Harry thought he'd been pretty lucky so far in this impromptu match against Draco. The Slytherin had leapt out from around a corner on the second floor during dinner hour, and while Harry had been startled briefly, he had managed to hold his own. They sent several hexes back and forth before the thought crossed Harry's mind to ask Draco why they were dueling. 'Just because I want to show you who's boss' or some such nonsense was the reply. Harry hadn't been paying too much attention because he'd been hexing, blocking, charming, blocking, hexing, dodging... yes, he'd been very lucky. He didn't even know half the curses Draco was throwing at him. He was certain some of them had to be dark, what with Malfoy's father being who he was, but aside from the possibility of severe consequences (he really hoped he wasn't going to be turned into a toad or something), he was having fun. He'd already hit Draco with a stinging hex in his shoulder, and was pleased that every time the other boy shouted something out, he was able to block it, causing Draco to become more and more frustrated. This was better than Defense class, Harry thought. That was until a throat cleared behind him, and he turned to see what teacher had caught them. Harry's luck chose that exact moment to step out and take a break.

As soon as he saw Snape five feet off, his back felt warm and he knew Draco had hit him with something. The warmth spread through his body, into his stomach, and Harry frowned as an orange light emanated from his stomach, flew to the wall, and rebounded, hitting Snape's hand.

"Idiots!" Snape shouted, looking venomous. He stalked forward past Harry to where Draco was standing and began shouting at him. Harry tried to listen, but couldn't catch much past the basic inquiry as to what curse Draco had used. His ears were working fine, but there was something wrong with his stomach. Was it so upset because his vision had blurred and the room was spinning? He dropped to his knees and clamped his hand over his mouth. No, no, not here! He couldn't sick up in front of Snape and Draco! But he did. Right there on the corridor floor. Snape turned on his heel to stare down at Harry in disgust and stalked back over to him. At least his stomach was feeling better, he thought as the Potion's Master vanished the sick away and glared down at him.

"What have you to say for yourself?"

"I came around the corner and he started hexing me."

"See! I told you professor! He's just copying my answer!" Draco said almost in a whine.

"Be quite Draco," Snape snapped. "The fact that you would use an unknown curse against anybody is asinine!" Draco for his part took a step back and looked contrite, or at least as contrite as he could look with bright red cheeks as he stared at the corridor floor.

"Are you ill Potter?"

"I- I dunno. All the sudden I just felt sick."

"You will be lucky if that is the only effect of the curse. Go to the Hospital Wing, and as soon as you are released, you will report for detention with Filch."

"What about Draco?" Harry got to his feet. Draco was over there smirking and Harry had the feeling the blonde was going to get away scott free. None of this was Harry's fault, not really.

"Do as I say Potter. Or would you like to lose another fifteen house points?"

"No sir." Harry stuffed his hands in his pockets and dragged his feet as he moved away in the direction of the Hospital Wing, but he didn't even make it around the corner before he fell over sideways from another bout of dizziness, and felt like he needed to be sick again. There were garbled voices for a moment, and then Snape seemed to be down on his level.

"Up Potter. I will accompany you to the Hospital Wing." He didn't sound happy about having to take Harry, but once Harry was on his feet again, he felt better. How odd. In a few short minutes, Harry found himself deposited on a Hospital Wing bed. Madam Pomfrey was there in a flash and he wondered as he often had in the past, if she'd placed some sort of spell on the ward to know ahead of time when she was needed.

Snape explained in as little detail as possible how he'd found two dunderhead students dueling and how Harry had been hit with an unknown curse that had so far made him sick, and Harry filled in the rest of the details about being dizzy and hearing garbled voices.

"And it gets better when Professor Snape comes near?" she questioned.

Harry frowned as he thought about it. "Uh... I, I don't know." She turned to Snape and made a 'shoo-ing' motion. Irritated, he strode towards the door, and immediately Harry grabbed his stomach and gasped for breath. Snape came back over and Harry was surprised to find himself on his back on the bed, apparently where he'd fallen.

Looking as though she was working desperately hard to stifle a laugh, Madam Pomfrey said, "Harry, you're grounded."

He raised his brows. "Can you do that here? The Professor already gave me detention."

"I'm sure he did. I doubt he knew he'd be supervising the entire thing himself."

"Pardon?" Snape asked, looking sour. A fleeting thought came to Harry at that moment, that he'd never seen the man look anything except sour.

"It's not a curse at all Severus, but a spell meant to punish errant children. It's a grounding spell."

"And what, pray tell, does this spell do?"

"It's meant to keep children in line. Typically a parent casts it and however far away they are from the child at the time of casting is the distance the child is allowed to travel from the parent. You said it rebounded off the wall and hit you? I'm guessing you were five feet away from Harry."

"But Draco cast it," Harry said desperately. Even being forced to be five feet from Draco would be better than being that close to Snape. How long was this stupid spell supposed to last for anyway?

"Undo it then," Snape drawled, trying to ignore Harry's whine as he wished Pomfrey would hurry up because he had better things to be doing.

"I can't Severus. Either the caster must undo the spell or it must wear off."

"What is the counter?"

"There isn't a specific counter I'm afraid. It's not a specific spell, more a thought process transferred into magic. Mr. Malfoy could have been thinking anything with anger or frustration towards Mr. Potter and wishing he'd be punished or made to pay for some wrongdoing. The only way for him to counter it would be to think the exact opposite of what he thought to make the spell. It's meant to work this way so a child can't undo the spell themselves or have one of their siblings or friends do it. Only the parent knows how to counter it."

Harry was sure at that moment, that he heard the man before him growl faintly.

"And how long does this infernal spell last?"

"Generally no more than a few days, but depending on the energy poured into it, it could last for up to a week."

"You are telling me that I will be tied to Potter for seven days? Can you not give him a stomach draught?"

"It may not last that long. It's Friday, so hopefully it will wear off by Monday morning. Unfortunately I can't give him anything to counteract it. If you move far enough away he will pass out. I wouldn't suggest trying it. It could be dangerous if he fell and hit his head. When one passes out they also lose control of their faculties. It's a very effective punishment."

Snape was right there in front of him, but Harry felt like his head was spinning with this information. Seven days? How was he supposed to spend seven days with the man? He didn't even care about missing his classes... he would have to sleep near the man. And what about using the bathroom? He'd have no privacy at all! Sure, there were stalls, but that didn't mean he wanted the man there all the time telling him to hurry up already... and he definitely didn't want to sleep in the man's quarters. He'd probably make Harry sleep on the cold stone floor. If he was going to do that, Harry thought, maybe he'd get lucky and let Harry sleep in the hallway outside his quarters. Harry never slept well, and the last thing he needed was to be yelled at every time he woke up from a dream, or twitched. Snape made him nervous enough as it was.

"Come here Potter." Snape turned on his heel and headed for the door, and Harry leapt off the bed to follow him, not eager to have a repeat of the dizziness or throwing up that he'd experienced three times in the last twenty minutes.

"I'll inform the Headmaster," Harry heard Madam Pomfrey call as they flew through the door into the corridor, and Harry could never be sure, but he thought he heard her laughing as the heavy door boomed closed.

Snape muttered all the way down through the castle, but Harry didn't catch much of it because he was working hard to keep up. The man's long strides meant Harry had to run to keep up, which was a problem because if he got too close, the billowing cloak would fly up in his face (or he'd get close to stepping on it, something he didn't fancy doing just now... or ever). If he got too far then he'd end up on his knees, something he also didn't want. Before he knew it, they were in the dungeons and Snape was leading him down corridors he'd never been in before. Suddenly the man stopped and turned and Harry almost ran head first into his chest.

"You listen to me Potter," he said, eyes narrowed so much Harry wondered if they were even open. "You will do exactly as I say, without complaint. You will touch nothing. You will repeat nothing. You will keep yourself occupied, and you will not speak unless spoken to. If you do, there will be dire consequences. Do I make myself clear?"

Harry nodded, afraid to say anything now that he'd been told not to. Uncle Vernon had told Harry once that he wasn't to say anything, and Harry had made the mistake of asking him a question about the rules a moment later, not realizing the rule had already gone into effect. That hadn't been a pleasant punishment either.

Without warning Snape turned and strode away again and Harry followed, though they were going at a much slower pace now. They went up a small flight of stairs at the end of the corridor and found themselves at a wooden door. Snape pulled out an ancient looking key and unlocked it as he said a password, which Harry couldn't hear since he'd whispered it. The room beyond the door was... surprising. It wasn't drab or dark, or anything at all like he expected a Professor's quarters to be, especially not Snape's. It was a large round room, and Harry wondered if they were in the base of a tower. The living room was sunken by two steps and held two couches and a chair, a coffee table, book shelves and a fireplace with a warm fire. At the top of the steps on the other side of the living room was a small square table with two chairs, and an open kitchen. The only other thing in the room, aside from various rugs, decorations, and other book shelves, was a gently spiraling staircase going upwards towards what Harry could only assume was a bedroom and bathroom.

"Sit Potter." Harry followed the man down the two steps into the rounded sunken living room and sat obediently on the forest green couch (the other was gray, and he couldn't wait to tell Ron that the man's quarters looked very Slytherin. There was also a dark green rug on the floor between the two couches.

Feeling nervous, Harry watched as Snape paced back and forth on the other side of the coffee table. Occasionally he would raise one hand to rub his temple, the other resolutely planted on his hip. After several minutes, he stopped abruptly and stared at Harry.

"This is your fault Potter."

Harry didn't speak because he'd been told not to, but he did lock eyes with the man. He noted that Snape seemed surprised for a moment, but the look on his face passed quickly and was replaced with the hard features that were always set there.

"I have work to do," he finally said, and though he would never say that he knew, Harry thought the Potion's Master sounded exhausted. It wasn't that late, but maybe he'd been so angry he'd tired himself out. That had happened to Harry a lot of times.

Snape took four steps forward towards the stairs and Harry rose to follow him. He turned, glared at Harry, and kept going. There was a desk next to the front door on the raised part of the room that Harry hadn't noticed before. It wasn't as tidy as the rest of the quarters, and he watched as his Professor gathered papers, quills, and ink bottles and walked back to the gray couch, Harry in tow. Harry sat back on the green couch when he was certain Snape wasn't going anywhere again.

What was he doing anyway? Was he grading papers?

"Stop it!" Snape barked a minute later, and Harry sat up straight, startled.

"You are not to watch me grade papers. They are confidential."

Harry let out a long breath and sat back nervously on the couch. A few moments later, Snape scribbled something angrily on the top of a parchment in red ink and threw the parchment at Harry.

"Yes, that is yours, Potter. Another unsurprising fail for the day."

Harry picked it up. An enormous D (perhaps he'd written it with too much satisfaction) was plastered across the top with an angry jab mark in the underline. That sucks, he thought to himself. He'd worked hard on this essay. Hermione had told him he'd need to get good grades in Potions to get into most jobs, in or outside of the Ministry. He sat back on the couch and set the essay beside him, not bothering to look at it. He had a problem that was drawing his attention away from the bungled homework. He had to pee.

It wasn't an urgent sensation, but it would become one soon enough if he didn't get a chance to go. He couldn't talk though, could he? He'd been told specifically not to unless he'd been spoken to. He couldn't just get up and walk off either. The spell didn't effect Snape, so walking away wouldn't make Snape follow him. He thought briefly about raising his hand, but that felt too strange when they weren't in class... not that he didn't feel strange being in the man's quarters already.

With a sigh, Harry steeled himself for what was certain to be a long night (and hopefully not a long week). He'd missed dinner, he had a detention to deal with at some point in the future, and he was grounded... with Snape. And he had to pee. Great.

Seconds ticked by into minutes, and minutes into hours. In an attempt to stem the feeling that he had to go, Harry laid down on the couch and tried to sleep. Laying down worked for a while, but as the clock struck ten, Harry knew he could no longer hold it. He'd have to risk the wrath of the Potion's Master.

"Sir?"

Snape didn't even look up from his grading. "You are breaking the rules."

"I have to use the bathroom."

"You can wait. I have half an hour worth of grading left to do."

"I've been waiting since we got here."

Snape slammed his quill down on the table, breaking it, and glared at Harry. "You are nothing but a nuisance Potter."

Harry felt his cheeks turning red. It was bad enough having to ask to be taken to the bathroom. He didn't want to be yelled at for it too.

"Be gone with you. It is upstairs." He waved his hand and pulled out his wand to repair the quill. Harry stood, expecting Snape to get up too, but he didn't.

"Sir?"

"Go Potter. I don't have time to cater to your every whim. I would like to go to sleep at some point before midnight."

Harry took a tentative step forward, and then another. He reached the top of the two steps, and was exactly five feet away from Snape. One more step and his stomach gave a warning gurgle. Another step, and another gurgle. A third step, and his vision began to blur. He had to get up the stairs to that bathroom now, or there was going to be an embarrassing mess on the man's floor. Deciding to run for it, Harry leapt towards the stairs and ran up them two at at time, eyes closed and hand on the rail. He could feel and taste stomach acid in his throat and hoped he could wait until he was done in the bathroom before he was totally sick. He was already farther from Snape than he'd been in the second floor corridor and Hospital Wing. Opening his eyes he spied two blurry doors and dove for the open one. He made it to the toilet and took care of business, but was unable to even make it to the sink before he fell to his knees, the entire world seeming upside down to him and noise like waves crashing down inside his ears. The world went black and Harry was out.

---- ---- ---- ----

"You are too much trouble Potter."

Harry cracked an eye open. He could see the base of a toilet and the underside of the white sink. A shadow loomed over him and he squinted up at the light. He felt sticky and a foul smell assaulted his senses. He'd sicked up just before passing out. Snape waved his wand and everything, the mess, the stickiness, and the smell, vanished.

"This is your fault. If you had not attacked Draco, you would not be in this predicament now."

Harry slowly got off the tile floor and was glad he'd fallen on the soft shag green rug instead of the cold hard tile. He was being spoken to, but he didn't think Snape would take kindly to him saying again that it had been Malfoy's fault, so he kept his mouth shut.

"Wash your hands and face and rinse your mouth out, and be quick about it."

Harry did what he was told, feeling weak and tired from being sick so often in just a few hours, and slowly followed Snape back down the spiral staircase.

"You are far too dramatic for your own good," Snape said as he sat back on the gray couch. Harry sat back on the green couch and laid down. He didn't feel good despite being less than five feet from Snape. He turned his back to the man and faced the back of the couch. This wasn't a fair punishment at all, even if he had attacked Draco, which he hadn't. He wondered if Mrs. Weasley had ever used this spell on one of her children, but then knew that she wouldn't. It was too cruel. Too embarrassing. If his mother had been alive, she never would have used it, he was sure. It wasn't long before he was asleep though, and he didn't have to think about it anymore. Snape was still awake though, and still seething.

The Potter brat was asleep, on his couch! Severus would be forced to sleep on a couch now as well, and it disgusted him to be held captive like this in his own home. How embarrassing to have a student in his home! To have to sleep in the living room near him! To have to cater to his every whim... to have to take him to the bathroom... what about meals? He couldn't bear to take Potter to the Head table tomorrow for breakfast, which meant he'd have to cook for the spoiled brat too! The teen was one big inconvenience after another! All Gryffindors were as far as he was concerned (and sometimes the Hufflepuffs), but Potter was the worst. Worse even than the Weasley twins. Twice now he'd had to clean the boy's mess up. What next? Bathing him? He shuddered as he glared at the teen's back. He was hugging himself and looked cold. Good, Severus thought bitterly. Let the brat be cold all night. If I have to be uncomfortable than he should be too.

He finished his grading and stood to put it back on the desk, but realized he couldn't without moving five feet from Potter. Brat. Instead he waved his wand and conjured a briefcase he hadn't used in ages and sealed it shut with a protection spell. If it hadn't been Draco involved, he would have said this was all a ploy to get in and change grades on the brat's failing homework and tests.

Waving the lights down, Severus lay down on the gray couch facing Potter across the coffee table. He didn't trust the brat not to wake in the middle of the night and hex him. Just then, as if the brat knew what he was thinking, Potter stirred in the darkened room. Severus could tell he was awake, but remained quiet and after a few minutes, the Gryffindor's breathing became steady again. Severus closed his eyes but could not fall asleep, and Potter woke several more times before sleep claimed Severus.

* * *

Harry stared at the dark ceiling. He knew it was morning because his watch told him so, but other than that the room was dark because there were no windows. Across the living room, Snape slept. Harry was bored, but at this point he would rather Snape sleep all day. At least this way it felt as though Harry were alone, and that was a much better alternative to being glared at and hearing long lists of his wrong-doing.

It was almost an hour after Harry woke that Snape stirred. Harry was careful to keep his eyes on the ceiling so that Snape wouldn't accuse him of watching him as he slept, something Harry had no desire to do in any case. Snape sat up and Harry heard him say a spell before he waved the lights up. It was for his hair, Harry realized, because his hair looked brushed and normal, not like he'd just slept on the couch.

"Potter," Snape sneered as a morning greeting. "Get up."

Harry rose quietly and followed Snape up the spiraling stairs. Snape went into the bathroom and practically slammed the door shut to signal to Harry that he was to wait in the hall. Good, Harry thought. He wouldn't have to make a mad dash up the stairs again. He leaned against the stone wall and waited. A few minutes later, Snape came out and told Harry that he had less than two minutes to take care of business and be back in the hall. This was normal, Harry thought. Aunt Petunia usually had the same rule so that Harry wouldn't tie up the bathroom and keep Dudley or Uncle Vernon waiting. As soon as Harry opened the bathroom door and came out, Snape went into the bedroom across the hall and slammed that door shut. He was back out in the hall again before Harry could wonder what he was doing in there though. He had a change of clothes. Harry winced as Snape marched back into the the bathroom and the door slammed shut again. He hated that noise. If he had slammed the door, he was certain Snape would be screaming at him about being disrespectful. There was the sound of water from the other side of the door, and Harry slid down to sit with his back against the wall. At least the bathroom was small enough to afford them some privacy, he thought gratefully. If it was any bigger, they'd really be embarrassed.

While Harry was waiting, he wondered what Ron and Hermione would think about his lack of a return to the common room last night. Would he be able to talk to them today? No, probably not, Harry thought. Even if Snape decided to take him to the Great Hall to eat, Harry would be forced to sit at the staff table, and he knew Ron wouldn't want to approach Snape or the other staff in order to find out what was going on with Harry.

There was a small pop next to him and Harry startled, surprised to find fresh clothes folded neatly. Where had these come from? Maybe the elves had done it. Madam Pomfrey had said she was going to inform Dumbledore of the situation.

It was a few more minutes before the door opened, and Harry stood up, prepared to follow the man back downstairs. He doubted Snape would allow him time in the bathroom to change, but Snape stepped out and motioned for Harry to go back into the steamy bathroom.

"You have ten minutes to shower and change Potter. There are fresh towels in the cabinet."

Harry looked uncertainly at the Potions Master, and then went into the bathroom and shut the door. He was being given a chance to shower? Aunt Petunia let him shower twice a week, but even then he only had a few minutes and only after Uncle Vernon and Dudley had used up all the hot water.

Finding a towel, Harry took his clothes off and stepped into the lavish stone shower. The water came on of it's own accord like it did in the Gryffindor showers, and was thankfully still warm. Harry didn't want to push his luck and so didn't take a lot of time. He was done in three minutes, and toweling off. As he ran his fingers through his hair, Harry paused. There was a window in here. That was odd. He looked out and found himself looking out at the grounds. They must have been in the base of a tower as he suspected, and the bathroom was really on the ground floor of the castle while the rest of the quarters were in the dungeons. He used the last few minutes to rinse his mouth out with water and brush his teeth with his finger, even though he had no toothpaste. Finally, fully dressed and clean, Harry went back into the hallway where Snape stood, looking impatient. He scanned Harry, scowled at the state of his hair, and then uncrossed his arms.

"I must go to the far side of my room Potter. It is further than five feet. You will cross your arms, keep your mouth shut, and follow me. You are not to touch anything. Am I understood?"

"Yes sir."

Snape opened the door to his bedroom and lead the way in. The hairs stood up on the back of Harry's neck and arms before he even made it to the door, but once he was inside went down again. It was a normal room. The same as the rest of the quarters. There was a bed with a soft looking gray blanket, a dresser, and a wardrobe. There was another window looking out at the grounds, and across from that, another door. Where did that lead to? Back out onto the first floor somewhere? That would certainly explain why the man could seem to appear out of thin air sometimes. Maybe it was a stairwell leading up to the rest of the tower? He would have to figure it out another time though, because in the few seconds it took Harry to take all of this in, Snape was coming back towards him and the door, and shooing him out. He had a fresh robe draped over his arm. Harry went out and Snape shut the door, leaving him alone in the hallway once again.

This was very odd, Harry thought to himself. He'd been awake for less than forty five minutes, and they'd already done a dance of rearranging themselves to share the confined space they were being forced into. And more than that, Snape hadn't said anything mean to him yet. It had to be a record. Usually the man was putting him down or calling him a liar within the first few seconds of encountering him. Harry had also been allowed a change of clothes and to shower, and all of this was on top of being allowed to sleep on a soft couch. Snape could have easily levitated one of the couches to be right next to the front door and slept there, forcing Harry to sleep in the corridor on the stone floor, but hadn't.

Snape came back out and started going down the stairs, forcing Harry to follow.

"Get a chair Potter," Snape said as they made their way into the kitchen. Harry got a chair and then followed Snape to the stove. He thought he was going to be made to fix breakfast, but Snape had already opened the fridge and pulled out eggs and a number of other things. "Sit Potter," he snapped when he turned and found Harry still standing there with his hand on the back of the kitchen chair. Oh, the chair is for me he thought. He did as he was told and was surprised with the speed the man cooked porridge, eggs and bangers with the aid of magic. He was done and the mess was cleaned up within five minutes.

Harry carried his chair back to the table as Snape brought over a plate and a bowl, and then in an irritated way levitated over his cup of coffee so he didn't have to speak to Harry again to get him to go with him back to the counter. When Harry was seated he noted that Snape had the plate of warm delicious looking food in front of him, and had given Harry a bowl of gray porridge. He looked around the table to see if there was any fruit or sugar to put in it, but there was none. He knew better than to complain though, and the truth was, it was better than what he would've gotten at the Dursleys. As they ate in silence, Harry was acutely aware that his Professor was watching him. Maybe he was waiting for him to complain. Well, that wasn't going to happen. Harry didn't want a thrashing for being 'ungrateful.' He thought then that it would be incredibly rude for him not to thank the man for letting him sleep on his couch. Aunt Petunia was always telling him how rude he was for not thanking them for the things they gave him... like the thin blanket in his cupboard under the stairs, or Dudley and Vernon's scraps after dinner, or Dudley's gray hand-me-down shirts that were overlarge and threadbare. So Harry steeled his nerves as he finished and said, "Thank you."

Snape looked up, a blank expression on his face.

"For letting me sleep on your couch," Harry clarified, "and for the shower, and breakfast," he finished, feeling odder about the apology the longer it went on.

Snape snorted but didn't reply. Ok then, Harry thought, at least he can't say I'm rude. One name off of his list of names that he can't call me.

Across the table, Severus wasn't thinking about how polite the brat-who-lived was being though. He was thinking that the child was mocking him, thanking him for the dull porridge and the three minute shower he'd taken, and for making him sleep on a couch without even a blanket or pillow. The nerve. The brat was telling him he wasn't getting to him. Well, Severus would see about that.

Without warning he stood up from the table and walked towards the living room, forcing Harry to follow. He picked up the briefcase of work and went to the front door, Harry having to work hard to keep pace. The boy was silent as they went down the hall to his office (for which he was thankful), and went inside. The office being as small as it was meant that there was no place the child could go that was more than five feet away.

"You are to sit and do your homework and you are to stay silent. Do I make myself clear?"

Harry nodded, though he wasn't sure how he was going to do his work when it was up in Gryffindor tower. Snape answered that question in the next moment however. He called for a house elf, who appeared and then disappeared a few moments later, presumably up to Harry's dorm to retrieve his school work. In less than two minutes Harry had a bag full of his books, quills, parchment, notes, and a library book that wasn't his at all. He looked at the cover and found that it was one of Ron's and thought that the elf must have taken it from their shared desk by mistake. It was a novel about a group of elite wizarding spies (W.A.N.D. - Wizards Against The Nefariously Devious) who traveled the world saving Muggles from evil wizards. Maybe after he did his work he'd be allowed to read, though Harry thought the story didn't appeal to him much.

"Work Potter," Snape growled from across the desk, and Harry was brought out of his thoughts of wondering just how there could be a secret group of wizards like the back of the book described. He sat in the visitor chair and pulled out his Charms homework, though he realized that the man would probably react negatively to him using his desk space for his homework, so he pulled out a book as well and tried to balance that on his lap with his homework on top of it.

They worked quietly for hours and by the time Harry's stomach was grumbling for lunch, he'd finished all of his homework and was halfway through the first chapter of 'W.A.N.D. - The Beginning.'

"Pack your things," Snape said, and Harry looked up from Ron's book to see that Snape looked ready to leave. He hoped upon hopes that he'd take them to the Great Hall, but it was not to be as he led Harry back to the man's private quarters and into the kitchen.

Harry watched as Snape made two different sandwiches and a bowl of soup and then brought them to the table, setting the soup and meat sandwich in his own place, and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in front of Harry.

He didn't look at Snape as the man seemed to savor his hot meal and instead picked up half of his sandwich and began to eat it. Aunt Petunia sometimes made him a peanut butter and jelly sandwich if he was lucky, but it was rare, and usually she used a nasty flavor of marmalade that he despised. This one was quite good with strawberry jelly. When the first half was gone, Harry didn't feel odd at all about thanking his Professor for a lunch he actually enjoyed. At least it wasn't porridge.

"Thank you for lunch sir."

Without warning as Harry reached for the other half of the sandwich, a hand reached out from across the table and snatched the plate and half sandwich away. Harry looked up, confused.

"I don't appreciate being mocked Potter. I'm not required to feed those who mock me." With a wave of his wand, the plate flew towards a rubbish bin and the sandwich and plate both went into it, and suddenly Harry's vision closed in on the rubbish bin and he felt like he was back at the Dursleys. He was hungry, and Snape had just said he wouldn't be feeding him anymore. He had no way to escape or to get his friends to bring him food either.

From the corner of his eye he saw the man smirk but he ignored it as he stared at the trash. For the next few minutes as Snape finished his meal, Harry wondered how he could get the rest of his sandwich out of the trash without being yelled at. He'd learned long ago not to waste food, especially when he wasn't sure when his next meal would be. He was certain he could go until this spell wore off without eating, but he really didn't want to. He saw his opportunity when Snape rose to go to the counter to do the dishes and Harry had to follow him. Harry knew he'd do them with magic because he'd watched him do it after breakfast this morning, so he would have to be fast. When the man turned his back on Harry to stand at the sink, Harry crept to the edge of the counter and reached into the trash, salvaging his lunch. He stuffed the entire thing into his mouth, closing his eyes and trying not to think where this sandwich had just been, and almost swallowed it whole so he wouldn't be caught. Snape turned around barely three seconds later, and sneered at Harry.

"Brat," he muttered under his breath as he strode away to the living room, Harry trailing behind him. Had he seen him eat it?

Harry sat on the couch with his book, pretending to read as his professor read some kind of Potions Journal on the other couch. He was confused. What had he done to mock him? He couldn't think of any strange look he'd had on his face or mocking tone to his voice. All he'd done was eat his sandwich and thank him for it. He hated feeling like this, knowing he'd done something wrong but unable to figure out what so he could know what to avoid doing or saying in the future. It was like this all the time with uncle Vernon. Aunt Petunia was usually very straightforward about what she wanted Harry to do and not to do, but his uncle liked to leave things up to Harry to figure out and then punish him if he did something he wasn't supposed to do, but had done unknowingly.

He didn't know how long he sat there staring at the page without reading it, but as an uncomfortable nausea crept over his stomach, Harry looked up and noted that Snape seemed to have made progress through his own book. Maybe he shouldn't have eaten from the rubbish bin after all. Who knew what else was in there. Harry had tried not to pay attention. His lunch could have gotten some strange wizarding germs on it. Or what if Snape had thrown rancid potions into the bin and then Harry's sandwich had landed on top of them? He closed his eyes and tried to ignore the nausea. It wasn't getting any worse, but it also wasn't getting better. If he could just hold out long enough, then he could throw up in the privacy of the bathroom the next time the man lead them up there.

"Potter!"

Harry's eyes snapped open but he wished in that moment that he'd kept them shut because the room started to spin and he was certain he would lose the second half of that sandwich. The world tilted sideways and he fell onto the couch, covering his mouth.

Snape rose from the other couch, looking irritated and worried at the same time, and came around the coffee table to see why Harry was so pale and ill looking.

Oh no. Now I'm really in for it, Harry thought. The man would want to know why he was ill and Harry would have to tell him it was because he'd eaten from the trash can and disobeyed him. Clearly his lunch had been taken away as a punishment and by not accepting the consequences then (for whatever he'd done wrong), he was feeling them now.

"What is it Potter?"

"Stomach," Harry said, though he felt a little better just as had happened the day before. He wasn't certain what was going on though because he'd been five feet from his Professor when he'd started to feel this way. Harry blinked hard and looked up at the clock above the mantle piece. How long ago had he started to feel like this? Five minutes? Half an hour? Longer? They'd had lunch about noon and it was almost three now. How had the time gone by so fast?

"And you are feeling better now?"

"Slightly." He tried to sit up but his head was still spinning and he worried again that this wasn't the spell, but because of his lunch.

Snape stood and moved to the fireplace which was just a couple of feet away, and threw a handful of floo powder into it. Harry knew he was talking to somebody but he wasn't listening as he tried to control the urge he was feeling to be sick all over the couch and floor. There was someone else at his side in a few moments and he looked up and found Madam Pomfrey.

"Your stomach is bothering you?"

"Yes."

"And you feel the same as you did yesterday?"

He nodded and she ran a diagnostic spell over him before putting a damp cool cloth on his forehead. She stood up and turned to Severus and Harry tried very hard to pay attention to what they were saying.

"I did some research on this spell last night, and as it turns out, the effect of the spell depends on the degree of anger and frustration the caster was feeling when it was cast. Judging by Harry's symptoms I would say Mr. Malfoy was quite angry."

"Explain."

"When someone casts the spell to teach, the effects are not harmful. For instance, if a parent wants to teach a child not to have an undesired behavior and they cast the spell, the child may feel ill for a few moments when moving away, but when they return to the appropriate distance, they feel fine again. If someone casts the spell to punish, or with the intent of harming another, then each time the person moves away the spell takes a harder toll than the last time."

"We were within five feet."

"His new symptoms bring good and bad news. The good news is, it means the spell is starting to end. As it slowly winds down, the distance between caster and castee lessen, sometimes a foot per day, sometimes two, until the spell brings the two right next to each other."

"And the bad news?" Harry could tell that he didn't sound happy. "There are actually two pieces of bad news. The first is that when the spell brings the two parties close together, it won't end itself. It's woven so that the two parties must hug- don't give me that look Severus, I didn't invent this spell. It's meant to signify the parent forgiving the child and visa versa. The second piece of bad news is that as the spell comes to a close and the distance lessens, it's going to mean more chances for Harry to accidentally move too far away, and with the way Mr. Malfoy cast the spell, the negative effects are going to last longer and be more severe each time it happens." She turned to look at Harry then, who was finally starting to feel as though he could sit up straight again without barfing.

"How many times does this make?"

"Five," Harry said, and she turned to give Severus a glare.

"It was only three last night. He is in your charge Severus and I expect you to take care of him while he is, as does the Headmaster. Aside from this incident there is no excuse for any more to have occurred." She was pointing her finger at him and Harry was surprised he hadn't hexed her yet. He didn't look happy at the tone she was using with him, but he also looked... contrite?

"The spell shouldn't last for too many more days dear," she said as she turned and gave Harry a smile. She packed up her bag and then she was gone back the way she had come through the floo. Snape rounded on Harry and Harry wished it was possible to fade away to nothingness then be subjected to the look he was getting.

"You are too much trouble Potter. You have gotten us both into this mess."

Harry desperately wanted to open his mouth and say that it was all Draco's fault, but feared reprisal if he did. Snape turned and Harry watched as he used his wand to move the couches together a little closer and levitate the coffee table to the upper portion of the living room by the desk. Harry didn't like this at all. The spell distance was going to keep shrinking and eventually he was going to end up having to sit next to his Professor. He hoped he wouldn't end up having to sleep that close to him, although he supposed if they put the couches back to back that they'd each still be able to sleep in privacy and be one foot apart. Hopefully the spell would be broken before then though.

Snape sat back down with his book and Harry stared down at his hands. Maybe Snape was right. Maybe if he wasn't such a nuisance... Snape was as bad as the Dursleys acting like it was the worst thing ever to be in Harry's presence. It was like he was disgusted with him, and Harry thought he must have done something at some point to deserve it. Maybe that's why that escaped murderer Sirius Black was after him this year.

Harry picked up Ron's book again and tried to immerse himself in it, but was having a hard time. The story was too hard to believe and there was too much else on his mind. By dinner time, when Snape told him to stand up and go to the kitchen, he'd only read half a chapter.

Harry watched as Snape fixed a single meal this time (maybe he was tired of having to fix two separate things), and carried two plates of shepherd's pie to the table. As Harry sat, his mouth watered and his eyes darted involuntarily to the trash can. He wanted to be polite and knew he really should, but he also didn't want his dinner to end up in the trash. So Harry dug in and scarfed the dinner down before it could be taken away from him. He might have licked the plate clean, but didn't want to get scolded for it so he didn't. When he and Snape were both done Harry timidly said, "Thank you sir." He didn't want to look up at the Professor, so he stared at the table instead. Snape didn't say anything and Harry hoped it was because he wasn't in trouble. The man levitated the dishes to the sink to wash themselves and they went upstairs so they could use the bathroom. As Harry waited in the hall for his turn, he shuddered to think what would happen if he had to use it when the spell shrank again. It would be impossible for one to stand in the hall. Even now the distance was beyond four feet and Harry felt waves of nausea threatening to make him lose his dinner. Thankfully Snape was quick however and Harry was too, and they were back downstairs and within four feet of each other.

Feeling tired, Harry lay down on his couch with his back to Snape reading Ron's book sideways for a while, and ended up drifting to sleep by seven thirty, though in the end he wished he'd found something to do to keep himself awake and away from his nightmares.

As soon as Harry fell asleep, Severus abandoned his book and summoned parchment and quills to himself to continue working on an article he'd been working on for weeks for an upcoming edition of Potions Quarterly. His nerves were too frayed to work on it when Potter was awake, and it was a good thing he hadn't been engrossed in writing it earlier when he'd looked up from his book just in time to see Potter and his pale white face listing sideways onto the other couch.

* * *

Harry started to moan in his sleep. Severus looked up from the journal he was taking notes from and looked at the boy on the other couch. He wondered if the child was feeling ill again but after several moments it became apparent that he was having a nightmare. He began twisting on the couch as if trying to get away from something and then rolled off of it completely and landed on the floor with a thud. Harry woke up and scrambled to his feet a moment later. He looked around wildly and found that he was only in Snape's quarters.

"I'm sorry to say that your nightmare is reality Potter," Severus said, going back to his journal and thinking that the Gryffindor had been dreaming about the grounding spell.

"What?" Harry's voice sounded slightly panicked.

Severus looked up and sneered. "I assume you were dreaming about the grounding spell."

"Oh-" Harry said. He laid back down on the couch with his back facing his Professor. Severus could tell that he wasn't asleep yet but it wasn't long before he was. It also wasn't long before Harry was in the throes of another nightmare. It had barely been ten minutes since he'd first found himself on the floor when he began twisting on the couch again as if desperate to get away from something. "Nnn- nnnn- please." Harry threw out his arms as if trying to hold something back and then gasped, startling himself awake.

Severus watched him and was surprised that the boy's hands were shaking slightly, but didn't say anything. Instead Harry rolled over and got the book he'd been reading off of the floor and began reading, apparently giving up on sleep. Maybe it was best that he not go directly back to sleep Severus thought. Going back to sleep right after a nightmare often meant falling back into the same dream. Harry read for almost an hour before Severus looked up and realized that the book was lying open on his chest and he seemed to be asleep again. Reading had not seemed to help however because before an hour was up the boy was twisting and crying out again. From the muffled words Severus could hear it sounded like he was pleading with someone. He was just about to call out Potter's name when the boy woke himself with another gasp. His hands were shaking again.

"What are you dreaming about that is so terrifying Potter?" Severus asked, curiosity finally getting the better of him.

Harry sat up and refused to look at him. "I'm sorry sir. I'll just stay awake so you don't have to hear me." After an awkward moment of silence Harry finished, "Ron usually casts a silencing spell on my bed after I go to sleep so I won't wake everybody up."

Severus narrowed his eyes. "This happens often?"

Harry didn't answer him and instead just grabbed one of his hands in the other to keep them both from shaking.

"You did not answer either of my questions Potter."

"I'm sorry sir."

Growing frustrated with the whelp Severus clamped his mouth shut so he didn't send out biting words. He wanted answers, and insults wouldn't help at this point when the teen was half asleep and looking distressed.

"I did not ask for an apology," he finally said, calm enough to speak again. "What were you dreaming about and does this happen often?"

Harry chanced a look up and then pretending to look at Ron's book he said, "Voldemort. It happens a lot."

"You dream of the dark lord?"

"I can't help it. I can hear her screams when the dementors come near, and I pass out and, and then I can see it all happening."

"See what happening?" Though he had a feeling he didn't want to know the answer.

"Voldemort killing her. She was holding my hand and trying to get in between us."

Severus felt like he'd been kicked in the chest by a horse. The child was seeing his mother's murder night after night? Lily holding his hand as the killing curse hit her in the chest? Severus didn't even want to think about the event. He didn't know how Potter could stand seeing it over and over again.

"I-" he didn't know what to say to the child. He clearly looked embarrassed and couldn't get his hands to stop shaking. "I would give you dreamless sleep Potter, but there is currently none in stock in the school."

"It's ok sir. I'll just stay awake. I usually do."

"All night?"

Harry shrugged. Perhaps that's why the boy's essays were abysmal, Severus thought to himself. If he was having sleep disturbances and was staying awake all night to avoid them then he couldn't be expected to concentrate in school or when writing essays. He also wondered how many of the times he'd caught the boy out after curfew wandering around had been a result of him simply wanting something to do since he'd been unable to sleep.

"Do you want the dreams to stop?"

Harry looked up at him. "Yes sir. But whenever they stop for a few days, a dementor comes by and I hear her and they start all over again."

"Blasted Ministry," Severus said. He didn't want the murderer Black coming near Hogwarts anymore than the Ministry did, but that didn't mean they had to send Dementors to the school! Children had been passing out nearly once a week whenever the Dementors got hungry and decided to cross the school boundaries and go exploring. Even Draco had fallen prey to them. He huffed a sigh and then looked at Harry. "There is a way, but it will be unpleasant."

"Sir?"

"I have the ability to occlude my mind. That is to say, I can push stray thoughts away that I do not want to re-visit over and over. I also have the ability to enter another's mind and help that person push away stray thoughts."

"What does that mean?"

"If you want the nightmares to go away, I can help you." He really didn't want to enter Potter's mind and see Lily dying however. Not at all. It had taken him years to learn Occlumency so he could push all thoughts of Lily out of his own mind so he could sleep himself. He half hoped that Potter would say no.

"And- and you won't tell anyone what you see?" Harry asked timidly.

"I will not."

"Ok," he said hesitantly.

Severus sighed again and steeled himself for entering the child's mind.

"Think about your nightmares and what you do not want to have nightmares about. When I enter your mind those thoughts will be at the forefront and those are the thoughts I will help you tuck away."

Harry closed his eyes, but then opened them again. "Is it going to hurt?"

"No."

He closed his eyes again and after a few moments Severus entered his mind. There was an immediate and blinding flash of green light and the screams of Lily. Then there was a one year old Potter holding his mother's hand as she stood beside his crib, telling him that she loved him as the evil man burst into the room through the destroyed door. Severus pulled himself away from the scene. He didn't want to watch it. Instead he felt around Harry's mind for a dark space. A space that was free of turbulent emotions and images. He was surprised that he had difficulty finding such a space. Usually children had an abundance of dark space. Finally he found a space however and ushered the thoughts and images surrounding the scene to the calm space. Harry would still be able to call the memory up if he thought about it, but it wouldn't invade his dreams or his waking moments unless he wanted it to.

There were several other memories at the forefront of the Gryffindor's mind that seemed to need calming. He must have had other nightmares he wanted help to push aside.

There was a large man with a red face yelling at him and telling him that he wasn't going to eat that day as a punishment. Severus watched with surprise as Potter, (he must not have been much younger than he was now), went to a garbage bin and pulled out the scraps of the large man's meal to eat. Severus quickly ushered this thought to the dark calming space. He didn't have time to wonder about the memory because as soon as he had pushed it away there was another thought begging to be tucked away as well. It was a scene of Lily's sister Petunia telling Harry how ungrateful he was for everything they'd given him, and telling him to thank her for the threadbare blanket with holes that she'd just given to him to put on his bed. Severus looked around and didn't see a bed as Harry thanked her, only a cot. He ushered that thought off and was immediately in another image of Harry pulling food from the rubbish bin to eat. Another scene flashed before him before he could push that one away however. It was his own kitchen from the day before. Harry looked confused as his lunch was banished to the rubbish bin. And then as Severus had done the dishes, Harry had snuck to the bin and pulled the rest of his sandwich out and stuffed it into his mouth. "Brat," he watched himself say as he stalked out of the room, Harry trailing behind. Severus felt sick as he pushed those two memories from Potter's mind into the darkness. There were other memories, all equally as disturbing, and Severus tucked them all away. After fifteen he could tell that the boy had fallen asleep because the scenes stopped, and he backed out of his mind. Harry was asleep on the couch across from him.

It was clear from the variety of things he'd seen that he'd been put down and neglected at the very least. He hadn't seen any violent images, but in many of the memories Harry had been bruised. He felt angry and sick at the same time and was unable to push the new memories he had out of his own mind so that he too could sleep.

* * *

Harry rolled off the couch with a painful gasp. The spell must have shrunk again. The Potions Professor was at his side immediately and helping him sit up.

"It appears that the spell has shrunk," he said, feeling bad that the teen who so clearly needed the sleep had been woken in such a rude manner. It was morning, but Severus would have let him sleep longer.

"I gotta go to the bathroom," Harry said. "I'm gonna be sick."

Severus stood up and followed Harry out of the living room and up the stairs. The spell had apparently shrunk from four feet to one, so he had to follow him into the bathroom, where Harry was promptly sick into the loo.

"Rinse your mouth out," he said, and Harry did as he was told.

As they left the bathroom and made their way back to the living room, Severus sat on the couch next to Harry.

"This means that the spell has come to an end," he said.

Harry looked over at him and then looked away. They both knew that it meant it would officially end with a hug, and Harry knew the man would never hug him. No one wanted to hug him. Harry knew it was true because no one ever had.

"Tomorrow is Monday. There are classes. Perhaps it would be better to get it over with," Severus said, and he felt Harry shift uncomfortably beside him on the couch.

"Can't you just do that mind thing on Draco to get the counter curse?" Harry asked, feeling awkward.

"Only with his permission, which I doubt he would give."

"I'm going to curse him to be stuck with Dumbledore when this is over," Harry said. Severus gave an unexpected snort of laughter but then gave Harry a chastising look when he found the teen looking at him incredulously.

"I would not suggest it." They were silent for a moment and then Snape said, "It is time to end the curse." He lifted his arm awkwardly to put around Harry's shoulders, but Harry scooted away from him on the couch, aware that he was more than a foot away. Severus could tell that the curse was affecting him at that distance, but didn't say anything.

"I've never been hugged before," Harry said suddenly then.

"From what I saw last night, I would not doubt it."

Harry moved back over next to Snape and allowed him to put his arm around his shoulder. Harry's chest felt warm then and he and Snape began to glow with an orange light, and then the light and the warmth vanished.

Snape removed his arm. "It appears the curse has been completed."

Harry stood up and took a few steps away, testing the theory. When he didn't feel like he was going to pass out, he nodded. He picked up his bookbag and Ron's book and made for the door.

"Potter."

Harry turned back around to look at him.

"I am sorry that I threw your lunch in the garbage when you were trying to be polite."

"It's ok sir," Harry said quietly. "I'm used to it." Then he left the quarters, feeling free for the first time in days.

As he made his way up through the castle though, he felt odd. It wasn't really fair, was it? To never be hugged by someone who cared about him, because there was no one who cared. The one person who'd ever hugged him hated him and had only done it to complete the curse. Harry wished that somehow he could find someone to like him enough to give him a genuine hug. One that meant he was wanted.

* * *

Potter had bags under his eyes. Severus knew the Gryffindor must not have been sleeping again. He hadn't seen Harry's name on the list of students that had reported passing out this week from the Dementors, but that didn't mean it hadn't happened. Severus had the feeling that Harry didn't report a lot of his injuries to Madam Pomfrey. He must have been reliving Lily's death again, or perhaps some of his other unpleasant memories.

Severus Snape didn't often feel helpless, but this was one of those times. He didn't think Harry would accept his help if he offered it. The child had been avoiding eye contact with him ever since the curse had ended. There was also the problem that the Dementors were to be stationed at Hogwarts for the foreseeable future. It just wouldn't be feasible for him to help the boy occlude every night before bed since occluding meant the child fell asleep during the process. What Potter really needed was to learn how to occlude for himself, but that was unlikely to happen. The art of Occlumency and Legilimency often slipped through the grasp of most accomplished wizards. Very few ever learned the art. As far as he knew, only himself and Dumbledore knew how out of the staff at the school. He doubted the Headmaster had time to teach Potter the art, and Severus very much doubted that Potter would trust him enough to be able to learn the art from him. It took some amount of familiarity to learn since much of learning Occlumency was having someone who already knew it in your mind to show you how to push thoughts away. It was only too bad that Lupin didn't know the art. He'd heard Minerva talking about how Harry had taken to spending time with him and how Lupin was working with him to learn to cast a patronus to keep the Dementors away.

Lupin. Hm. He knew Harry better than the other staff seemed to. Maybe he could be of some use, though Severus wasn't certain how yet.

* * *

"Lupin."

The haggard looking Professor turned in the corridor to look at Severus. He gave Severus a smile but Severus wasn't sure why. They had never gotten along well in school, though Severus had to admit that he appreciated that this fourth of the Marauders hadn't picked on him relentlessly as the others had done.

"Good evening Severus. Is there something I can do for you?"

"Perhaps we can talk in private."

Lupin raised a brow but pulled out a key and opened the office door he'd just locked. "Come in," he said.

Severus followed him in and closed the door.

"You have been teaching Potter to cast a Patronus." It wasn't a question.

"I have. He has an aptitude for defense, but he's been having trouble conjuring a happy memory to form the patronus fully. I'm hopeful he'll manage before the end of the school year though."

"Minerva says you have been spending a lot of time with him."

"He comes to my office to do homework sometimes when we're not practicing. Actually, he just left a few minutes before you came up. He brought biscuits and we had tea."

"Hm."

"Was there something you wanted Severus?"

Severus didn't waste any time. Harry was obviously forming some sort of bond with Lupin. He wondered if Lupin had told him he'd been friends with his father. "The boy needs to learn occlumency."

Remus stared at him. "Why do you say that?"

"Whenever the Dementors come near he re-lives the moment the dark lord killed Lily."

Remus heaved a sigh. "I wondered why they were affecting him so adversely."

"He has nightmares brought on by those memories. His grades appear to be deteriorating because he is not getting enough sleep."

"He must have told you during the curse?"

Severus nodded.

"I noticed how tired he is. Occlumency is difficult to master though and I'm not sure the Headmaster has time to teach him."

"I will teach him." Severus didn't fail to notice the wary look the other man gave him then. He wondered what he must be thinking. Everyone in the castle knew that Severus Snape and Harry Potter loathed each other.

"What is it you want from me then?" Remus finally asked. "If you've made up your mind to help him."

"I am the only one who can teach him, but with our history I do not believe he will be willing to accept the help. You seem to have gotten close to him."

"Ah. And you wondered if I would be willing to convince him."

"No," Severus said. A surprised look filtered across Remus' face. When he didn't answer Severus said, "I want you to be there during lessons, if he consents to them. He appears to trust you. Learning occlumency requires a great deal of trust."

"Trust in the occlumens teaching him," Remus said. "How will me being there help?"

"With someone he trusts in the room, he may be able to accept the help being offered so that he can learn. Otherwise tutoring in the subject will be fruitless."

Remus gave a slow nod. "I'll speak to him then."

Severus turned to leave but at the door Remus called out to him. "Severus. This is why Lily loved you."

He turned around. What did the wolf know of it?

"She said that you always did the right thing no matter what it cost you."

Severus responded by leaving the room. It would cost him. He would have to put aside his pride and his anger if he was going to help Harry. He would have to forget about the torture James Potter put him through. He would also have to re-live Lily's death time and again just as Harry was doing. The difference was that he was an adult and more emotionally equipped than Harry to handle such things. He only hoped that Harry would agree and that Lupin's presence would be enough for Harry to learn the skills he needed.

* * *

Harry was pale and his hands were shaking. Lupin handed him a piece of chocolate and Severus wondered if the boy would throw up. He was late for his first tutoring session and Severus had been ready to start ranting about it when the boy had turned up looking like death.

"I'm sorry," Harry said, sitting in the chair and looking up at the two Professors. "I was coming back from Quidditch practice when I saw a grim. And then I felt the cold. I woke up lying on the grass. I think the grim saved me from the Dementors."

"The grim?" Remus asked, and Severus noted that the man's face was almost as pale as Harry's.

"Well when I passed out I was down by the locker rooms, and when I woke up I was up by the front steps. And my back is all wet like I was dragged through the grass."

Severus watched as some color began returning to Harry's face as he ate the chocolate, though his hands didn't stop shaking.

"If you are ready to begin," Severus prompted. Harry stuffed the last of his chocolate into his mouth and gave a nod.

"What we will be doing is much the same as the other time I helped you to tuck away memories. This time you must attempt to stay awake and participate to push the memories away."

"How do I do that?" Harry asked.

"You will pay attention to what it feels like as I push memories into the dark places in your mind. The dark places are the calm places void of turbulent emotions. You should be aware that disturbing memories that have not been dealt with will be more difficult to push aside." He noted that Harry looked confused. "Memories that you have not come to terms with and accepted."

"I'm ready," Harry said, putting on a stoic face and sitting up straight. Severus frowned. He doubted a stoic attitude would help Potter deal with anything. With a look to Remus, Severus told Harry to close his eyes and then did the same as he entered Harry's mind.

Just like the first time, there was a flash of green light, and then they were back in the room where Lily had been killed. This time she was already lying on the floor and an infant Harry was in the crib crying. Voldemort was nowhere to be seen.

Severus felt around for a dark space and just as before had a difficult time finding it. "Can you feel the difference between a turbulent space and a dark space?" he asked out loud, aware that Lupin could hear what was being said.

"One is like... like river rapids," Harry said. "The other is like water lapping the shore of the lake on a calm day."

"The turbulent spaces are difficult memories," Severus said as he watched a memory of one of his older Slytherins tripping Harry in a hall as people laughed around them. "The calm spaces are areas that have calm memories. He turned his attention to one of the rare dark spaces and watched a memory of Harry and his friends sitting in the back of the library studying quietly.

"What's the other space?" Harry asked. "The bright one."

Severus turned his attention to another rare space in Harry's mind. A brilliant white space. "Happy memories." There was a memory of people cheering for him in the Gryffindor common room after he'd won a Quidditch game. People slapped him on the back and told him how talented he was. Severus felt uncomfortable watching that memory because he'd always assumed that most of Harry's life consisted of people fawning over him. Now he knew that the opposite was true.

"Recall the memory the Dementors bring about." He didn't want to tell him to recall the memory of his mother dying. Harry did it anyway. It came to the forefront of one of the many turbulent spaces.

"The memory must be ushered to the dark space. Like sweeping dirt into a corner." Severus pushed the memory across Harry's mind to one of the dark spaces and could immediately feel the difference in Harry's mind, as though it had calmed.

"Recall a different turbulent memory," he told Harry, and Harry pulled up a memory that Severus suspected was there, but hadn't yet seen. A memory that explained bruises Severus had seen in other memories. A chubby boy and his friends surrounded Harry and took turns hitting him.

"Attempt to push the memory into one of the dark spaces."

Severus could feel Harry trying but in the end he was unsuccessful, so Severus told him to pay attention and pushed the memory to the dark space for him.

They went on like this for almost an hour before Severus became aware that Harry had fallen asleep again. He backed out of Harry's mind.

"He fell asleep," Remus said.

"He is tired."

"What did you see?"

Severus looked at him. Harry seemed to trust Remus but it wouldn't be fair to give up his secrets without his permission. "You will have to ask Harry."

"I think-" Severus stared as Remus looked away. It seemed like he was trying to work something out. "I think he's been abused," Remus said. He looked up at the Potions Professor. "He says things sometimes... about his home life."

"Your assumptions would be correct." If Harry had told him some things, than saying this much wouldn't give anything away.

"I'm going to petition the Headmaster to let me take custody of him at the end of the year," Remus said. "I don't think he'll let me because of my status, but I have to try."

Severus seemed surprised. He'd barely known Harry for four months and he wanted to get custody of him?

"You look surprised," Remus commented quietly.

"Raising a child can be an overwhelming task."

"Harry's worth it. He needs someone to look after him. I mean really look after him. We can't let him go back to his family."

"We?"

"You've seen a lot of things in his mind. I was hoping you would go with me when I talk to Dumbledore."

Severus stood up, feeling sore from sitting in the wooden chair for over an hour. "He does not deserve to be treated as he has been," he said and moved for the door.

"There's something else too," Remus said, and Severus stared at him.

"Harry said he saw the grim today. He said he saw it before school too. You know what Sirius' animagus form looked like."

"I was going to go to the Headmaster's office after I left here to inform him that Black has come onto the grounds."

"If he killed Peter and betrayed Lily and James' secret to Voldemort, then why would he save Harry from the Dementors?"

"Black is a madman," Severus said, but Remus looked like he wasn't certain of that. "He tried to kill me," he reminded him then, and Remus looked away. He remembered. It was something neither of them would ever forget.

* * *

"It was Peter Pettigrew, I swear it! That's why I went after him the day after Lily and James died!"

"Liar!" There was a flash from the end of Harry's wand and Sirius Black was thrown onto his back on the musty old bed.

Severus registered that these things were going on as he came to, head throbbing and back aching. He opened his eyes and found himself on a dusty floor in the Shrieking Shack. Black was on the bed looking fearful and half starved next to Weasley, who was obviously in pain. Granger had her wand out and aimed at Black next to Harry and Remus. Severus felt for his wand but it was gone.

"I swear Moony! I would never hurt them! I loved them!" Black plead and seemed close to tears.

"Don't talk about my parents like that!" Harry screamed. He looked close to tears himself.

"I saved you Harry," Sirius said then. "I watched over you the night you ran away from your relatives. And I dragged you away from the Dementors when they were getting ready to give you the kiss after Quidditch practice."

Severus felt sick then. The Dementors had been ready to give Potter the kiss?

"Liar," Harry said again.

"Peter would never go to Voldemort," Remus said. "He was too timid."

"He wanted power," Sirius plead again. "James wanted to give me the location of their house but I told him not to make me their secret keeper. I was afraid I'd get caught and give the secret up if I was tortured. I swear. It's Peter, it's always been Peter."

Severus contemplated getting up off the floor and hexing Black senseless, but he'd already felt around for his wand and couldn't find it, and his head really hurt.

"I can prove it," Sirius said. "You know what form Peter took. He's been hiding as this boy's rat!" He turned to Ron but Ron went pale and began shaking his head.

"Don't listen to him! He's crazy! Scabbers is just a rat!" The rat he was holding struggled to get free but couldn't manage.

"Look at his toes!" Sirius shouted. "He's missing one! The same one I cursed off when I tried to kill him the day after Lily and James died!"

Remus took a step closer to examine Ron's rat but jumped back a moment later when the rat had transformed into a poorly looking adult version of Peter Pettigrew. Ron gasped for breath under the weight before Pettigrew rolled off of the bed and scrambled to get away through the open door. Severus grabbed his legs from the floor however and the man tripped and struggled to get away.

Hermione threw a binding charm at him and Harry and Remus sent a curse at him. Peter blubbered about Sirius lying but no one could believe him when he'd pretended to be dead for 13 years.

Severus stood up finally and put his foot on Pettigrew's chest to make sure he didn't try to squirm out the door even though he was bound.

"I swear it Harry," Sirius said, tears in his eyes. "I loved you like I loved them, and I would never do anything to hurt you. I broke out of prison to prove that to you. I broke out because I saw Wormtail on your friend's shoulder in the paper. He pulled out a rumpled and worn looking front page from the Daily Prophet. It was the one with the picture of Ron and his family in Egypt. "I couldn't let Wormtail hurt you like he hurt your mum and dad."

Severus watched Harry. He looked unwell. His face was pale and his hands were shaking again.

"I'm your Godfather Harry, I'm supposed to protect you." Sirius looked from Harry to the other faces gathered there.

"We have to take you to the Headmaster," Remus said when Harry didn't say anything at all and refused to look at Sirius. "He'll know what to do." Remus turned to Severus and Severus nodded.

Peter tried to get away multiple times on the way back to the castle. He tried to transform into a rat but Severus was able to stop him from scampering away. It was all he could do not to just kill Pettigrew right there. He'd been the reason Lily had died.

"Please, please, I wouldn't hurt anyone," Pettigrew plead all the way to the castle, but no one was listening.

They were almost to the front steps when a cloud moved in the sky to reveal a full moon. Severus' felt his stomach drop as Remus started to transform.

"Get inside," Severus told Harry and the others. Sirius took Pettigrew over and ran up the steps with the children. Severus wished he knew where his wand had gone, but didn't have too much time to think on it as the transformed Lupin was staring him down, panting heavily, saliva dripping from his mouth.

"Severus!" he heard Black shout from the top of the steps, and he snapped out of the transfixed state he'd been in, unable to move. He turned and ran, knowing he couldn't outrun a werewolf to the top of the steps. He didn't have to as it turned out however, because Black had transformed and launched himself at Lupin to hold him back until Severus got inside.

"We have to help him," Harry said, frantic. "Please."

Severus stared down at the pair struggling on the steps leading to the castle. They were biting and clawing at each other. Dumbledore had denied Remus' request to take custody of Harry. Black was Harry's Godfather though, and his request to gain custody could not be denied if his name were cleared.

Severus grabbed Harry's wand and cast a summoning charm at Black, not wanting to injure Lupin with a defensive spell. Black came zooming up the steps through the air, and crashed to the floor in front of them with a thud. Severus used Harry's wand to slam the front doors and lock them not a moment too soon. They stared at the door as Lupin ripped at it from the other side, finally letting off a frustrated howl into the night.

"Severus?"

They turned to find the Headmaster at the top of the grand staircase leading to the first floor, wand out and looking wary. Severus imagined he would look the same if he came down through the castle to the sound of an angry werewolf and the sight of Sirius Black bleeding in the Entrance Hall with Peter Pettigrew tied up beside him.

Sirius looked down and hugged his injured arm to himself. Severus got the feeling that Black was anxious and not used to interacting with people or having so many around him.

"We need to speak in private," he said, and Dumbledore cast a ward around the entire Entrance Hall to prevent anyone from coming in or from overhearing what was being said. Severus spent twenty minutes explaining about the night he'd had and the events that had unfolded, but in the end Dumbledore seemed satisfied that Black was telling the truth given the evidence of Peter sitting in front of them cowering.

"It takes four members of the Wizengamot to pardon a prisoner from Azkaban. I will send for three others immediately. Until then, we will need to move to the Hospital Wing."

Harry and Hermione helped Ron up the stairs and Severus wondered why Harry hadn't moved to help his Godfather. Severus moved to help lift him up instead. Apparently his leg had also been injured in the fight with Lupin. As soon as they were in the Hospital Wing and Ron and Sirius had been placed on beds, Harry moved away to the other end of the ward. Severus followed.

"I don't think I can occlude all of this," Harry said when he walked over to him.

"I will help you."

"You're not gonna let him take me are you?"

Severus frowned down at the Gryffindor. "Explain what you mean."

"Sirius Black... you're not gonna let him take custody of me? If he's my Godfather?"

"You wish to go back to the Dursleys?"

"No, but-"

Severus didn't speak. He just waited for Harry to finish.

"Can't I just stay at the castle or something?"

"That has never been allowed. Students must return to a caregiver during the summer."

"I don't want a caregiver. I can take care of myself. That's what I told the Headmaster already."

"When did you tell him this?"

"When Remus tried to get me for the summer."

Harry was surprised when Severus grabbed his wrist roughly and dragged him out of the Hospital Wing and into the dark corridor. "Ow! What are you doing?" Severus wanted to be alone when he yelled at Harry.

"You state you do not wish to return to your abusive relatives yet you rebuff the efforts of anyone who attempts to help you to get away from them!"

"I can take care of myself!"

"Clearly," Severus said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Tell me again how a thirteen year old boy who refuses to report his injuries, who can't provide for himself, who can't defend himself from attacks against him by children his own age, who can't occlude by himself, can take care of himself. Tell me Potter."

Harry stared at him. "I hate you."

"Then hate me Potter. It's within your rights." Severus turned around, frustrated, and rubbed his temple. He'd had a pounding headache for hours. He suspected he'd hit his head at some point during the night, but couldn't remember.

"Why are you being so mean to me all of a sudden?" Harry asked, voice so quiet that Severus almost didn't hear it.

He turned and found Harry staring at his shoes.

"You need a guardian Potter. One who is fit to take care of you and willing to do so. Remus was a friend of your parents and was more than willing to spoil you rotten if you had not told the Headmaster you didn't want him as a guardian. You have heard for yourself that Black loves you and loved your parents, yet you are planning to sabotage that chance to escape your relatives before he even offers to take you."

Harry turned slightly so that his face was hidden from the irritated Potions Master.

"What Potter? What is holding you back?"

"You were friends with my mum."

Severus stared. How had the brat found that out? Probably Lupin.

"And?"

"Remus is real nice, but I'll just be a burden on him. He'll want to buy me clothes and stuff and he doesn't even have money for that for himself. And I just met Sirius. He might be ok, but he just got out of jail. How am I supposed to know what he's like? I don't think he knows what he's like." Harry turned back around to look at Severus.

Severus' mind was spinning. The boy wanted to go with Remus but knew Remus wouldn't be able to take care of him, and he wasn't sure he'd be treated well if he went with Black, who was apparently innocent but also unstable after being imprisoned falsely for so many years. Harry wanted to say yes, but apparently was waiting for the right person to ask. Severus frowned. Who was that person? Why had the boy mentioned being friends with his mother?

"You are waiting for the right person to ask," Severus said. It wasn't a question. Harry remained silent and Severus' mind kept spinning. He had gotten to know the child rather well over the last several months. They'd been having Occlumency tutoring twice a week in Lupin's office for almost two months and Harry had almost gotten the hang of it, but not quite. Severus had known when he'd started tutoring that he would get to know him though, because spending time in someone's mind would mean becoming familiar with them. Maybe Harry realized that. Perhaps he'd also become familiar with Severus' mind. Comfortable enough to trust him even. And here he was yelling at him. Maybe he was being mean.

"If I petition to gain custody of you, will you tell the Headmaster not to grant it?"

Harry stared at him, mouth open a little. His hands started to shake and he grabbed one with the other to try to stop it but it didn't work. "Are you asking because you want me, or because you think it's what I want?"

Severus thought on his question and then thought back on all the memories of Harry's that he'd seen of the Dursleys' telling him he was unworthy of any little kindness. The Dursleys ignoring him. The Dursleys telling him he was a burden they wished they'd never had to bare. "Both."

Harry stuck his hands in his pockets, finally annoyed with how they shook, but was surprised a moment later when Severus had moved up to him and put his arms around him. Severus was surprised when Harry took his hands out of his pockets and returned the gesture.

Is this what it feels like to be hugged by someone who wants you, Harry wondered. He hoped he'd have a chance to find out.

* * *
Two Months Later - June 20th

"Do you think he'll mind sleeping outside after he was on the run for so long?" Harry asked anxiously.

Severus ignored the question and was thankful when Remus answered it instead.

"Sirius loved camping. He used to go with James' family in the summers. He always said his family hated it so it was something worth doing."

"I picked out the red tent for him," Harry said, pointing to the small red tent next to Remus' tan tent. Harry and Severus had a green tent that was bigger than the other two.

"He'll love it," Remus said, stacking wood on a smile pile next to a fire ring they'd made of rocks.

Remus began telling Harry about some of the camping trips they'd taken in their school years and Severus moved off to collect more firewood, not wanting to listen to stories of the Marauders, though he knew for certain he'd be subjected to them for the next several days. When he was out of earshot, Harry asked Remus, "Do you think he'll like me?"

"Sirius?"

Harry nodded.

"Of course he will. I know you haven't seen him since the night he was cleared by the Ministry, but what he told you was true. He did love you and your parents."

"I've never had a Godfather before."

"You've never had a guardian before either," Remus pointed out, and they both looked across the clearing to where Severus was grumbling to himself and collecting firewood. "That seems to be going well for you though."

"I don't know why he suggested doing this when he doesn't want to see Sirius," Harry wondered allowed about Severus.

"Because you wanted to," Remus said.

That was still a new concept to Harry... being allowed to do things just because he wanted to. He'd wanted to spend time with Remus and Sirius before the next school year, and Severus had suggested a camping trip so Harry could get to know Sirius. He'd also suggested the possibility of Harry getting to spend time with Sirius on his own to go to a Quidditch match too if things went well. The Dursleys never would have taken Harry camping or offered to buy him tickets to something he wanted to do.

"I'm sorry I told the Headmaster no," Harry told Remus.

"Why cub? You've got nothing to be sorry about."

"I just didn't want to be a burden to you."

"You'd never be a burden Harry. Remember that."

Harry nodded.

Sirius apparated just outside of the camp with a pop a few moments later and the three of them heard Severus give an extra loud grumble from across the clearing before he disappeared into the trees completely. Sirius looked nervous and wiped a sweaty palm on the side of his pants before coming over to Harry. He was carrying a large box.

"Hi Harry," he said. "Remus said you liked Quidditch and I wanted to get you a gift to make up for all the birthdays and Christmas' I missed." He handed Harry the box.

"But you already gave me the Firebolt last year."

"I know, but you didn't know who it was from then. This will be my first official gift."

Harry sat down with the box and opened it eagerly. It was a full set of official Quidditch balls. It had a shiny red Quaffle, two Bludgers, a pair of beater's bats, and a Snitch.

"Thanks!" Harry said.

Remus motioned to an empty camp chair and Sirius sat down.

"Thanks for inviting me," he said.

"It was Severus' idea," Harry said with a grin. Sirius looked uncomfortable and Harry's face fell a little, but Remus gave him a reassuring nod.

"So- how did this happen?" Sirius asked, eyes wandering across the clearing where Severus had reappeared, still gathering wood. "I mean- how did Snape come to adopt you?"

Harry grinned. He'd been ready to tell this story for a long time. Now that it was all said and done and had worked out well for him, he found it quite funny. "It all started the day Draco Malfoy grounded me and I got stuck with Professor Snape."

Sirius gave a questioning look to Remus but Remus only laughed and let Harry continue on with the story. And Harry continued to tell that story for years to come, even to his children when they asked about Harry's life at Hogwarts. He would always tell them, "That's how I got grounded the first time by Grandpa Snape."