Draco woke in Evan's room, but couldn't remember how he got there. He remembered being in the Infirmary and Uncle Sev coming through the floo, but nothing after that. He rolled to his side and saw that the bed he was in was sitting next to Evan's and that Evan was still asleep. There was a small lump in the middle of the bed, completely covered with blankets.

Cautiously he moved his arm and was glad that it felt completely healed, just a small ache where the bone had been broken. He pushed the blankets away and saw that he was still dressed in the Infirmary pyjamas. He looked around a bit to see if his slippers, or even a pair of socks, were anywhere within reach, but nothing was in sight.

He slipped out of bed and raced to the loo, then made his way out to the sitting room, pulling the door to the bedroom almost closed behind him. Uncle Sev was sitting in front of the fire with a cup of tea.

"Draco," Uncle Sev said. "You're up early."

Draco sat down in front of the fire, his feet pointing towards the flames. "I woke up and couldn't go back to sleep," he said. "Am I staying here now?"

"Yes." Uncle Sev got to his feet and disappeared briefly into his bedroom. When he returned he had a thick pair of socks that he handed to Draco. They were far too large, but warmed Draco's feet nicely.

"It's Father, isn't it?" Draco asked, pulling his knees up to his chest and resting his head on them.

Uncle Sev nodded. "I believe so. Most likely he has discovered the petition for guardianship through his sources at the Ministry."

"And he told the fathers of the other boys that I was fair game."

"Yes." Anger twisted Uncle Sev's mouth.

"How will I go to classes? What if they get to me there?" Draco was furious with Father for doing this to him.

"With your permission, I will put a tracking spell on you. It will alert me if you are attacked." Uncle Sev looked towards the door to Evan's bedroom. Draco could hear Evan moving around, then he heard the door to the loo close and Uncle Sev turned his attention back to Draco.

"There are other precautions that you will need to take," he said. "You will not be the last one out of the classroom, you must stay within a group, preferably whichever house the Slytherins are attending class with until you reach a more populated area."

"Uncle Sev," Draco protested. "The Gryffindors aren't going to want me hanging around with them. You know that they're the ones we share the most classes with."

"I know, but for now it's the best we can do." The door to Evan's room opened and Evan came two steps into the sitting room, his hand outstretched before him. Uncle Sev reached out a hand to take Evan's and draw him closer. Draco realized that that was the reason why Uncle Sev had his chair at such an awkward angle to the fireplace. He could see perfectly into Evan's room and he was close enough to the door that Evan didn't have to stumble around in the morning to find him.

Evan looked sleepy and rumpled as he rested his head on Uncle Sev's shoulder.

"You didn't wake up with nightmares last night," Uncle Sev said to Evan.

Evan shook his head. "I didn't." His voice filled with wonder. "I never did that before."

"That's very good," Uncle Sev said.

Evan smiled. "Maybe I won't have any more nightmares," he said.

Severus chuckled. "Don't count on it, although I hope that they will be lessened with time."

Evan nodded into his shoulder. "Where's Draco?" he asked.

"He's sitting in front of the fireplace," Uncle Sev said, and Draco jumped to his feet to take Evan's hand and pull him to the floor with him.

"I'm staying here with you and Uncle Sev now," Draco said with excitement.

"Really?" Evan asked.

"Yes, really," Draco said. "It's not safe for me in my dorm anymore."

"Why not?" Evan tilted his head as he asked the question.

Draco explained while Uncle Sev called Dotty and told her to pack Draco's trunk and bring it to Evan's rooms.

~HPSSHPSS~

Severus sat next to Minerva at breakfast, helping himself to his usual tea and eggs.

"You should think about asking Remus Lupin to come and help you with Evan," Minerva said as she buttered her toast.

Severus nearly choked on his first bite of egg. "No!" he exclaimed. "You know how I feel about him."

Minerva sipped her tea. "Personal feelings aside, Severus, he could be a help. You can't continue to leave Evan with Poppy during the day, and there is no one else I can find that would be suitable. I talked to my friend at St. Mungo's and they have no one available that is trained for the things Evan needs."

"I wouldn't even know how to go about finding him," Severus said, hating the almost whine in his voice. "He's completely disappeared from the Wizarding world."

"It might take some work, but I'm sure that Remus could be found." Minerva leaned closer to Severus, lowering her voice to a bare whisper. "Anyone you bring in is eventually going to know the truth about Evan's identity. It will be impossible to hide it in such close quarters. Remus could be trusted with the information."

Severus set his teacup down so hard that tea slopped over the side. "I don't know that I could forgive him for what those idiotic Marauders did."

"You were not entirely blameless in what happened, Severus." Minerva glared at him. "It would not have gotten that far out of hand if you and Black…"

"I know!" Severus ground out, his fists clenched in anger and resentment at the memory of what had happened. "But in the end I was the one left without justice!"

"I realize that Severus," Minerva said soothingly. "It also happened nearly sixteen years ago. How long are you planning on holding onto your grudge."

Severus slammed his chair back and strode rapidly from the Great Hall into the antechamber behind the table. He felt Minerva's eyes on his back but didn't turn around. All the rage and hurt had come roaring back to him and he could not deal with it with her watching.

His chest heaving, he stood in the middle of the antechamber, wanting to throw the biggest temper tantrum of his life. Instead, he wound up just sitting in the armchair in which he had held Harry the night of the Sorting. He put his head in his hands, battling the need to either violently destroy everything within reach or weep helplessly.

He knew Minerva was right and that he needed to let the anger go, but he had held it so close, taken it to him like a lover, for so long that it felt as if he were ripping out part of his soul. He could tell himself a thousand times that what had happened hadn't been Lupin's fault, that he would have suffered along with Severus, but it didn't help. It didn't help that Black was in Azkaban, he wasn't paying for this crime. Severus wanted justice. Severus wanted revenge. He clenched his hands in his hair and growled in the back of this throat.

The sound of the antechamber door opening had him leaping to his feet, wand in hand, ready to hex the intruder to oblivion. When he saw Draco walk in, leading Harry by the hand, he dropped his wand, trembling with the thought of what he had nearly done.

"Uncle Sev?" Draco asked walking up to stand next to Severus. "What's wrong?"

Harry reached out and stroked a hand down Severus's robes, then gathered a handful of the soft wool. "Professor, have we done something wrong?"

Of course, Harry would think that Severus was angry with them. He sat back down in the chair and pulled the boys to him.

"No, I'm not angry with either of you," he said. Seeing the two of them made Severus realize that, as difficult as it was going to be, he really did need to let this anger go. It would be so easy to take sixteen years of rage out on Harry. Hurt him for everything James Potter and his horrible friends had done. It frightened him how easy it would be to hate Harry, and Severus suspected that if Harry had shown up healthy this year that that's exactly what would have happened. The thought made him ashamed.

Severus ran a hand through Harry's tangled hair, so much like his father's and pushed the rage away. He forced it out of his heart, taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly.

"Did you finish your breakfast?" he asked the boys.

Draco shook his head. "We were worried about you."

Severus smiled at him. "Thank you, but you don't need to do that."

Draco shuffled his feet a bit. "I know we don't, but it's not going to stop us."

Severus smiled slightly at him. "Let's go back and finish eating," Severus said, leading the way out of the antechamber.

~HPSSHPSS~

Harry sat in his usual chair in the infirmary, the Braille book on the table in front of him, his fingers grazing lightly over the bumps that represented each letter.

Lizzy had walked him through the alphabet last night and now he was trying to identify the letters on his own. He knew "A" and "B" and he was pretty sure about six or seven others, but the dots would run together under his fingers, and Harry would get caught up in the feel of the bumps, the thickness of the paper, the way that the corners would poke slightly into his skin. Then he would have to pull his concentration back and force himself to focus on the dots again.

The fourth time he realized that he wasn't paying attention to the letters, he put the book aside and pulled the dragon that Draco had given him out of the pocket of his robes. He ran his fingers over it, feeling the texture of the wings as the dragon unfurled and started flapping them slowly back and forth. It was fascinating how the cold metal could feel so alive and he lost himself in the sheer miracle of it.

Although he sat in a back corner of the Infirmary, he knew Madam Pomfrey was somewhere in the room. Harry had started "feeling" her presence the same way he had begun to feel Professor Snape and Draco. He had known that Draco was in the room with him that morning before Professor Snape had told him. There was nothing specific about the feeling, it was just the knowledge that they were in the same area as Harry. If he focused on the feeling of Madam Pomfrey, he could sense her moving around the Infirmary, doing whatever things she did when there weren't any patients for her to look after.

Harry hadn't said anything to the professor about being able to sense the three of them yet; he was a little afraid that Professor Snape would tell him that this was not normal, that Harry was the freak he always feared he was. Logically Harry knew that his professor would say no such thing, but it didn't stop the tightening in his stomach.

The little dragon bit the tip of his finger when he tried to stick it in the dragon's mouth. He laughed softly, whispering, "Sorry," to the toy.

~HPSSHPSS~

The third year Hufflepuff who entered Severus's office was noticeably sweating and wringing his fingers.

"Mr. Barton, do not hover in the doorway. Either come into my office or leave." The boy entered the room but stopped a foot from the door.

"Well," Severus snapped. "What do you need?" Severus put aside the essays that he was grading and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Professor Dumbledore would like to see you, sir," the boy said and then he was gone, scampering away as if afraid that Severus would give him detention just for delivering a message.

Severus resisted the urge to bang his head on the desk repeatedly. What could Albus want now? He strode over to the fireplace to firecall Minerva, but when she didn't answer, he suspected that she was in the headmaster's office also.

The trip to Dumbledore's office was made without stopping at the Infirmary. He was not due to pick Harry up for another hour and if he wasn't finished with the headmaster by then, he was going to throw the temper tantrum he'd avoided having that morning. The thought of smashing half of the flotsam in Dumbledore's office was a satisfying fantasy.

The reason for being called to Dumbledore's office was immediately clear. Lucius Malfoy was reclining in one of the chairs, his legs crossed, acting for all the world as if he belonged there. Minerva sat across from Lucius, trying to look menacing, but if the situation hadn't been so serious, Severus would have laughed. She looked like a cat face to face with a bulldog. Severus thought that maybe it wasn't far from the truth.

Dumbledore sat behind his desk, his "doddering old fool" expression on his face. Severus wondered if Lucius believed that Dumbledore was as stupid as he was looking, or if Lucius saw the sharp gleam in Dumbledore's eyes.

"Lucius," Severus said, inclining his head a miniscule amount. It was just enough to acknowledge his presence but not so much as to imply deference.

"Severus," Lucius replied in the bored tone of voice he employed when trying to intimidate what he considered a lesser being. "It has come to my attention that you are attempting to remove Draco from my care."

"Yes, I am," Severus said, standing next to Minerva's chair.

"Would you care to explain why?" Lucius looked uninterested, pretending to examine his fingernails, but Severus knew better. Lucius was bitterly angry.

"The events of this past summer should be explanation enough," Severus said, managing to keep the sneer off his face.

"You cannot believe that you will be awarded guardianship simply because I disciplined my son." Lucius looked haughtily down his nose at Severus, which Severus thought was quite a feat considering that Severus was standing and Lucius was not.

"Attempted to kill him would be closer to the truth." Severus's voice was mild, but he knew that Lucius would hear the threat behind them.

"You cannot prove that." Lucius flipped his fingers in an attempt to dismiss Severus's words.

"I already have," Severus replied. "I sent a written statement from Healer Baker along with a Pensieve memory from myself and one from a certain house elf to Wizarding Family Services." Now Severus did sneer. "If necessary, I will testify under Veritaserum to all of the events of this last summer."

Lucius paled. "You wouldn't dare," he said, abruptly standing, his hand clenched around the head of his cane.

Severus smiled nastily. "Try me."

Dumbledore stood. "Mr. Malfoy, I believe this meeting is concluded."

"This isn't over, Severus," Lucius said, taking a handful of floo powder and stepping into the fireplace.

"I daresay it is, unless you want to spend some time in Azkaban, Lucius." Severus smirked as Lucius flooed away.

"Would you care to tell me what that was about, Severus?" Albus asked curiously, retaking his seat.

"Lucius attempted to kidnap a Muggleborn child earlier this summer." Severus said, relaxing slightly and leaning against the side of Minerva's chair.

"He did not succeed?" Dumbledore asked.

Severus shrugged. "I made certain that he did not."

Dumbledore frowned. "Do you know why he wanted a Muggleborn?"

"I have my suspicions," Severus said. "I can't confirm them absolutely because Lucius didn't tell me directly, but I think he intended to Polyjuice the child into Draco in the event that Draco died. Then he was going to send the Muggleborn out to have an 'accident' in front of witnesses. Before the Polyjuice potion would have a chance to wear off, the children would be switched, the Muggleborn would simply 'disappear' and no one would know what really happened."

"Good heavens!" Minerva exclaimed. "Did he really think he would get away with it?"

Severus turned to look at Minerva. "He would definitely have succeeded if I had not discovered his plan for the kidnapping from a house elf, who came to my quarters. The house elf had witnessed the beating, and was frantic that I come to try and save Draco. As it was, I was nearly too late." Severus pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to stave off a headache. "By the time I arrived at Malfoy Manor, Draco was near death and Lucius was moments from leaving to take the Muggleborn child from his home. Lucius tried to get rid of me, making up some excuse about an urgent business meeting, but I ignored him and found Draco in his room. There was blood all over the place and Draco had several bones broken. Lucius couldn't stop me from firecalling Healer Baker and then his plans for the kidnapping were ruined."

Minerva's hand was over her mouth in horror.

Severus placed a hand on her shoulder. "Minerva, thank you for being here with me during this meeting. I appreciate the support." He hoped she would hear the apology for that morning in his words.

She nodded, patting his hand. "Any time, Severus."

"Would you mind retrieving Harry from the Infirmary and taking him to dinner?" Severus asked her. "I feel the need to pay Wizarding Family Services a visit."

Minerva smiled. "I'd be happy to, I've been looking forward to getting to know him better."

Severus nodded to Dumbledore. "Thank you, Headmaster for not stepping in and blocking the guardianship petition. I know that we have disagreed about it, but…"

Dumbledore held up a hand to stop him. "I apologize for that, Severus," he said. "I should have supported you in the endeavor to take Draco away from Lucius Malfoy from the beginning."

"Thank you, sir," Severus said formally, taking a step towards the fireplace. "Do you mind if I use your floo to travel to the Ministry?"

"Not at all, my boy," Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling madly. "I don't mind at all."