As he closed his door on the last class and turned to sink into his chair to massage his temples for a bit he heard a slight whooshing sound that sounded suspiciously like the floo. Sighing he went into his office, why the castle hadn’t changed it from the potions classrooms and to the Defense against the Dark Arts floor he still couldn’t understand and instead it had given him another one by the those classrooms. He walked by and saw a piece of parchment sitting on the floor in front of old desk. Goinging around his desk and sinking into his extremely comfortable leather swivel chair he summoned the paper into his hands.

“Accio missive!” As the parchment floated towards him he caught it and turned it over looking to see who had sent it. Dumbledore. Reading it over he groaned and threw the parchment onto his desk in disgust. “Well there went my simple plans of finishing my potions.”

Closing his eyes he began to dissect the day’s events and pull out any important details. As he thought over the 5th hour class of Gryffindor and Slytherin he decided to pensieve that memory to try and figure out what the exact ingredients Crabbe had thrown into the cauldron to cause such an explosion. Walking over to the cabinet he shivered as he remembered how this particular piece of magic had caused such pain in the past year. The incidence of Potter looking through it and seeing his past ugly memories that he wished he could rid his mind of.

Carrying it back to his desk, he sat back down and began concentrating so that he could draw it out. Taking it out, he set an alarm to alert to him if anyone set foot in the outer classrooms.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Harry stalked his way across the courtyard stepping on as many leaves as he could pretending that they were Malfoy’s face.

“It’s not like I could ever actually get back for what he did today. Just look where I am heading right now, a damn double detention. A DDD! How bout just Triple D. Yeah, that’s what I’ll call it from now on. When they ask I’ll just tell them –“Sorry blokes, I’ve got a Triple D!”

Looking up, he noticed that there were a couple of girls that were standing outside of one the courtyard doors. They were staring at his chest curiously enough. “Huh…girls these days. You don’t ever know what’s going on in their minds.”

As he reached the corridor that led to the dungeons he sighed and pushed the doors open and started the descent into his long night.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Gasping as he was pulled out of the memory, Snape muttered to himself. “I will never get used to that. Ugh!”

Sitting back he pondered on what he had seen. He had seen many things. Yes many things, things that I did not particularly want to see he thought shuddering as he thought back Ms. Brown and Mr. Weasley snogging in the supply room.

He had also seen that before Crabbe, yes he had affirmed his suspicions that Crabbe had done it; Potter had had quite a good potion going. Although he would never admit that fact even if he was threatened with death.

Checking the time he realized that if Potter appreciated his life and his freedom then he would be showing up in approximately three minutes.
Turning around he walked back out to the classrooms and muttered a few well placed cleaning spells that he had invented as a young apprentice when his master had left his with dozens of cauldrons each night. As the cauldrons began to clean themselves, he looked around and muttering a few more general cleaning spells on the entire room decided that it was presentable, Horace was not as a fastidious cleaner as he was or perhaps it was because he did not give out half of the detentions that he used to.

Walking into the next room he groaned and his temper flared up again as he took in the mess around him. While it wouldn’t take much to clean up it still angered him to know that sixth years did not care that they could have killed or mortally injured someone. As he lifted his wand to begin the long incantation that would take care of the mess his alarms began to go off.

He checked his pocket watch and realized with chagrin that Potter had decided to go on the wise road tonight and come a whole minute early. He shut the door to the chaotic mess and dimmed the lights and incanted a spell that would lower the temperature about 10 degrees and slipped into the nearby corner of the room.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

As Harry entered the classroom he shivered and felt as if the breath had been stolen from him. The room was frigid! How anyone could stand this temperature was beyond him. He looked around, suspiciously of course, searching for a sign of where the greasy git was. Taking a few steps forward he had the sudden urge that comes with any terrible situation, the need to pee.

“Damn…Why does this always happen to me. Maybe if I hurry then I could make it back in time for detention.” Turning on his heel, he started to make his way out of the classroom so he could dash down to the restroom to relieve his bloody bladder. Just as he was opening the door to sprint to the nearest restroom, he heard a noise that nearly made him release his bladder right then and there.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

“Mr. Potter, now where do you think you are going? Hmm? I think it would be best if you followed me now.” Severus whispered in his most silky voice sweeping out of his corner as he saw that the boy was going try and cut out of his detention.

Walking into his office, he saw that the boy had stopped and had a peculiar expression on his face. “Well, come now. Quicken your feet! While I would not mind being out all night alas we cannot as I have the night shift.” Striding over to where he kept his tools for gathering potions ingredients he carefully packed the knives, two pairs of dragonhide gloves and several vials into a basket and grabbed another so that they could each have their own. He handed the empty basket to Potter and walked quickly out of the office then turned abruptly around. “Potter, have you flown in the dark before?” Seeing the puzzled look on the imbeciles face he sighed and muttered to himself, “Obviously not. Well tonight will have to be the first.” Turning back around they walked out of the dungeons and into the courtyard outside of the Great Hall.

Summoning two brooms he handed one to Harry and was preparing to mount the broom when Harry spoke up.

“Sir, I know that you intend to fly but I really don’t know how you expect me to see in the dark. What if I run into a tree?” Feeling extremely stupid Harry turned his head and studied the broom intensely.

“Well, well, well Potter! Don’t know everything about the lovely art of flying now do we?” Severus smirked as he took out his wand and uttered an incantation.

Harry gasped and nearly dropped his basket. Everything was glowing! It seemed as if the night had suddenly acquired a gold tint to it that gently glowed. Lifting his hand up to his face he wiggled his fingers, it seemed that it was even easier to see in this light than in the regular daytime. Harry let out a breath and mumbled, “Blimey…didn’t know that was possible!”

Severus smirked and turned back to his broom and dryly instructed him. “Follow me and do try to keep up. I expect that such a wonderful and accomplished quiddich player such as yourself should manage to be able to do that.”

Flying up into the air he turned to check if Harry was behind him. It wasn’t easy for all wizards to acclimate to lux area. But Potter seemed to have adjusted just fine and was keeping up with him. Wanting to get to the good location for picking he picked up the pace. He really did love riding the broom and missed the days of playing qudditch.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

“This is bleeding amazing! I cannot believe this. I thought I would be stuck cleaning that mess that explosion caused today. This is so much better. I wonder what I am going to be doing. Wait, maybe he is taking me out into the forest and leaving me there. He wouldn’t do that, I mean he would but he couldn’t! I am a student and it’s against the rules to even be in the forest.” Realizing that he had blindly followed his most hated professor into the dead of night he cursed and looked around at his surroundings trying to figure out where they could be headed. After a while, he gave up trying to figure it out and looked up to see if he was keeping up with the git.

Surprised he realized that Snape was a bit more than a little ahead of him. “He must be wanting to get there fast. Probably wants to murder me and have time to clear up the mess.” Leaning forward he pressed on a bit and began to catch up with the mental git.

After he caught up with him, he gave up his worried thoughts of what was ahead and decided to just enjoy the scenery.

Severus was keeping a sharp eye out for the prime spot that Hagrid had told him of. Hogwarts really was lucky to have Hagrid as their gameskeeper even though he was a poor professor that almost weekly killed or harmed a student. Severus would have never known about this patch if it hadn't been for Hagrid.

He noticed that Potter had lagged a back a bit but had caught up again and was keeping time with him. Flying for a few more minutes he pulled back and keenly looked around while dropping down to fly lower down. Reaching the clearing that glowed bright in the night he dropped down and got off his broom. Looking over he was pleased to see that Potter was already standing looking expectantly at him but with the same strange expression.

“Is there something troubling you Potter? You eat a bit too many biscuits?” Severus snidely remarked seeing that the boy still had the peculiar look on his face.

”Sir, I really need to splash my boots.” Harry responded trying to not double over and jump about like a five year-old.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Severus frowned, “Well go on then. Just don’t stray to far into the forest. And hurry! We do not have time to spare.” Turning, he knelt down and pulled on his gloves and threw the other pair along with two knives into the basket Potter had put on the ground next to the broom. He got back onto his knees and began to harvest the very expensive and hard to find sopophorous beans that grew in small patches in the forest.

Done with that patch he stood up and began walking gingerly towards the middle of the clearing. Spying a larger patch he carefully stepped towards it and stooped down and began to pick.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

As soon as Snape had finished his sarcastic remarks Harry had sped off into the forest to relieve himself. He stopped after going about 10 feet into the forest and turned to make sure Snape wasn’t looking and took care of his business.

As he was standing there, he felt a slight prickle behind his left ear. Reaching up, he slapped at it and pulled his hand back to look. Squashed on his hand was a reddish-orange bug about the size of fly.

“Of course. Just to make this night even better I get to be bitten by a strange bug in the forbidden forest. Lovely, just lovely…” Zipping up his fly he started back to the clearing.

He started walking towards Snape and abruptly paused when Snape called out at him. “Watch where you’re stepping! Stop where you are!”

Sighing Severus stood and watching his step walked toward where Harry had stopped. “I brought you here tonight so that you can help gather sopophorous beans that I need for a particular potion. These beans are very expensive and rare so I was lucky that Hagrid told me of this patch.” Gesturing with his hand at the clearing he continued, “Take care where you walk as the patches are difficult to spot.” Showing Harry what they looked like he walked back over to where he had been and continued gathering. Pausing he turned again and called out one more precaution, “Do not try to gather without the gloves. You will regret it if you do. The juices the beans secrete do not bode well for human contact.” He continued over to his basket and once again began to work.

Looking over his shoulder he was pleased to see that Potter was working as he had instructed.

Harry, carefully this time, stepped almost comically over to where he had spotted a patch. The golden light that Snape had spelled made them easier to spot as they glowed brightly.

Bending over he touched them with one gloved finger. The beans seemed to resist being touched. Getting down to his knees, he winced from an ache in his knees. Ignoring the pain, he grabbed the knife from his basket and began to cut the beans off. Grabbing one, he held it closer to his face. The bean was about a half-inch long with a spikey formation about the edges. “Magical plants are so different than muggle ones.” Thinking back to all the summers that he had labored away in his aunt’s garden he put it back down in the basket he continued to pick and thought back to all of the hot summers. He had to admit that he actually did like gardening and this night gathering was 10 times better than all those sweltering summer days. He continued picking and remembering the beautiful things his aunt’s, though rightfully his, garden had produced until he had gotten to a rhythm of picking, finding a new spot, picking and so on. It seemed as if it had only been 10 minutes when Snape called out to him that it was time to go.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Severus did not enjoy the night. It was too dark and mysterious, while he himself enjoyed being dark and mysterious that was because he could control when he was dark. The dark itself was foreboding and seemed too eager to remind him of all his past mistakes. He especially disliked being by himself in the night. In his childhood, he had always snuck over to Lily’s house during the nights of the new moon after his father had passed out and his mother had collapsed beside him. He would climb the carefully tended rose terrace onto the roof where Lily had left her window unlocked for the night because she expected him.

Realizing that he had become lost in his memories, he pushed them away and began to occlude. After he had pushed away every single thought of his Lilly he grabbed his now full basket and stood. He looked over to where the boy was working and watched for a moment, the boy seemed to be lost in his own world. He wondered for a moment if his world was a happy one or sad as his had been. "What was that?! You hate him..." He shook his head as if to banish any type of sympathy that tried to take hold.

He walked over to where the brooms lay and set his basket down. “Potter, come. It is time for us to go, it is half past twelve.” Not that Severus would mind missing his 2 o’clock morning shift he needed to get the boy back or Minerva would have an embolism.

Potter walked over to where Severus was standing and set his equally full basket next to his. He shrunk the baskets and the supplies so he could fit them in his pocket. Grabbing his broom he jumped on and rose swiftly into the gently glowing golden sky.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

“The time really seemed to have passed quickly on the way back. Hmm…” Looking up ahead to where Snape was speedily flying he snickered. “Never would have set him as a speeder. He’s not too bad of a flyer for a fogy. Wonder if he was on a quidditch team? Nah I doubt it, he didn’t seem to much of an outgoing person in his memories.” Thinking back to his occlumency lessons, Harry winced. What he had seen his father and his friends doing reminded him too much of Draco and his mob. As thoughts often did, they turned to the most painful subject possible, Sirius.

While it had been over six months since Sirius died, Harry did not believe that he would ever overcome the guilt that weighed heavily on his conscious every single moment of his life. With those thoughts in his mind, Harry wished for a moment that he were still taking lessons with Snape so that he knew how to occlude these feelings away.

As they drew nearer to the castle, Harry looked over to the place where he loved most, the apple tree on the opposite side of the lake. As they passed over it he wished that he could jump off and stay the night there.

When they arrived at the courtyard where they had first started off 5 hours ago. Harry got off his broom and handed it over to Snape who looked like he wished he could have stayed in the forest as well.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

“Finite Incantatum! Well Potter, go back to your dormitory and sleep. Report back tomorrow at 7:25 for the second detention.” With that, Severus turned and headed down to drop off the brooms, baskets and beans in his office. As he walked he couldn’t help but look at the brooms with sadness in his heart. “Stupid boy, if he knew that he had ridden the same broom his mother and I used to race each other on. Although it’s not as if she ever won!” He smiled but it never reached his eyes as he rubbed his finger across the L.E. carved into the end of the broom.

He put the brooms away and relocked the cabinet. Those brooms were one of the few things that he and Lily had shared and they were more precious to him than all of his processions. He turned, dimming the lights, whispered, “Good night, my love!”

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

As Harry walked past the Great Hall, he was almost tempted to sneak up into the kitchens to grab a couple of snacks. “Nah, I better not. I’d rather not be stuck with detention from Filch as well.” Hurrying up to the dorms, he was surprised to see that all of his roommates were still up. And they did not look happy.

“Oy! What are you all up to? It’s almost two in the bloody morning!” He exclaimed. He walked over to his bed, deposited his wand in the drawer of his nightstand and took off his muddy robes and pulled a pair of pygamas out of his trunk and prepared to go take a shower.

“Well Harry. Why don’t you tell us? We here thinks that it was your fault that 55 points were taken from Gryffindor today.” Seamus looked expectantly at him. “And we think that you should pay for what you did.”

Harry speechlessly looked around the room. Neville was staring at Harry, silently looking like he wanted to speak up but couldn’t. The others just looked at Harry with hatred in their faces and Harry cleared his throat. “Uh, What do you mean? Snape didn’t even take points from me today?! So for what should I pay for? And how?”

Dean burst out, “What’d you think Harry? He probably just took them away after class! And you bloody know what we mean by how!” He advanced on Harry and took pointed his wand towards him and cast a stinging hex.

Not expecting it, Harry practically fell to the floor as Ron and Seamus joined in and cast stinging hexes, jelly-legs, tickling hex and twitching ear hexes. The three of them continued on for about 20 seconds until Harry was gasping and asking for them to stop.

Ron spoke. “Sorry Harry. But we had to do it. We all agreed earlier this evening that you should be taught a lesson to be self-aware of your surroundings so the stupid Slytherins can’t cause things like what happened earlier.” After he finished speaking they all moved back and left the room, presumably to “wash their hands” of what they had done and give Harry time to recover from their attack.

As Harry lay there, he couldn’t believe what had just happened. People he called his friends had just “punished him for something he hadn’t even done. He felt someone gently roll him over and pour something into his mouth. It tasted disgusting but he closed his eyes and drank it anyways. He opened his eyes as Neville started to rub a balm on where Seamus had hit him with his stinging hex. “Geez Neville, those guys really do how to hit a guy! Must have had a good teacher. Oh wait, that was me, should have never taught them.” As he looked up at Neville he was astonished to see that Neville was crying. “Neville! It’s all right! I probably had that one coming to me. I should have been watching my cauldron better. I knew that with Professor Slughorn gone and Snape back today that the slimy Slytherins would try to pull some nasty business. It’s not your fault!” Harry tried to reassure him but Neville just shook his head and continued to rub the balm onto his arms.

Harry sat up, “What’d ya give me Nev? That potion sure did a wonder on me. I’m feeling pretty good.” He smiled at Neville who shakily returned it. “It’s a rejuvenation and pain potion. My Gran sent me it to me last year when I mentioned that my body was hurting after out DA sessions. Guess she was proud that I was learning how to fight because usually she tells me to ‘Become a man Neville!’” Neville said trying to imitate his quite intimidating grandmother was actually quite funny and Harry laughed. “Although, Neville added. “You will definitely feel the pain tomorrow. I always found it was best to go to sleep right away.”

Harry stood and grabbed his dropped pygamas from the ground. “Well, thanks for everything Nev. But I think that instead I am just going to dash out for a bit to try and clear my head. He walked over to trunk and put his pygamas back and grabbed the invisibility cloak instead.

Rushing out before Neville tried to convince him otherwise or the three came back from bathroom he got outside of the portrait and pulled the cloak over his head and began to wander.