"Quit moping about Harry, perhaps it is better this way. For all we know you could have decided to sleepwalk to the lake all the way from the Weasley's," Severus tried in vain to make Harry feel better the next day.

"I s'pose," he muttered gloomily, staring at his cold tea.

Severus scowled, clearly thinking hard.

"Maybe you are right. After all, I'd be pretty depressed if I had to spend a few weeks with no one but Snape for company ... Oh, wait ..." Severus said dryly. Harry snorted into his tea.

"Finally," Snape said rather smugly. "About time you cheered up, you're gloomy demeanour was overshadowing even mine."

"Thanks," Harry said. "You're probably right anyways; It would be just my luck to try to sleepwalk all the way to Hogwarts."

"My thoughts exactly."

"Can we go work on potions now?" Harry asked hopefully. He'd been bothering Severus to help him out with brewing for ages.

"Alright; I still can't decide if you're persistent or pestilent Potter. Perhaps you are both."

"I'd say both," grinned Harry, following his professor into his potions lab. Snape let out a low laugh.

"Less cheek or you'll find your tongue glued to the side of your mouth."

"Yes Sir."

***

"And stir er ...twice?" inqured Harry a while later, squinting at a page in his textbook.

"Three times," corrected Severus.

"Then put the bat spleen in?'

"No, after you put in the bat spleen," he said sharply.

"But the instructions say before you put it in."

"How bad is your vision Potter ..." Severus wondered, double checking the book to make sure there wasn't a printing error. "Aren't you wearing your glasses?'

"Well, let's see, they're on my face Severus. What do you think?" Harry said rather grumpily.

"Watch it, just because I've been less strict as of late doesn't mean I won't take house points," warned Severus, gesturing for Harry to give him his glasses.

Severus took the glasses from Harry and held them at arms length. He stared at them a moment before setting them on the workbench and tapping them with his wand. The glasses began to glow blue. Severus handed the still glowing spectacles to Harry, telling him to put them on. He did so, and within seconds the glasses had returned to their normal appearance. Harry's mouth opened in amazement as he blinked stupidly.

"Better?" Severus asked with the air of someone who had merely polished the lenses.

"Better?" Harry said incredulously. "I didn't even know people could see this good! What on earth did you do?'

"I adjusted them to your eyes. It's a simple charm," Severus said. "So your aunt or uncle never took you to a muggle eye specialist then?"

"No, Aunt Petunia just gave me these old things one day. Dunno where she got them," Harry replied, taken aback by the expression of fury on Severus' face.

"That horrid bit ... Er, toad!" Snape said passionately, catching himself just in time. Harry stared in amusement at his professor, who looked rather sheepish. "Well, what are you staring at? Get back to work!"

***

The light nearly blinded Harry as it shone down to where he lay. Once again he could not move, and people bustled about nearby, though many took no notice of him. But there was someone sitting beside him, saying comforting words. Suddenly, Harry was moving. Whatever he lay on was travelling out of the bright room and into a long hallway.

Harry was in motion for a long time, and he sensed that he was rising somehow, and then he stopped. The person who had been sitting next to him held his limp hand. Harry's vision cleared briefly; it was just long enough for him make out a name among the other words written across the door. It opened, and he caught a glimpse of wood pannelling and dim lights, but the name stayed, imprinted before his eyes ... Atta Leytromier.

Harry bolted upright in his bed, moving his right hand to make sure it had all been a dream. Only moments before he had been sure someone was holding it. Harry shook it off however, although his hand still felt oddly warm. His dream was quite different from the pattern he'd grown used to, he briefly pondered on the name he'd seen, but was soon distracted. For he had forgotten completely that it was Christmas day, and was quite surprised for a moment when he caught sight of the small stack of presents at the end of his four-poster. Harry also noted that it was almost eleven a.m, though he did not find this surprising having, once again, taken a jaunt through the grounds during the night. It had been very late when Snape had finally escorted him back to his dormitory, so naturally, he had slept in.

Harry enthusiastically unwrapped his presents, almost managing to forget the strange dream. As he munched enthusiastically on a piece of homemade fudge (courtesy of Mrs. Weasley) he couldn't help but cheer up. Hedwig hooted from atop Harry's trunk, ruffling her feathers and shuffling her feet. Judging by the cramped, slanted writing it was from Severus.

Harry,

Thank you for the card, hopefully you've been able to sleep in and your owl hasn't pestered you constantly, trying to get you to untie this note. Meet me in my quarters at eleven thirty, I've found something you might like.

-Severus

Harry scratched the back of Hedwig's neck briefly before going off to have a shower. When he was dressed, he wandered leisurely through the castle, which was quite empty. The Christmas decorations brought his spirits up a bit, and the prospect of a visit with Severus made him feel a bit less lonely. The dungeons were cold as ever, but Harry was warm in the new jumper Mrs. Weasley had made for him.

"Happy Christmas Severus," Harry said as he was ushered into Snape's quarters.

"Happy Christmas to you too Harry. I see Molly's made you a new jumper," Severus commented. "Glad she didn't bother sending me one again."

"Mrs. Weasley knitted you a jumper?" Harry laughed incredulously as he took a seat at the table.

"She did," Severus said, sounding extremely annoyed as he poured Harry tea, "Last year she felt sorry for me, after hearing Albus talk about how he's the only one that sends me a gift on Christmas."

"What colour was it?" Harry snorted.

"Navy blue," he grimaced.

"Did she put a letter on it too?'

"Thank Merlin no, I'd look like a real pratt with a big S on the front of my jumper."

"You know, they're lovely and warm, you should wear yours!" Harry laughed, pulling at the knitted fabric of his own jumper, which was green.

"Not at Hogwarts, that's for sure." Severus answered before changing the subject "Speaking of gifts, I've got something that you might like ..."

"Really?" Harry asked.

"Yes, it was your mother's," he said, retrieving a little package from a shelf near the window. "I gave it to her for her fourteenth birthday, just stumbled upon it one day at a little shop in Hogsmeade. It's not much ..."

Harry unwrapped the gift, and found a necklace. The pendant was a small lily made from metal. It was slightly tarnished, but Harry liked it anyway.

"This was Mum's?"

"Yes," Severus sighed heavily. "She used to wear it all the time. The night she died I went to Godric's Hollow ... found it lying in the rubble."

"What sort of metal is this anyway?" Harry asked, fingering it curiously, for the metal seemed warm to the touch, which was odd considering it had been sitting near the cold window.

"No idea, the shopkeeper didn't know. It was a second hand shop." Severus said rather warily before muttering something about not being able to afford something nicer.

"It's great. Really," Harry said, smiling.

"I'm glad you like it."

"Come on Severus, Weasley jumpers aren't that bad! Besides, it's such a cold day ..." Harry teased once more.

"That's it, ten points from Gryffindor!" snapped Severus. Harry cringed.

***

That night was terrible for Harry, once again he had wandered out into the grounds in his sleep and he awoke just as Severus was draping a blanket around his shoulders. The aches and pain had reached an all time high, and consumed him. Harry just barely registered that he was somewhere in the forbidden forest, in front of wide and deep stream that probably led to the lake.

"I don't understand, it should have been open," muttered Severus cryptically as he held Harry up, who was wavering back and forth in a haze of intense pain.

Snape stood there, stock still and watching the stream, as if he expected something to appear on the other side. It wasn't until Harry accidentally let a small sob escape that he was brought back to reality.

"Right, come on Harry, let's get you back to the castle," said Severus, practically carrying Harry over the root covered ground of the forest.

Through the still, dark corridors they went. Eventually they reached Severus' quarters, and Severus, like many nights before, helped Harry onto the sofa and tucked the blanket around him. He sighed and sat in a chair next to Harry. The shadows under both their eyes stood out starkly; many nights like this one had taken their toll.

Harry let out a shuddering gasp as the aches flared up again. He was seeing things before his eyes as well, Ginny talking with someone in strange wood panneled room.

"Why does it hurt so much?" Harry inquired when his vision had cleared, trying in vain to keep his breathing regular.

"I cannot say Harry, it will hurt you more if I do," Severus told him wearily.

, "'m tired of not knowing." he whispered weakly, tears running down his face. "I'm tired of being scared of what's happening to me."

"I know you are Harry," Severus told him gently. "But you must be brave, be the true Gryffindor I know you are."

"No. Don't wanna be brave," Harry whispered, shaking his head.

He gasped in pain as another image overtook his mind, eating away at his insides like a poison. It was of Ron and Hermione, standing nearby, they were blinking back tears. Like the Ginny from his visions, they looked older.

"I don't wanna be brave." he whispered once more, quickly becoming delirious in his anguish. "I want Mum. Can't she be here?'

"Harry, you know where she is," Severus replied. "She's watching from afar ... along with your father."

"But I wish ..."

"I know, I wish they could have been there for you too," he replied, encasing Harry's hand in his own. "But I am here."

Harry closed his eyes, hot tears falling from his cheeks as flashes of images passed across his vision. Waiting for the pain to leave. Much as Severus had done for all those years.