Severus Snape was not a happy man. That is not to say that in general he was not happy, but rather in the fact that he now had to add Harry Potter to his list of things to contend with. Trying to maintain his close relationship with Jo was a full time job in itself, especially considering that he was at Hogwarts for nine months out of the year. Add to that a future step son that wanted nothing to do with him that he was somehow supposed to bond with, and the ever evolving enigma that was Harry Potter, and he had himself one fantastic looking summer. Or was the word he was looking for dreadful?

It had been two days since he'd returned once again with the Potter brat. Where the child's family had gone, he hadn't a clue. He'd tried to contact Albus, but with no luck, and a trace charm had gotten him nowhere in finding the Dursleys. He really had no desire to talk to Harry and try to figure out where they might have gone, but knew that he didn't want to take care of their responsibility when he had enough of his own.

Keeping his mouth closed about Potter was hard when he was around Jo, who absolutely adored him. Hmpf. At least the boy was keeping himself out of trouble, going out with Sam each day and coming back only for meals. He would bet his Gringott's vault that the brat was trying to turn Sam against him. It wasn't that Sam didn't like him like most of the other students. The teen was too easy going for that. It was more that he didn't want to get to know him at all. How was he supposed to please his future wife by getting to know her son when he was gone all the time, and with Potter no less! Just another new member of the Harry Potter fan club.

Severus sighed. No, there was nothing for it. He would have to find the Dursleys, or else his summer holiday would be ruined with a three month long headache.

Harry watched as Sam helped his mom and Snape make dinner, and felt out of place. He knew that Sam didn't care to have anything to do with Snape, but the three of them were still there laughing together. Yes, Snape was laughing. Ron would never believe him.

"Would you like to chop these carrots Harry?" Joanna asked him suddenly, and Harry looked up, first at her, and then at Snape. He could tell Jo felt sorry for him, his family having just up and left him like that, but Snape didn't. He felt more than saw Snape's icy look, and said quietly, "If you'd like."

She gave him a smile. "You don't have to, but we try to prepare our family meals together."

Harry moved forward to get to the kitchen island where the bag of carrots sat, but Snape cleared his throat. "Mr. Potter. Have you finished all of your summer homework yet?"

Grabbing his arm Harry said, "No sir. They burned my books."

"Perhaps you should borrow Sam's then and get started so that you're not behind this fall. I would hate to see you start the year off on the wrong foot."

Eyes dropping momentarily, Harry said quietly, "Yes sir," and then went upstairs to Sam's room.

Yes, Harry could definitely tell that he'd intruded on his Potion Master's private life and was not welcome. A minute later though and Sam had come up the stairs behind him.

"I haven't done any of mine either," he said. "School's barely been out two weeks."

"I didn't really feel like doing it anyway," Harry said.

"Oh... yeah. I heard about the whole dark lord thing at the ministry... and your godfather."

Harry plopped down on his cot and let his head fall back against Sam's bookcase.

"Want to go bike riding after dinner?"

"Sure." Before he'd been on Sam's bike he'd never owned a bike before. He'd fixed up one of Dudley's old broken down bikes once and learned to ride, but uncle Vernon had sold it as 'payment' for Harry living there. Harry knew that Sam's second bike wasn't his, but it was nice to be able to pretend it was.

Snape was taking Sam and Jo out for ice cream, and Sam had invited Harry. Snape didn't seem pleased at all, but Harry was thankful that Sam made him not feel so out of place. Harry thought that while his new friend was quirky, he was very smart. A good match for Hermione if she hadn't already laid eyes on Ron some time ago. Maybe it was just because Sam already knew some of Harry's truths that he felt like the Ravenclaw could see through him sometimes.

"What flavor do you like Harry?" Jo asked him when they reached the ice cream parlor. They had walked even though Joanna had a Muggle car, because it was a nice evening, and Harry was ready to cool off with some ice cream.

"Chocolate chip mint," Harry said.

"Eew," Sam laughed. "I want pistachio with a scoop of bubblegum and a scoop of peanut butter.

"Now that's gross," Harry said.

"No, see, you've got to marry the flavors together."

As the server started to dish up Harry's ice cream cone, Snape gave him a look that just dared him to ask for three scoops like Sam had, and Harry looked down, quietly thanking the server when he handed him the ice cream cone.

Snape had been doing all he could to make Harry feel out of place since bringing him back from the Dursley's empty house. That was days ago, and Harry was sure that in his spare time the man was thinking of ways to be rid of him. Harry supposed he wouldn't mind going to the Weasley's, but they might not have room for him. Ron had written saying that two cousins had come to stay with them for the summer.

As they began their walk back through the quiet downtown area as the sun began to set eating their ice cream, Sam said, "Hey Harry, let's go see who's at the sports park. Sometimes after it gets dark the good riders come out."

"Be home in a couple of hours," Joanna said. Harry looked over to Snape to see if it was ok, but Snape was holding Joanna's hand as she ate her ice cream, and was determinedly not looking at either of the boys.

"C'mon," Sam said, and Harry followed him down the street as it continued to get darker.

As they walked towards the sports park, both boys with their hands in their pockets, Sam said quietly, "He really does hate you, huh?"

"I guess," Harry said dully.

"What'd you do to him?"

Harry shrugged. "Ron's dad told me once that Snape liked my mum in school. I know he hates my dad. He's always saying how I'm just like him whenever he's about to punish me."

"Well that sucks."

Harry shrugged again. "Well normally I only see him at school. He did rescue me twice this summer."

A light breeze picked up and blew through their hair. "You never said what happened when you came back."

"My aunt and uncle were gone. They moved everything out of the house."

"They didn't even leave a note?"

"I told you, they don't like me. They hate magic."

"That sucks too," Sam said. They were quiet for a while as darkness finally fell over them and they came to the entrance of the sports park. There were teens on skateboards and trick bikes all over the place. Sam had brought Harry here a few times in the day, but they'd only ever seen a few others there.

"Oh great," Sam said as they went through the gate.

"What?"

"Avery Hightower is here."

"The one who hit you last year?"

"My mortal enemy," Sam said with a light laugh.

"Well he doesn't have a wand," Harry said, sizing him up. He was tall and blond much like Draco, but his face was full and his muscles were big. He was riding a shiny new bike and was flanked by five guys their age and a couple of girls. They looked like they came from the better side of town.

"He can't ride, I don't know why he's here. His dad is a lawyer," Sam commented. "We went to the same primary school before I left for Hogwarts, and he wasn't nice then either.

As if sensing that he was being talked about, Avery looked up from across the park where he sat haughtily on his bike in the bright lamplight.

"That can't be good," Sam said, and was ready to turn and head back for the gate, but Harry was too used to standing his ground by now, and besides, Avery was riding over to them now.

"What's up Sammy boy? Or should I say mamma's boy? Where's your bike? Didn't want to bring it out to play with the big boys?"

"Right," Sam said, "because you can ride that bike your dad bought you when you threw a fit for a new one. Old one have a little scratch on it?"

Avery stepped off his bike and let it drop to the concrete. "What did you say you little puke?"

"I think he said you suck at riding," Harry said then, drawing attention to himself. The other riders in the park had stopped to watch the scene unfold.

"Yeah? And who are you? Never seen you around here before. Heywood go and find himself a new boyfriend at that boarding school his mum sent him to?"

"Nope," Harry said, "just a friend." He stepped in between Avery and Sam then and was face to face with the taller boy.

"You're asking for it punk."

"Yup." Harry didn't know why he did what he did next. Maybe it was because he was tired of being pushed around and stepped on by people like Draco and Dudley and uncle Vernon. Maybe it was his chance to get back, for him and Sam, even if Avery wasn't the face of the ones who had bullied him. Without really thinking about it however, Harry reeled back and punched Avery square in the nose, the first punch he'd ever thrown in his life, and turned tail with Sam and ran.

"I'm going to kill you two little shites! Get 'em!"

Harry looked back just long enough to see Avery with blood all over his face chasing after them with the five guys that had been crowded around him when they'd arrived. With the exception of one of them, the other four were also big muscled, and apparently very fast even on foot.

"That was awesome!" Sam shouted as they took a turn and ran towards the industrial part of town. "But they're going to kill us!"

"I try not to think about that part," Harry panted as they ran, "just run!"

The other boys catching up with them was inevitable however as some of them were on bikes. Before Harry and Sam could make the tall metal fence they had intended on escaping over, Avery was dumping his bike in front of them and two other boys were dropping their bikes behind them.

"You broke it you little f*** head. My nose is broken. Plan on me doing worse."

Harry and Sam got back to back and Harry said, "Ever fought before? Don't suppose you've got your wand."

"No and no."

"Just keep swinging," Harry said before the three guys were on top of them, pummeling and kicking. Harry never did stop swinging, and he knew he'd done some damage to the others, but he was at a distinct disadvantage already having broken ribs from uncle Vernon that had not yet been healed. A car driving by with its headlights on scared Avery and his friends away, who picked up their bikes and rode off into the night, leaving Harry and Sam laying there on the cold hard concrete.

"Does it always hurt this much?" Sam asked a few minutes later.

"Yeah," Harry said. "Always."

"Sucks."

"Yeah."

Harry and Sam pulled themselves up off the concrete and limped back towards Sam's house, Harry's arm around Sam's neck for support because he was having trouble breathing with his added injuries.

"Think your mum will be mad?" Harry asked as they finally started up the walk to the house.

"Um... it's a distinct possibility," he said. "Not at us though, at them."

"Snape's a different story though," Harry said as they pushed the door open.

They could hear the TV on in the living room and assumed that both adults were there on the couch together.

"Mum, a little help?"

Joanna and Snape appeared in the entryway a moment later and Joanna gasped, rushing to Sam. He had a brilliant black eye, a bruise on his cheek, and scratches up his arms from where they'd scraped the pavement.

"What happened to you?"

"Hightower and his friends. It's ok though, we got them back this time."

"How? By getting beaten up?"

"No, me and Harry walloped them. Harry broke Avery's nose."

She turned her attention to Harry now, who was leaning on the wall for support now being in great pain from his ribs and labored breathing.

"You helped Sam fight those boys?"

"Yes," Harry said.

"Thank you." She moved forward and touched his face just above where there was a gash, and then ushered them both into the kitchen so that she and Snape could tend to them. Jo was spending most of her time taking care of Sam's injuries, which left Harry with Snape. It was awkward to say the least.

"Broken ribs Potter? How is it that you always sustain the worst injuries from the most minor of scuffles?"

Sam and Harry gave a sideways glance at each other. They both knew that the ribs had been broken before the fight.

Both boys covered in bruise balm and having been given a pain potion (and two healing potions in Harry's case) they were sent up the stairs to bed to rest, Jo in a rage about other people's children doing harm to her child.

Once they reached Sam's room, Harry realized that he was very thirsty, and wondered if it was an effect of one of the potions. He went back down the stairs, but paused outside the kitchen door, aware that he was being talked about just inside again.

"All I'm saying is that he doesn't have to be our problem Jo."

"He helped Sam tonight Severus. Why send him away? Do you really think an orphanage is the right place for him?"

"The boy likely started the fight in the first place. You don't know him like I do. If I had had another choice in the first place I would never have brought him here. Mark my words Joanna. If he stays, there will be more trouble."

"He seems very polite to me..."

Harry had bolted back up the stairs and into Sam's room, where he stood out of breath and feeling panicky.

"What?"

Harry looked over to where Sam was laying on top of his covers.

"They're sending me away... to an orphanage. Snape is downstairs talking your mum into it now."

"My mum wouldn't do that."

Harry shook his head. "But Snape would, and he's going to."

"Well what are you going to do?"

Harry moved to his bag and threw his few pieces of clothing into it along with his wand. "Running away," he said. "I doubt an orphanage will let me return to Hogwarts in the fall."

Sam sat up now with a grimace, still in some pain. "Running to were?"

"I don't know. The Weasley's maybe. I can stay in their shed or something. Ron will hide me."

"Don't they live in Ottery St. Catchpole? That's a long ways off."

Harry stood straight now, bag over his back, and considered the second story window he would have to climb out of.

"I'll make it," he said.

Harry went to the window and lifted it, but Sam grabbed his arm. "Wait... I have a better idea. And I'm going with you."

Harry looked into his new friend's eyes, and gave a nod.

"Just so long as we go tonight."