The Department of Mysteries.

“No,” he gasped as he was roughly hauled to his feet.

“Oh, yes,” murmured Voldmort as he passed Harry, “and just think, this is only the first — oh wait, I mean second — death you will have to bear the guilt for. I'm not going to stop here, though, oh no. Who should I kill after your puppy? Perhaps your red-headed sidekick or that know-it-all Mudblood?”

“I won't let you kill my friends,” hissed Harry.

“And how exactly do you propose to do that?” countered Voldemort.

Harry glared at Voldmort as he strode down the corridor. His captors dragged him along as Voldemort tapped his wand on the black door and said, “The Death Chamber.”

The door opened, as did the one across from it. The Death Eaters and Harry followed Voldemort through to the Death Chamber.

Harry felt numb as he looked down at the arch before. His captors pushed him forward and he tumbled down the stairs. He felt a sharp jolt of pain in his arm as he landed hard on the stones. He clenched his eyes shut as heavy boots thudded near his head.

A rough hand hauled him to his feet and something long and hard was thrust into his aching right hand. His fingers automatically clenched around it, knowing it to be a wand. His wand.

His dazed mind began to slowly wrap around the fact that he now held a weapon in his hands.

“Don't even try it, Potter,” growled Snape.

Snape was here?

He opened his eyes to find himself surrounded on three sides by Death Eaters. Facing him was the stone arch, the black veil fluttering slightly. His knees felt weak and he nearly tumbled to the ground, but he was held up by a firm hand around his waist. A hand on his right arm directed his wand to point at his left hand.

“Now cut your hand,” said Snape.

“No,” said Harry, trying to move his hand away.

“Do it, now, Potter,” growled Snape.

Something in Snape's voice told him he had to obey, if he wanted to get out of here alive.

Harry gritted his teeth and murmured the curse that would slice his hand open.

“Kneel,” ordered Snape and he was pushed to his knees. His hand was pressed firmly into the stone and dragged across it, creating a line of blood in front of the veil. Harry grimace and a few tears escape his eyes.

“Now write Black's name in blood with your wand,” said Snape.

Harry's right hand throbbed as he obediently began writing Sirius' name, touching his wand to the cut on his hand and using it as a quill.

“Repeat after me: Retourné Sirius Black,” said Snape once he had finished.

Harry clenched his left hand into a fist and whispered the words.

“Louder, you idiot! You have to mean them,” growled Snape, smacking him. His vision wavered for a moment, and when it returned, he repeated the spell. When nothing happened, he tried again… and again… and again.

“He is incompetent, I'm afraid, my Lord,” said Snape.

“Let me try, Master.” Bellatrix Lestrange.

He heard someone approaching, then a kick to his side had him gasping for breath.

“Do it again!” she shrieked. “Now!”

Harry tried again, tears now streaming freely down his face. Sirius wasn't coming back. He was going to come back to him, because it had been his fault he'd died in the first place.

“Sirius, come back,” Harry whispered.

Bellatrix growled in frustration and hissed, “Crucio!”

Harry toppled forward onto the floor, screaming.

“Finite Incantatem!”

“Expelliarmus!”

The curse stopped, but Harry still lay where he was, too exhausted to move.

“Harry!” he heared yelled as curses began flying around him. He felt a hand on his back and shivered.

“Harry,” said Lupin.

“Professor, he wouldn't come back.”

“Who?” asked Lupin.

“Sirius,” whispered Harry.

“Harry, Sirius couldn't come back, because—“

“Remus! Come on, we have to get Harry out of here!”

Tonks.

“I'm going to have to knock you out, Harry. Using a Portkey while you're conscious probably isn't a good idea,” said Tonks.

Harry heard her incant a spell softly and then he knew no more.

~*~*~

“Shh, you'll wake him up.”

“Stay off the bed, Snuffles, we'll be right back.”

Snuffles… He remembered hearing that name before.

Something urged him to open his eyes and he did so with a soft moan. He ached all over. A furry black shape sat at the foot of his bed.

Snuffles…

“Sirius,” he whispered.

The black shape shifted, then turned. After a moment, the black shape jumped off his bed and shifted into the shape of a man with long black hair.

“Harry,” said Sirius quietly as he approached the bed.

“I thought — I thought you were d-dead,” he choked out.

“I'm sorry, Harry, but the ritual to bring me out of the veil required each participant to give up something. Remus gave up blood and I gave up my Animagus form. As you can see, I got it back, but it took a while,” said Sirius.

“Voldemort, he wants to kill you. He wants to kill all my friends,” Harry blurted out.

“We're safe here,” said Sirius.

“Well, Privet Drive was supposed to be safe too, wasn't it?” asked Harry bitterly.

“We shouldn't have risked going there in the first place,” said Sirius.

“I needed my—“ Harry stopped himself before saying wand. They didn't need to know about what was left in Privet Drive. He could get it himself. He didn't need their help, not after they thought they were helping him by lying to him about Sirius. He could take care of himself.

“Harry?” asked Sirius.

Harry rolled over to face away from Sirius and winced. He closed his eyes and ignored Sirius. He didn't need any of them. He could do this on his own.

Sirius sighed softly and Harry heard a soft scraping noise as he pulled a chair over. Harry heard a soft click and footsteps.

“He won't talk to me, Remus,” said Sirius quietly.

“He's probably stil mad that we brought you back behind his back. I don't think the last couple of days helped any, either,” said Lupin.

“We'll just wait until he's ready to talk to us,” said Tonks.

Harry was irritated that they were talking about him like that, but he still didn't want to talk to them. He was too sore to want to talk, anyways.

“Have you given him the potions yet, Lupin?”

Harry felt cold. That was Snape. What was he doing there?

“Not yet, Severus,” said Lupin.

“Incompetent,” growled Snape. Heavy boots thudded towards his bed and cold chills ran down Harry's spine.

“Get up, Potter,” said Snape.

Harry's mind screamed not to obey, but he sat up anyways. He pulled his knees up to his chest and hugged them.

“There are no Death Eaters here, Potter,” said Snape firmly and quietly.

Harry looked up and caught Snape's gaze. How could Snape know how vulnerable he felt; how hurt he was?

Snape suddenly turned away from him.

“Black, Lupin, get out,” growled Snape.

Harry almost protested before realizing that Snape was going to help him.

Sirius and Lupin both did, though, but Snape ignored their protests. When he had them out into the hallway, he slammed the door shut in their surprised faces and warded it.

Snape seated himself in the chair Sirius had vacated, and leaned closer to Harry's bed.

“Potter, when are you going to learn to quit wearing your emotions in your eyes?” asked Snape.

“What?” said Harry.

“I could see everything you were thinking and I know how you were feeling with Black and Lupin in the room.

“They've been lying to me for weeks,” hissed Harry. “I don't trust them at all.”

“Idiotic as they are, they are trying to help you.” said Snape.

“I don't want their help,” growled Harry.

Snape's next question startled Harry.

“Will you accept my help?”