“Sit” Snape barked,

Harry sank down on a two seater sofa. Snape remained standing, Harry found that his teacher looked even more intimidating when he had to look up at him.

“Now, Potter. I will not have you running wild around my house messing things up like you seem to do at Hogwarts.” Snape began.

Harry opened his mouth to protest but his teacher held up a hand to silence him.

“As I already mentioned for the first week of the holidays you will stay in your room, afterwards you will be allowed access to the rest of the house however.”

Harry sighed, he knew there would be a however somewhere.

“There are certain rooms that are strictly forbidden. My bedroom is one of them. The other rooms that are off limits are my lab, store room and library.” Snape said glaring at Harry ferociously.

“The library? Can’t I go in there?” Harry asked, he had been counting on finding some nice defence books to pass the time.

“Why would the great Harry Potter want to step foot in something as educational as a library?” Snape sneered.

I-I-I might need some books for my homework.” Harry suggested.

“Then you should have bought some! It is not my duty to lend out my things to little toe rags like you, Potter. You are hardly poor. If I lent you anything you would probably break it with how careless you are.”

“I wouldn’t break anything.” Harry promised.

“Why is the famous Harry Potter worried about his homework anyway?” Snape asked suspiciously.

There was no way that Harry was going to admit that this would be the first year he wouldn’t have to do his homework under the duvet of his bed and he was quite hoping to produce something legible and well written that would get at least an E.

“I quite like reading.” Harry said at last.

Snape had to cover up his shock, James Potter’s son liked reading!?! That was certainly a surprise. He began to wonder if there was more to Harry then meets the eye.

“You can’t go in the Library because there are a lot of books in there which are completely unsuitable for your age group and are quite dangerous.” Snape explained almost humanly.

“Oh,” Harry said lamely.

Snape couldn’t help noticing that the boy looked quite disappointed. “However, if you prove to be trustworthy I may perhaps allow you to enter the library with my supervision.” Snape offered reluctantly.

Harry brightened. “Really? Thanks!”

“The expression thanks is an abbreviation of the word thank you. You will use proper English in my house.” Snape said to distract himself from what Har- no Potter had just said.

“Moving back to the rules,” Snape started.

Harry’s face fell, he had foolishly hoped that was it.

“You will also apply proper table manners, certainly not like the abysmally small amount you showed last night. You will also be expected to be in bed by eight o clock each night and to be in the kitchen by quarter past six each morning. Lunch will be served at twelve sharp and Tea at six. I am very keen on punctuality Mr. Potter. You would not like the consequences should you turn up at any meal late.”

Harry gulped.

“There will also be some items that you will not be permitted to have, I will go through your trunk after concluding this talk. I must pre-warn you however that one of those items will be your broom.”

“What!?!” Harry squeaked. Sure, he could never go flying at the Dursleys but he had really thought it would be different here and he thought the perfect way to escape Snape would be some flying.

“The wards around the house are not yet tested. In a few weeks they will be strong enough for me to test and then I will decide whether you will be permitted to fly.” He pressed on quickly before Potter could argue further. “You will have a few chores, you will be expected to keep your own room tidy and you must wash up after meals.” He expected Potter to argue that he had never washed up before and that it was far above him and so he quickly added “I cook you wash up, that is fair is it not?”

To Snape’s surprise Harry just nodded.

“ When you are allowed out of your room you will be able to explore the grounds. They are fairly vast but eventually you will get to the end of them. You must not go over the fence marking the end. The wards end there and it would be unsafe to proceed further. Finally I expect you to treat me with respect and in return I will do the same for you.”

Harry looked slightly surprised but he nodded eagerly.

Snape leaned over Harry and whispered. “Should you break those rules, Potter, the consequences will be most severe.”

Harry shrank back finding the Professor far too close for comfort.

“And I think that is everything though if I think of anything else, you will hear about it.”

Harry sank slightly further into the cushions on the sofa, was it his imagination or did that sound like a threat?

“And now we will go through your trunk.” Snape decided and strode purposefully out of the room and all the stairs with his robe billowing out behind him. Harry followed very reluctantly.

Five minutes later found Snape crouched on the floor, Harry’s trunk beside him and his long fingers picking through Harry’s possessions as though he was going through last weeks rubbish. Harry hovered above him awkwardly.

Snape quickly established two piles, the keep pile and the confiscated pile. All of Harry’s school uniform went straight to the keep pile as did his school books and quills. Snape seemed to be rather enjoying himself as he took Harry’s invisibility cloak and made it the first item in the confiscated pile quickly to be followed by some Honeydukes sweets and some Zonko products. Harry sighed in relief when he remembered his latest parcel from the Weasleys was still hidden securely under his bed. He was bought out of his thoughts by Snape’s sudden exclamation.

“What is this, Mr Potter!?!” Snape sneered as he held up on of Dudleys old outfits that Harry had to wear in the summer. Snape held it far out in front of him with two fingers as though it was the most disgusting thing he had ever seen.

Harry stared at him in horror and said nothing. Snape bent back over the trunk and bought out several other outfits of the same ragged condition.

“I’m waiting,” Snape snapped.

“Erm, play clothes?” Harry offered.

“Then where, pray tell, are your normal clothes?” Snape asked, his beetle black eyes narrowed.

“I forgot them?” Harry answered uncertainly.

“There is nothing I hate more than lies, Mr Potter, so I suggest you try that question again.” Snape said silkily.

“Fine!” Harry exploded. “I wear them at home. Like you care!”

Snape was on his feet so fast that Harry nearly fell backwards in surprise.

“Do not ever talk to me like that!” Snape growled pointing one finger at Harry menacingly.

“Sorry,” Harry muttered.

“And for your information, I do care.” Snape realised how that sounded and was quick to add a sarky remark. “We can’t have our little hero going around in rags, can we?”

Harry went red but bit his tongue.

“We will have to buy you some new ones tomorrow, there is no way you are going around my house dressed like a house elf.”

Harry blinked in surprise, Snape was being nice?

“You can wear what you have on now tomorrow” Snape finished before turning back to Harry’s trunk.

Harry looked down at his outfit, it was his only ‘normal’ outfit and he had gotten it to cover up his home life from the Weasleys. He had had to send off for it while at Hogwarts but it had been worth it. It was a simple outfit, a pair of jeans and a plain black top, but to Harry it was brilliant because it was his and no one had ever worn it before him. He nearly fell over backwards as Snape suddenly shoved all of his clothes into his hanging arms.

“Take these to the bin and come straight back,” He ordered. Harry went as quickly as possible.

He couldn’t help coming back into the room with a big smile on his face, he was finally free from all of the awful clothes! His smile slipped off his face the second he realised what Snape was studying.

“Is this the parchment you had while wandering Hogwarts last year which insulted me when I tried to get it to reveal its spell?” Snape asked, turning to glare at Harry.

“Huh?”

“Say pardon me not huh!” Snape ordered. “I just find it strange that you have one blank piece of parchment in your trunk and it has the exact same small rip in the corner as the one I caught you with before.”

“Oh, erm,” Harry tried to think of a very good excuse.

“Attached to it are you, Potter?” Snape mocked but to Harry’s relief he laid the parchment in the keep pile. The rest of the trunk was merely odds and ends and so they finished quickly.

Snape gathered the, to Harry’s dismay, rather large confiscated pile and after ordering Harry to put the rest back into his trunk exited the room.

“I will call you when it is time for lunch” Snape said as he was walking down the hall. “Do not leave your room until then, unless of course you need the toilet and that is just across the corridor.”

Harry shoved all of his things back into his case untidily though he laid his photograph album and the Marauders Map on the top carefully. Then he dropped back onto his bed and sighed. There was so many rules, there was no way he would be able to abide by all of them. He hoped it was a good long time into the summer before he broke any though, he didn’t want to spend all of his summer stuck in his room! If he held out until near the end of the summer at least he could look forward to going back to Hogwarts.

He wanted to try and not break any though, he wanted to prove to Snape that he was not as bad as he thought. He didn’t know why, it wasn’t like he cared what the old bat thought, Harry told himself. But at least it would give him something to do over the summer.

If only Harry knew how soon he would break not one, not even two but three of those sacred rules…