, but he'd been hoping Sirius wouldn't come out with something utterly idiotic and bait Snape into making their punishment -- because there was sure to be a punishment -- ten times worse.

Sirius seemed not to notice the fire flashing in Snape's eyes, because he went on heedlessly. "Can we get back to our lunch now? You're the one always going on about not calling attention to ourselves, so how do you think it looks when you drag us out of the Great Hall in front of everybody? And another thing --"

But they didn't get to find out what the other thing was. With one lightning quick swipe, Snape had seized Sirius by the arm, hauled him across the room, yanked open the bedroom door, shoved him inside, and shut him in with a thunderous bang.

There was a momentary silence.

Snape's chest was heaving, and his customarily sallow cheeks were splotched with red.

"I... I don't think that was a good idea," Lupin said cautiously.

"Get back to the Great Hall."

Harry knew that low, deadly tone very well, and his feet obeyed without his mind telling them to. He was practically at the door before he realized that Lupin had not followed him.

"I really don't think you can leave him in there."

Harry looked from Lupin to Snape and then to the bedroom door, from behind which came indistinct yelling and muffled thumps.

"Get. Back. To. The. Great. Hall."

"It'll just make him worse. If you --"

"Mr. McKenna."

Harry put down his fork, which he had been idly twirling in his hand, his plate untouched, and looked up at McGonagall. "Yes, Professor?"

"Where are your friends?"

Harry sighed with resignation. "Professor Snape locked them in our room."

She stared at him for a moment, then cleared her throat and adjusted her glasses. "I see. Well, Mr. McKenna, I believe I shall accompany you back to Professor Snape's quarters."

Harry stood up and climbed over the bench, and followed McGonagall silently back down to the dungeons.

There was no answer at the door, but McGonagall, undaunted, led him to Snape's office.

Snape was indeed there, looking much calmer than Harry had last seen him, and writing in a thin leather book that Harry recognized with a slight lurch in his stomach. It was the lesson plan book he had sometimes seen Snape consult during Potions class.

So it had to be true. They were planning to reopen Hogwarts.

"Sit," McGonagall said, and Harry sat down on one end of the hard bench in front of Snape's desk.

"Don't tell me he's in more trouble," Snape said, glaring at Harry.

"No," McGonagall said. "I merely came to see if you needed any assistance with the other two." She looked pointedly at Snape. "I believe we should discuss how we plan to keep young Puddifoot in line."

Snape gave her the briefest of nods before his gaze turned upon Harry. "McKenna, wait out in the hall."

Harry left without a word.

The door shut behind him. For a moment he stood still, unsure of what to do. The low-lit dungeon corridor was kind of creepy, even in the daytime.

He leaned against the wall with a resigned huff.

"I don't think you're choosing the best way of handling him, Severus."

Harry jumped away from the wall in shock.

Surely they'd use a silencing charm...?

But they hadn't.

He slid down the wall to a sitting position and put the side of his head against the door frame.

"What do you suggest, then?" Snape's muffled voice demanded. "I should let him run around the castle doing anything he damn well pleases? Or to speak to me with blatant disrespect?"

There was a pause, as though McGonagall hesitated before replying.

"I have found myself forgetting, at times, that he is not a ten year old boy. Perhaps expecting him to show us the same respect we would expect from students is unreasonable."

"It's nothing of the sort. He must start as he is meant to go on."

"What do you mean?"

Harry leaned even closer, the tension in McGonagall's voice setting him on alert.

"I mean, Minerva, that the three miscreants will most likely spend the next seven years -- at least! -- as our students. Not to mention the fact that all our lives depend on their remaining undiscovered. Allowing them any leeway in their expected behavior puts all of us in danger.... And as for that mutt, I wish I had left him where he belongs -- in an Azkaban cell! That idiot is going to get us all killed."

"You knew he would be difficult. Look at it from his point of view. This must be quite an adjustment to make --"

"I don't give a damn what sort of an adjustment it is for him! If he is an adult as you claim, he would see the sense in keeping his head down. One would think he wants to go back to Azkaban, and to drag as many of us with him as he can manage."

"I'm certain that isn't true," McGonagall said with the air of someone tiring of listening to nonsense. Harry knew that tone well. "Although I will agree that none of the three appear to grasp the full gravity of the situation. Now, what is to be done with them?"

Harry didn't hear Snape's response, but it made McGonagall snort impatiently.

"Be serious, Severus. We need to address this problem before it comes to a head."

"Fine. Do you have any ideas?"

McGonagall sighed audibly. "I'm afraid nothing that would be immediately useful."

"Then let me deal with them my way."

"By locking them up? I'm afraid that will only incite rebellion. I thought by appealing to them to consider James' safety --"

"Ha! Since when have either of them been concerned about his safety? One has been prodding him into taking unnecessary chances for years now, and the other -- well, I suppose you've forgotten the little incident when McKenna was almost eaten?"

"I haven't forgotten," McGonagall said cooly. "And please refrain from shouting." There was a lengthy pause. "Yes, I do see your point. Still, I don't believe they intentionally put him in danger. They do care deeply about him, Severus. I thought that was something we could use."

"I don't see it working very well," Snape said flatly. "As it stands, I don't know how we can possibly allow them into the dorms, where they will be under even less supervision than they are now. Do you still believe enrolling them as students should even be considered?"

"I can't imagine what else we could do with them. At least we shall know where they are most of the day."

"As if that ever made a difference." Snape sniffed bitterly. "Well, is there a precedent, at least? We wouldn't want to draw even more attention to them. As my wards they will already have an elevated profile at Hogwarts."

McGonagall cleared her throat. "There is. Granted, it hasn't been done in decades, but I believe with the current situation being what it is, it will not seem odd."

"I will inform them of the decision, then. That way we will have a few days to make alternate arrangements should it become clear that this plan is doomed."

"Don't be so melodramatic."

Snape snorted irritably, and didn't reply.

"I do wish we had a solution to the problem of Mr. Puddifoot," McGonagall said. "When do you plan to let them out? Perhaps I could speak with him again."

"What for? It had no impact on his behavior the last time you did. No, I'll deal with him myself. As for letting them out, I would much rather pitch McKenna in with them for the rest of the day -- speaking of McKenna...!"

A chair scraped across the floor, and Harry scrambled up off the floor hastily.

He spotted a bench not far down the corridor, and practically threw himself on it. He tried to school his features into a bored expression, like he had been sitting there all along instead of squatting on the floor with his ear pressed so hard to the door that it had actually grown slightly numb.

"McKenna --" Snape had thrown open the door and stuck his head out. He looked relieved when he saw Harry. "Come inside."

As Harry moved to obey, McGonagall came out of Snape's office, bid them good afternoon, and headed for the stairs.

Which left him alone with Snape.

He plopped himself down and looked at his hands folded in his lap. He wasn't going to let Snape find out he'd heard everything. He'd have to pretend whatever Snape told him was all news to him.

Snape cleared his throat, but Harry didn't look up.

"Look at me when I'm speaking to you, McKenna."

Harry looked up and focused his gaze somewhere over Snape's left shoulder.

Snape muttered something about vacant-eyed stupidity. "The Headmistress and I have decided to enroll you as a first year student once Hogwarts opens."

He stopped and waited.

Harry struggled to pull a surprised look over his face. "Opens? What do you mean, sir?"

"It's been decided that Hogwarts will reopen. Classes will begin Monday. Letters have already gone out."

"Oh. That's... that's...."

"Exactly," Snape said grimly. "Now, the three of you can either stay locked up during the school day, or you can attend classes. It's up to you."

Harry had to struggle to keep his eyes from darting over to Snape's face. Of course Snape was serious.

Anyway, there didn't seem to be much choice. It looked like he'd be repeating his first year.

"I'd rather attend classes."

"I thought you would," Snape said, and Harry could tell he was rolling his eyes. "I'll leave it up to you to tell the others." He paused. "I expect you to report any... whisperings of mutiny."

This time Harry couldn't help his head swiveling to face Snape. So, Snape expected him to be a spy for him?

"In fact," Snape continued, his lips a thin line, "is there anything you would like to tell me now? About Puddifoot?"

Harry forced himself to look away. "Like what?"

"DO NOT," Snape snarled, hitting the desk with his fist, "PLAY DUMB!"

Harry, who had almost been startled out his seat, blinked up at him before recalling that he shouldn't make eye-contact. "I'm not! I just don't know -- it's only been a day! It's not like he's had time to plot anything!"

Realizing he'd said more than he'd intended, Harry clamped his mouth shut and looked down at his hands.

"Oh, but he will, you can count on that," Snape said, glaring at him. "And it will be your hide on the line when he does, so it's in your best interest to tell me anything you know."

"I don't know anything," Harry muttered, but a small part of him had the feeling that Snape had a valid point. "All right, fine. You want to know what's going on?"

"No, McKenna," Snape said in a very dark tone. "I need to know what's going on."

Harry's shoulders slumped slightly. He wished Snape would yell at him rather than make sense. "It's about what you'd expect. He doesn't understand why we aren't allowed to go anywhere in the castle, and it's getting him wound up." He shrugged. "And he thinks if he returned to his normal age he'd be useful to our side."

Snape snorted. "Useful as a hole in the head."

"I think we've convinced him he has to stay. I mean, he promised me he wouldn't try to leave."

"A lot that's worth."

Harry pursed his lips and ignored him. "But I don't think he's very happy about it, and --"

"I don't care about his happiness. I only care about his obedience."

"We're trying our best!" Harry said defiantly. "The only reason we left the library this morning is because he couldn't stand sitting there for hours -- and I don't blame him!"

There was a silence, which Snape allowed to stretch uncomfortably.

"Are you going to tell me where you went?"

"No," Harry said, scowling. "But it wasn't outside the castle, and it wasn't dangerous."

"I would be a much better judge of that than you, McKenna!" Snape's nostrils flared, and he seemed to be struggling to control himself. "Was it the Room of Requirement?"

"No," Harry said. "I know that's off limits. I don't think either of them know how to get in."

"Make sure it stays that way."

Harry nodded. The Room of Requirement held nothing but bad memories now, anyway.

"Is there anything else?"

"No."

"McKenna," Snape said warningly. "Is there anything else?"

"I told you, no."

Snape took a few huffy breaths, but apparently decided to let it drop. "You should receive your letters today. We will need to get you wands and school supplies."

Harry's head snapped up. "Wands?"

"How do you expect to do magic without a wand?"

"But... we can't do magic," Harry pointed out.

"You'll learn," Snape said cooly. "I expect you'll be the lowest in your year, but underachievement is nothing new to you, is it McKenna?"

Harry bristled, but held his tongue.

"There will be no Quidditch, of course; no extracurricular activities of any sort. You will eat meals with other students and attend classes... I have not decided if you will sleep in the dorms."

Harry nodded.

He waited for Snape to continue, but the silence stretched. Finally, he couldn't stand it any longer and looked up.

Snape was studying him.

"What?" Harry said before he could stop himself. "I mean.... Sorry, sir."

"In order to make it appear reasonable for me to take you on as my wards, your backgrounds had to be... appropriate."

Harry had no idea what Snape meant by that.

"The McKenna family, for instance, was one of the oldest Slytherin families; older even than the Black family."

Harry understood, with a lurch in his stomach.

"The Puddifoot family has historically sorted Slytherin and Hufflepuff. Milo Moony is an invention -- he is meant to be the illegitimate half-blood son of one of my year-mates who has been dead for a number of years. So...." Snape let his voice trail off and fixed Harry with a very ugly look.

"Slytherin or Hufflepuff, is that what you're saying?" Harry said, his voice almost breaking. "Because it would look really odd if all three of us were sorted into Gryffindor?"

"Hufflepuff currently has no Head of House," Snape said grimly. "I expect we will find someone --"

"But you want to keep tabs on us yourself," Harry guessed with a sigh. "I get it. Fine. I just don't know how Paddy's going to take it."

"Oh, I can tell you how he'll take it," Snape said. He laughed darkly. "Which is why I expect you to come to me if you so much as suspect that he's thinking of doing anything to jeopardize our plan."

Harry nodded miserably. Most likely Sirius would do something stupid. Harry felt like doing something stupid himself at the thought of being in Slytherin.

"You will be sorted along with the other first years. Should the Sorting Hat attempt to place you in the wrong House --"

"You mean it isn't fixed?" Harry exclaimed. "But what if it --"

"The Sorting Hat cannot be 'fixed', as you so eloquently put it. It is a very old and very powerful magical object."

"Like the Goblet of Fire?" Harry muttered resentfully. Aloud, he said, "So how do we get sorted into Slytherin, then? Moony hasn't got a Slytherin bone in his body, and Paddy will want to be sorted anywhere but."

"And you?" Snape inquired in a low tone.

Harry hesitated, part of him upset enough to want to tell Snape he'd rather face Voldemort again than be sorted into Snape's House.

That wouldn't be true, besides being rude and ungrateful.

"I'll be all right, I suppose," he said. "The Hat did try to put me into Slytherin before."

Snape's eyes bulged slightly. Harry imagined the idea that he could have had Harry Potter in Slytherin all these years was rather unsettling to the man. "And why didn't it?"

"I didn't want it to."

"You have your answer, then," Snape said. "The Sorting Hat considers your qualities, it's true, and your family history as well, but in the end it will put you where you are determined to go. Most students, aside from the Muggleborns who know nothing of the Houses, come to Hogwarts already expecting to be sorted into a particular House. The Sorting Hat tends to oblige them."

Harry sighed. He could just imagine explaining to Sirius that not only did they have to be in Slytherin, they had to want to be there more than any place else.

"You will let me know if you cannot manage it," Snape said, and stood up. "Now, come along."

Harry trudged after Snape as Snape led him back to his quarters. He guessed he knew what was coming.

"You'll have the rest of the day to ensure the plan is accepted," Snape told him. "I may let you take dinner in the Great Hall, if it appears there's no trouble looming."

Great, Harry thought bleakly. We'll be locked in till doomsday.

To Snape, he just nodded.

Snape raised his wand and unlocked the bedroom door with a hard flick.

Harry pulled the door open and went inside.

The door shut behind him, and the lock clicked into place.