Harry didn't move.

He remained still and tried to keep his breathing quiet as he slowly peered around the corner of the cage. Baxer, the tiger within the barred confinement, appeared to be sleeping. Harry cautiously walked away and hurried around the food carts. He guessed Ryan was watching him from his booth, But Harry ignored the teenager without turning to look at Gravity's booth at all.

It had been almost three weeks since Harry and Severus first arrived at the carnival. Time progressed at a decent pace, until Harry had met Ann. Every day since, he was on a mission and today was no different, despite the lack of people in the carnival due to the darkened clouds above. It didn't rain, as it had when Harry first met Ann, but few were willing to take any chances with the poor weather. Harry, though not a muggle guest, would risk being struck by lightning if he had to.

And it was entirely Ann's fault.

Crouched by the performance tent, Harry gulped and slowly rose as he prepared to make a run for it. Poised for the risky action, he had to clamp his hands over his mouth to withhold his shriek when someone suddenly tapped him on the back. Spinning around on the spot, Harry gave Ann the most evil glare he could manage. It wasn't very good though, as she only rolled her eyes at him.

'You're doing it wrong.' Ann said in a manner that instantly reminded Harry of Hermione. 'All this sneaking around is so obvious.' She crossed her arms over her dark purple sweater and wore an expression of a person who thought Harry lacked intelligence.

'You don't know what will happen if I'm caught.' Harry growled and wished she wouldn't intrude on his sneaking.

'Well, if you keep this up...I'll soon find out.' Ann said dismissively. 'Look, Harry...you need to blend in. He's called “Stealth” for a reason. And besides, he's not even there today.'

'What?' Harry hurried around the corner and looked across the path to the black booth with “Stealth” written across the top.

Narrowing his eyes as it was closed, as Ann had implied, Harry slumped his shoulders and sighed. He turned to look at the girl with annoyance, as though it was somehow her fault. It was, though, as Ann had been the one to tell him about the silver box that always sat on the counter of Stealth's booth. She'd told him how if anyone could take it without Mac knowing, they would be granted a special prize. According to Ann, only three people have ever successfully done it.

'Who have gotten the box before?' Harry asked her. 'What's in it?'

'I don't know what's inside.' Ann shrugged. 'King got it once, and Wildfire. I saw your dad get it the first morning.' She smirked. 'Stealth was so shocked.'

'Why do you think I can get it?' Harry frowned. 'And if you think you're sneakier than I am, why don't you get it?'

'I don't.' Ann shrugged. 'I don't want the prize. Besides, you're not branded so I reckon you've got a better chance. How else could your dad get it so soon?'

Harry didn't reply as he looked over at the Spinning Spider ride and wondered if it was as bad as he thought it looked to be. Ron would get scared just looking at it and Harry already felt a bit dizzy.

'It's not so bad.' Ann shrugged as she followed his gaze. 'I've been on it loads of times. It's stopping now – come on!'

'No way!' Harry pulled away from her hand, which had reached for him. 'I'm not going on that.' He shook his head.

'Yes, you are!' Ann insisted and held a handful of his shirt to pull him towards it. Harry was worried to realise she was much stronger than she looked. 'You're afraid of something you haven't even tried.' She continued and walked around the muggles who had just left the ride. Pushing Harry ahead of her to the cart that was the tip of the spider's nearest leg, Ann shut the door and sat beside him on the red seat.

'I want to get off.' Harry felt nauseous with nerves as though he had eaten spiders rather than being about to ride one. 'Ann, why are you making me to this?' He snapped at her, wishing he could have run away in time or shoved her away.

She flashed him a wide smile and didn't even bother to grip onto the safety bar in front of them, like Harry did. His hands were turning white as he tried to pretend it was a broomstick or large animal. Nothing worked and he was shaking when the ride began to move.

'Relax.' Ann rolled her eyes as she placed her hands behind her head and tried not to laugh at him.

'Shut up.' Harry growled, thinking she was an awful person right now.

It was impossible for him to relax as he sat inside a spider's leg about to spin around rapidly. It started off slow and he could make out some buildings in the far distance across the landscape. The second his grip slackened a tiny bit and he felt calmer, their surroundings blurred a bit more as the speed increased.

'Did I mention magical people have a bigger reaction when riding these rides?' Ann added as an afterthought. 'Since the rides are magic-created, sometimes our magic mixes with it and...Harry, you're looking very pale.'

Harry, unable to speak or hear her very properly, couldn't even force himself to close his eyes. His only proud moment was how he was able to keep himself from screaming as the ride spun and tilted him for many blurry minutes. When it began to slow, he was shoving Ann aside to get to the door. Jumping out, Harry hadn't prepared for the solid ground and gravity again, therefore he stumbled right over sideways onto the ground while Ann laughed from nearby.

'I'm sure it would be more fun if you went on it again. The first time is always rough.' Ann said as she watched Harry stable himself on two legs.

'Or if I said I wanted to.' Harry frowned. 'That wasn't very nice, Ann.'

'You have to face your fears, Harry.' Ann's amused expression was replaced with irritation. 'I'm trying to help you. If you're not scared, then it's not so bad.'

'It was horrible.' Harry groaned and felt dizzy. 'I'm going to lie down before I sick up.'

'Good plan.' Ann nodded as she saw how pale he still was. 'I'll see you at lunch. Bye!' She skipped away in the direction of the Smashers ride.

Harry slowly made his way to the residence tents and wondered why it felt so far away when it was important he get to his room as soon as possible.

Hunching over a few feet from the entrance of the tent he shared with Severus, Harry did not think he could make it to his room or preferably the bathroom. He forgot to tell Ann that he'd never been on any type of amusement ride before, nor did he like spinning around on anything. His dizziness and nausea did feel rather odd, maybe because of his lack of experience...he had no idea if it was supposed to feel this way or if something was actually wrong. What had Ann said about those who were magical and rode a magical ride? She seemed fine, though, so Harry just remained hunched and groaned, hoping his sickening sensation would fade.

It didn't.

The minutes passed and Harry felt worse.

Dizziness gave him a headache and his heart was pounding in his chest as he lowered himself to the ground. Feeling helpless and miserable, Harry didn't know what to do. He was lying there alone. Many would be on their way to lunch, so the likelihood of someone noticing was very slim, and he would be too far away and out of sight to be seen from the carnival. The moment he thought he would be doomed on his own, Harry expected Severus to arrive for one reason or another and scold him for being sprawled out on the ground. But no one came. Not even Mina, who Harry thought of next. He stayed there, until his head stopped aching and his heart rate became slightly more normal. Minutes passed and Harry closed his eyes, just resting there until he would be able to move again.

Finally, with a grimace, Harry shoved himself upwards so he was crouched on his hands and knees. Sweating, he whimpered and stood the best he could while shaking all over. Lifting his chin, he entered the tent and paused as he considered his destination. The bathroom would be useful if the nausea continued, however slipping and falling on the tiles would be bad for his health. Dragging his feet to his bedroom, Harry almost made it to his bed when a volumeous sound was heard from the room beside his.

'Ugh!' Harry grunted loudly and slid to the floor of his room, knocking his head against the side of his mattress. It hadn't hurt, however his head felt dizzy again and he found himself in a similar situation as he had outside. His eyes closed, Harry didn't have the willpower to do anything other than clutch his queasy stomach as he lay there, wondering whose hand was pressed against his forehead. He had been rescued and it was all that mattered. Harry's rescuer didn't speak, only lifted him onto his bed as Harry groaned again at the movement. The hand returned to his forehead as Harry felt his heartbeats calming and the dizziness gradually subsided.

'Harry?'

His eyes peeled open at the voice. His sight came into focus and he saw who was in the room with him, helping to increase his comfort after the horrid ordeal of the ride. It was Severus, and Harry found he wasn't surprised.

'What happened?' Severus asked in a controlled tone. 'Are you ill?' He judged this by the way the boy still had his hands over his stomach; Harry didn't have a temperature, though his face was pale and sweaty.

'Spinning spider.' Harry shuddered.

Severus spent very little time in the actual carnival, however he did know Harry was referring to one of the rides. The mere sight of it had caused Severus to recoil, as he had only been on a few rides in his life and all of them made him ill afterwards. And still Lily had insisted he join her to make her feel braver, thinking he would simply overcome his inner conflict towards the swirling, rocketing, and wavy motions.

A year after her death, he'd gone on a roller-coaster in her memory during a moment of grief...and had passed out before it started.

Severus looked down at her son and doubted James would have reacted the same way, being the Gryffindor Quidditch-lover he had been. Yet Lily's son did not share her determination to face the fearful rides and somehow come out okay. That was reason enough for Severus to place his hand against the boy's head for a third time. Still with no fever, Severus wasn't sure what the problem was.

'How do you feel?' Severus asked the child.

'Angry.' Harry grumbled. 'Ann made me...I didn't want to go on it.' He was able to speak more now, as his headache had faded and his limbs regained strength. His stomach, however, continued to worsen. 'Sick.' He said, noticing Severus' infamous glare being aimed his way, as Harry had clearly not answered the question properly right away. 'I feel really sick.'

And for the first time since arriving at the carnival, Severus suddenly realised the consequences of not choosing to continue brewing potions whenever he pleased. He could not summon a calming draught, or an anti-nausea potion. What if Harry had been poisoned? He had no antidotes on him either. All he had were a few headache drafts, a vial of dreamless sleep, and a bottle of mild healing draft.

'Get up.' Severus said and knew the boy wouldn't, so he reached over and grasped the child by his arm to pull him from the bed.

Harry protested and groaned until his legs gave away. Severus caught the boy easily with one arm and lifted the child to carry him rather than resolve to levitation. Severus had an instinctual feeling that using magic on the boy might hinder his recovery, though he had no evidence towards this...his instincts were rarely wrong.

Severus entered the main tent and ignored the sudden silence that came over the room, which was mostly filled with carnies as they watched Severus walk around the tables with Harry limp in his arms. The Potions Master did wonder why so many where indoors during the meal as most usually ate carnival food to avoid straying far from their booths and duties.

'Is Harry alright?' One of the wizards asked.

'Did something hurt the boy?' A dark woman questioned.

Severus ignored them all as he passed the lounging area with the blue sofas and walls lined with books. He reached the back of the tent were a portion of photos were pinned on the wall and glanced right to the doorway of bright blue curtain with animated golden stars. It was the Medical Wing, which Carter had pointed out when they'd first arrived, saying it was for the ill and injured.

The curtain was moved aside by Mac, who had been staring at the photographs when he'd noticed the pair. He didn't say a word, and Severus never even glanced at him as he stepped inside the room.

It wasn't a very large room and only had three beds, a wooden desk and chair, a large wardrobe, and an open door that revealed a small bathroom. A witch sat at the desk in a violet nurse outfit. She had strawberry blonde hair and dark blue eyes, with many freckles patterning her pale skin. When he entered, she stood and pointed to a random bed where he moved to place the boy.

Severus expected her to ask what happened or wave her wand to run diagnostics as Poppy did. She did neither. The witch placed her hand to Harry's forehead like Severus had many times earlier, and it seemed to tell her everything she needed to know about his condition except how it was brought about.

'His magic is unsettled.' She said in a smooth, serious tone. 'What has Harry told you?'

'He rode the Spinning Spider.' Severus informed her. 'And feels sick.'

'I see.' She nodded and glanced at the child, who appeared to have fallen into a merciful slumber. 'The rides are embalmed with the magic that created them. Muggles don't even notice, whereas witches and wizards may absorb a tiny portion of the magic and it may mix with their own signature amounts. Either Harry has a rare allergy to shared magic, or he was under a great deal of unprepared stress while he was on it. He has no fever and his breathing is normal, therefore, I am assuming the latter.'

'Typical.' Severus frowned. 'Count on the brat to find trouble where it is unexpected.'

'On the contrary, it's very expected for the first few times until one adapts or stop feeling over-stressed on one of our rides...of course, only if they're not previously informed.' She sighed. 'I'm Gloria, by the way.'

'Severus.' He replied while being under the impression she already knew his name. 'Will the boy recover on his own?'

'Yes.' Gloria nodded. 'Let him rest an hour, then Harry should be fine.'

The pair turned away from the sleeping child when the blue curtain was thrust aside as Mina entered quickly as though she had partially ran there. She moved to Harry's side and exhaled, pleased to see he was otherwise unharmed, before she turned to Gloria and demanded answers. Severus kept his distance as the boy was being attended to, however, with Mina's state of alarm upon having heard Harry was brought to the Medical Wing, Severus expected her to fuss over the boy as so many did. Instead, she continued to surprise him and took the calmed stance he now had, once she learned Harry would be okay and only needed a bit of rest to recover.

'Harry didn't want to go on that ride, did he?' Mina asked in a quiet voice as she watched the boy and spoke only to Severus. Gloria had returned to her desk where she was shuffling through some parchment.

'Apparently not.' Severus answered. 'He has befriended a girl close to his age. Ann. He claims she forced him to ride the Spinning Spider.'

'And I believe him.' Mina growled with clenched fists. 'That girl is nothing but trouble!'

'As is the boy.' Severus rolled his eyes.

'No, Harry is not.' Mina turned to him, grabbing his right wrist and rotating him enough to face her, which he pulled away from and glared back. 'Harry isn't anything like Ann. He is a kind boy with unsatisfying curiosity and the determination to stand against any injustice except the ones against himself. Ann is a spoiled brat who has no concern for anyone else. She is destructive, disobedient, and often cruel. She's like her damn godfather.'

'With your motherly treatment of Harry, I am surprised you would dislike another child so profoundly.' Severus had paused at her words though, not only because he hadn't expected the anger directed from her towards a young girl, but because of how familiar it was. How many times had Severus said things like that to himself or aloud? Harry was an attention-seeking, spoiled brat who was just as arrogant as his father James.

'You have been here three weeks, Severus.' Mina continued. 'I have been here years. That girl was trouble from the beginning and Carter ignored the issue. He lets her run around wild and she easily picked up on his traits. She is so much like him.' She narrowed her eyes and looked away from Harry, instead staring at the floor of the tent. 'I tried to reach out to her, I tried to help her...she literally spat in my face.'

Severus didn't know what to say, or if he should comment at all.

He had to admit, he doubted Harry would do something like that...if only because the boy would not be so foolish as to risk his life with such an offensive action. He glanced at the sleeping almost-twelve-year-old and felt unsettled by Mina's words against Ann. He had always been opposed to Harry for being like his father and Severus believed it was justified...until he heard Mina talk about Ann. It was so similar, and he wondered if they saw what others did not or if they were both blinded by dislike by projecting former hatreds onto a child.

'I have noticed, from my time as a Professor, that children rarely act out in such a profoundly offensive manner without first suffering injustice.' Severus shared. 'While I do not doubt Ann is indeed a brat, such behaviours for a young girl are quite extreme. Is she deliberately seeking to harm others? There may be a greater trouble at hand with that child, if what you say is true.'

'You would be a hypocrite not to believe me.' Mina said, her tone becoming quieter again though no less angered. 'Perhaps you should meet the girl. Then you will realise why everyone calls her “chaos” and why she is the only true outcast in this entire place. She is nothing but trouble.' She turned to leave but paused and faced him, moving very close to his face as she glared in a manner he actually felt uncomfortable with.

'Tell Harry I stopped by.' Mina whispered. 'If you ever compare him to Ann again, I will demonstrate precisely how much damage to ones dignity a man can endure. Do not challenge me on this matter, Severus. You have not been here long enough to understand. Ann is dangerous to Harry. If you care anything about his mother, than I suggest you protect him from that girl before something really goes wrong.'

She turned and left the tent, leaving Severus to feel anxious and as though she knew too much about him far too easily.

Mina had eaten earlier so she had no interest in the lunch meal taking place as she returned to the carnival. Pausing by Baxer's cage, Mina looked across the path and snarled silently at Ann. The girl had her back to Mina and likely didn't notice she was being watched, as the girl pressed her hands to the glass of the snake Marlee's habitat. She was whispering quietly and the snake seemed to pay enough attention whereas normally it would ignore those around her.

Mina did not mean to judge the girl so harshly, but she had hurt Harry without caring about what he'd wanted or how lucky she was to have someone try hard to be her friend. It was all Harry wanted...a friend. Unable to stand it, Mina marched over to Ann and grasped her shoulder, spinning her around so they were facing each other.

'Harry did not want to go on the ride.' Mina said. 'Why did you force him? Why do you want to hurt him?'

'He's fine!' Ann snapped, her saddened expression becoming angry and defiant as she squirmed out of Mina's grip. 'He was scared so I taught him not to be.'

'He's in the Medical Wing.' Mina frowned. 'He's not fine.'

'He'll adapt. Bad things happen all the time.' Ann turned away, not showing any concern for the boy's ill-being. 'Why do you care? You're not his mother!'

Mina halted as Ann turned and ran away in the direction of the paddock nearby. Her sapphire gaze remained fixated on the ground below the snake's habitat. Marlee watched her carefully, her bright yellow eyes unblinking as though she knew what was going on, even if she was just a snake. Mina swallowed and was frozen by Ann's words. Severus had noticed it as well, when he said she was behaving motherly to Harry. It was true, though...Harry was not her son. He was an orphan temporarily staying with his stern teacher at a carnival. He was not her family or her child...only her friend. But that's not how she saw him now. Mina couldn't help it and hadn't even realised what she was doing until now.

He wasn't her flesh and blood...Harry wasn't her son.

'Someone ought to be.' Mina decided. 'Family isn't always blood. Harry needs me, and I will be there for him.' She glanced towards the distance near the main tent. 'Just let them try to stop me.' She turned and marched towards her own tent, ducking instead as she felt determined in her decision. Harry wasn't her child, but Mina cared about him as though he was, and in her view...nothing anyone told her was going to change that. It was instinct, really, and she couldn't help it.

Sighing, he pulled a book-shaped wooden container from her desk and looked down at it emotionally. She did not open it, only gently brushed her fingertips over the image of a flying bird hand-carved on the front.

'Sparrow.' Mina whispered as a tear-drop landed on the box.

'You're not my dad!' Harry shouted as he stormed towards the opening of his residence tent. 'Stop telling me what to do!' He knew he'd pay for his words later, but right then he was furious at Severus. He marched away from the tents and was shocked the man hadn't chased him and slaughtered him on the spot.

He'd woken two hours ago and thought he'd get to relax after his ordeal with the ride and fear of his weakened, pained state afterwards. Instead, Severus had been right there and dragged him off to their tent. Harry had endured almost half an hour of a lecture involving picking friends, allowing others to force him to do things he knew would have ill consequences, about how it was the same arrogance his father had about his assumed invincibility, and of course the man had to end it with how worried Mina had been of him.

Guilt and anger mixed with shame had caused Harry to lash out.

He was fuming as he stormed off to the carnival and didn't look back to see if the dungeons beast was following him. Why did Severus have to be so nasty to him? Harry wished it was only that, but he was still hurt by what Ann had done and worst of all...how he had reacted. He felt so ashamed of himself for letting a girl overpower him and then how dreadful he felt afterwards when she was fine. He'd ended up in the Hospital Wing and the one part that bothered him the most...he had made Mina worry.

'Mina?' Harry dashed into Lady Swan's tent and looked around for her, frantic that she didn't like him anymore or was deeply upset by his actions. Severus being angry was expected and the man cared nothing for him, but Mina had been so nice to him and he ached at the idea of losing her.

Mina wasn't in her tent.

Harry's emerald gaze darted around at the fish swimming around in the walls and wondered where she could be. It was the middle of the afternoon so she wouldn't be at the main tent. Sighing, Harry still felt a little disorientated from his moment earlier and didn't want to run around the carnival in search of her. He resigned to looking for her during dinner, as his mood was too sour at the moment anyway and he didn't want Mina to think he was angry with her.

Leaving the tent, Harry nodded in greeting to Pete at the food carts and Ryan near the Ferris Wheel. It was his duty to help out anyone who needed it when he had free time. Harry had skipped on most of those duties today to sneak around on the mission Ann had challenged him to. Kicking a small rock with his shoe, Harry decided to wander around and ask anyone if they needed help. Curious by the paddock, Harry approached it and looked around for Rose - the lady he had met a while ago by the food carts with Wildfire. She was the one he had told about Severus being his dad, which was a lie. He had tried to avoid her since, but was at loss of what else he could spend his time with.

Spotting her with a bucket nearby, dressed in the typical cowgirl attire he had come to recognise her by, Harry hurried forward before she could enter the paddock.

'Hi!' He called out and soon reached her side.

'Oh, hello Harry.' Sasha smiled at him. 'What brings you here? I heard there was an incident earlier...are you okay now?'

'Yeah.' Harry shrugged. 'You're Rose, aren't you?'

'Sure am.' Sasha nodded. 'Would you like to help me out today?'

'Okay.' Harry agreed. 'What can I do?' He looked over the wooden fence and saw the horse and zebra grazing near the other end. He glanced at the golden tent with “Rose & Grace” written on it and wondered who Grace was. He decided not to ask, though, as the bucket of grain was handed to him.

'Go on.' Sasha nudged Harry towards the fence. He didn't see a gate, so Harry carefully (while trying not to drop the bucket or spill any grain), climbed over the fence and landed inside the paddock.

'Are they...tame?' Harry asked as the chestnut horse with a chipped ear instantly looked straight at him.

'I wouldn't use that word.' Sasha told him casually. 'They're family just like the people here. Even the animals need to find the carnival too. All the ones we have here have been through hard times too. Shake the bucket to show them you've got their food.'

'I think they know.' Harry said as the horse continued to stare at him. He shook the bucket anyway, making a rattling sound that caused the zebra to jerk his head up in attention.

'Don't be afraid.' Sasha said as Harry inched away when the pair of animals trotted over to him. 'Place some grain on your hand and let them realise you're a friend.'

Harry gulped and reached his hand into the bucket, holding out a handful of seeds to the horse, who was much taller than he was. He relaxed when the creature nibbled the food and seemed perfectly friendly. The zebra made a sound and turned away, keeping his distance as though he was the nervous one.

'What's wrong?' Harry wondered if he did something he wasn't supposed to.

'This is Cleon.' Sasha pat the horse's side and looked over at the zebra with a concerned frown. 'Stripe is...well, he hasn't been eating a lot lately. I don't know why. Something has him anxious.'

Harry looked over at her and thought she was voiding saying more. Peering around Cleon to get a better view of Stripe, Harry agreed with Sasha as the zebra did look rather frantic about something. Dropping the bucket so Cleon eat with Sasha standing there, Harry grasped a handful of grain and slowly approached Stripe. He glanced at Sasha and saw her hesitant expression as though she wanted to tell him to stay away. She said nothing, so Harry assumed the zebra wasn't wild or unfriendly, only scared.

'Hello, Stripe.' Harry said in a low tone in effort to calm himself and the creature who was shaking his head and stepping backwards if Harry moved too quickly. 'I'm Harry.' He talked to the zebra, who was younger than Harry realised at first and was actually much closer to his own height. 'I'm not going to hurt you. Don't you want something to eat?' He held out the grain, which the zebra eyed eagerly, before it tossed its had back and bolted. Watching the black and white animal run to the other end of the paddock, Harry felt disappointed he hadn't reached out to it, and worried about why it was so scared.

'Can I feed them tomorrow too?' Harry asked Sasha when he returned to watch her snatching the bucket from Cleon before he ate it all.

'Of course.' Sasha said in a distracted tone, still battling for the bucket with the horse. 'I'll wait for you.'

'Thanks.' Harry smiled. 'Is there anything else you need help with?'

'Not right now.' Sasha replied and frowned at Cleon, who had won the war for the bucket and was munching the grain again. 'I have to give Grace another riding lesson. She's hoping to put on a short show at the performance tent next month.' She sighed and offered Harry a short smile. 'I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow, Harry. Thank you.'

'Sure.' Harry waved and climbed back over the fence. Once on the other side, Harry turned and gasped as he was eye-to-eye with a distrustful Ann.

'What were you doing?' She demanded to know.

'Feeding Cleon.' Harry retorted. 'Where have you been? Did you know I was in the Medical Wing? And now Severus is angry at me. It's your fault!'

'I'm sorry.' Ann said, half genuine and mostly sarcastic. 'I thought you'd recover quickly. I didn't know you were so weak.'

'I'm not weak!' Harry snapped. 'You made me go on that ride! I've never been on one before and I was...' He gulped. 'It was really mean.'

'You've never been on a ride before?' Anna's eyes widened. 'Why didn't you say so?'

'You didn't give me a chance.' Harry looked away.

'Oh.' Anna sighed. 'Well, I wouldn't have done that...had I known.'

'I didn't want to do it. Why did you make me?' Harry didn't know what to think of her, but he was starting to wonder if everyone was right when they warned him about this girl.

'You were afraid. I wanted to show you that fear only gets in the way. You have to be brave or you'll always be afraid.' Ann shrugged. 'If we're to be defined by anything, it should be that when we're scared we choose to be brave than to run away.'

Harry paused and thought about her words, thinking she would have done well in his house of Gryffindor. She looked about his age, so he did wonder about that.

'Do you go to Hogwarts?' Harry asked and looked around to make sure no muggles were nearby to overhear. 'I think you'd make a good Gryffindor.'

'No.' Ann looked hastily elsewhere.

For the first time since Harry had met her, Ann actually looked troubled and unhappy. Not angry or mocking, but sad and confused or else longing for something. He felt his annoyance towards her fade, remembering how she said she had no choice in coming to the carnival.

'How old are you?' Harry asked.

'Twelve.' Ann replied. 'Last week. I missed my chance. I'm never going to Hogwarts.'

Harry watched her struggle with her emotions, no doubt trying to hide her misery and conceal it with anger. He wondered what would have happened if he had been excited to leave the Dursleys and go to Hogwarts, only to miss his chance. He was also confused, because he had followed her a lot the past week and never had he gotten the impression it was her birthday.

No one wished her Happy Birthday and no one seemed to care at all...if anything, they avoided her.

'I want to be your friend, Ann.' Harry told her. 'I've tried, but you don't seem to like me much.'

'I do like you.' Ann was shocked by his words. 'I do now, anyway. I've never had a friend before.' She exhaled. 'Look, we can't be friends unless you face your fears.' Her irritating attitude returned. 'I can't have a wimp for a friend.'

'What am I supposed to do?' Harry grumbled. 'I don't like rides. And I hate the idea of stealing.'

'Fine.' Ann looked around and her gaze lingered at the paddock. Turning, she pointed over at the tiger's cage, which was uncovered and showed Baxer asleep inside. 'Get inside with Baxer for a full two minutes, and I'll be your friend.'

'What?' Harry yelped and stared at the tiger who seemed to hate him and always looked as though he considered Harry an easy meal. 'Are you insane? No way!'

'He won't do anything.' Ann rolled her eyes. 'Baxer acts tough, but he's really not. I promise.'

Harry did not trust her and wanted to shake his head to deny such a stupid and reckless task. He didn't think he was fair to have to prove one deserved to be friends with someone else, but he didn't like the idea of being called weak and having no friends his age at the carnival. With a lot of inner debating, Harry looked back at the slumbering caged tiger and shuddered.

He couldn't do it.

'I...'

'You're afraid.' Ann rolled her eyes. 'I've seen how scared you are of Baxer. You always avoid him and are extra careful around him. He's a big kitten, really. You're always going to fear something so ridiculous if you let fear win. What happens if I got attacked and Baxer was out of his cage? How can I count you as a friend if I don't know if you'll help me because you're too scared?' Ann stated.

Harry grit his teeth together and reluctantly realised she had a point. He was brave...he had to be, to face all those things he did in his first year at Hogwarts. But Ann didn't know any of that. She didn't know how he had tried to save the Phliosopher's stone after escaping a giant three-headed-dog, a huge chess set, poisons, and then Lord Voldemort himself.

He didn't like being called a coward...so he had to prove otherwise.

'I'll do it.' Harry's voice came out shakier than he intended. He walked over to the back of the cage and the tiger didn't acknowledge him. Ann unlatched the metal hook keeping the barred door closed and the tiger contained.

'Two whole minutes.' Ann reminded him. 'Don't be afraid. He smells weakness.'

Harry climbed up the few steps and was shaking as he reached the partially open doorway. Baxer still hadn't opened his eyes or moved as Harry slowly edged into the cage. Maybe if the animal stayed asleep, this would be easy?

'Alright, I'm counting.' Ann nodded.

Harry's breath hitched as he saw her around the front of the cage. Looking over his shoulder he saw she'd locked him in. Too scared to wake the tiger by shouting at her to let him out, or otherwise moving at all, Harry sat on his knees and stared fearfully at the sleeping cat. For thirty seconds, he began to calm and think he might actually make it. Then the cat's eyes snapped open and harry fell backwards in alarm. Gulping, too petrified to move, he stared at the tiger and tried not to cry. The big cat was on all fours in a blink, his eyes fixated on Harry's as he watched the boy who had foolishly trapped himself in his cage.

Licking his lips, Baxer snarled and moved closer.

'Ann!' Harry whimpered. 'Let me out.'

'You're fine. One minute left.' Ann said from nearby, but Harry couldn't see or even hear her properly.

'N-nice kitty.' Harry trembled as Baxer watched him hungrily.

He wished Ryan wasn't busy entertaining customers, or Pete wasn't serving a large group of teenagers with large orders, so maybe they would save him. Not even Mina could, as she wasn't in her tent and Harry had no one else to rely on. No one other than Ann.

'Forty seconds.'

Harry shivered and watched the tiger in front of him, whose eyes were staring into his own. This predator was a lot bigger than he was, but Baxer was yet to actually do anything to him. Taking a risky chance, Harry reached his shuddering hand towards the cat just as Ann announced he had been inside the cage for two minutes. She said they were friends now and he heard the latch of the door unhinged. However, it could not have been Ann when strong arms wrapped around his middle and he was forced backwards out of the cage.

'Do you have a bloody death wish?'

Harry, standing on his own two legs as the cage door slammed shut behind him and Baxer released a snarl of dislike, he stared up at the last person he wanted to be caught or saved by. Severus Snape was beyond furious...he almost looked demented as he glared down at Harry and with their previous moment that resulted in Harry storming out of the tent, the boy suddenly feared more for his life now than he had inside the cage.

'He's just a big kitten, really.' Harry gasped out and looked to Ann for support. She was nowhere in sight, though at that moment he could not blame her this time, with the expression Severus had on his face as he gripped the front of Harry's shirt.

'You foolish boy!' Severus snapped. 'Reckless with no regard for the rules, just like your father.'

'Then why did you save me?' Harry felt exhilarated with confidence after surviving the encounter with Baxer, who had returned to his nap. 'Why didn't you let him eat me if you hate me so much?' Strangely, there were tears in his eyes as he said that. Harry didn't understand why, as Severus had always said mean things to him in the past while at school.

He turned to run away, but the grip on his shirt remained and Harry could not escape this time.

'Precisely.' Severus said in a dangerously low voice. 'Regardless of your friends and allies, brat...no one was able to save you from your own foolish desire to tempt death.'

'Then why did you?' Harry was confused as he continued to try to get away. 'Why did you save me if you don't even like me?'

'Someone ought to.' Severus replied as he released his grip on Harry. The boy stumbled backwards, yet remained still as he watched intently at Severus. 'Someone ought to care. Life and people are fickle that way...when the one we need the most is not always the one we want.'

Harry was quiet for a brief moment, until he raised his chin and forced himself to face Severus with his determined, still confused, gaze of emerald curiosity.

'And who do you need, sir?'

Severus didn't answer.