Potions and Snitches
Snape and Harry Gen Fanfiction Archive

Author's Chapter Notes:
While teachers bicker, Harry doesn't know what to think anymore. Dumbledore calls Snape to his office...
Chapter 40: Tasks

The next few days that followed “The Moody Incident,” all of the students made sure that they did not upset any of the teachers. There was tension throughout the school and it was obvious that sides were being taken. What had first started out as furious complains soon turned to bitter resentment amongst the staff. Instead of Moody being the prime target, as the students would have thought, long standing arguments and resentment came back into light so that there were two sides: those for Heads of House and those for Headmaster along with Moody.

Moody seemed to be the straw that broke the camel’s back. The professors had all been called to a meeting with the Headmaster one evening and the students knew that it would not bode well. When it was announced to the teachers that Moody would not be let go due to his inappropriate actions in classes, the Heads of House instantly reacted negatively; for them, Albus had finally pushed too hard.

Rumor had it among the students that for the first time since anyone could remember, all four Heads of House raged against the Headmaster furiously, demanding that Moody be sacked. That’s when divisions were officially drawn. When the Headmaster had refused, several other teachers rose up with the House leaders, arguing along with them that the Defense professor had to be let go. But there were those professors that sided with Dumbledore, not because they agreed with what Moody had done, but simply because they believed that no one should go up against the Headmaster like the Heads of House were doing. And then there were those that wanted nothing to do with the feud and simply stayed out of the confrontation.

So, the first few days that followed were rough for the students at Hogwarts. Professor McGonagall was terrible. In her classes she demanded perfection from all of her students on the most difficult assignments. Though she was often a demanding teacher normally, her anger made her more focused and more impatient, resulting in her expecting more from her students.

Professor Flitwick was almost as bad as McGonagall with one difference: where McGonagall was more focused, Flitwick got angry enough that he became flustered, resulting in parts of his lectures not making much sense, which in turn, made him angrier, more so at himself than his students. And when Flitwick got angry, his voice tended to scale up an octave or so, making it hard to understand just what exactly he was squeaking out.

Professor Sprout was not too hard on her students because of her anger, but her classes were not easy to get through. She would often go off on tangents about what was wrong with the school, and while the students were working, would often mutter things to herself about the Headmaster or about Moody. In a way, she was the opposite of McGonagall and Flitwick, and her mind almost never seemed on topic.

It was Professor’s Snape’s reaction that everyone dreaded the most. The students had noticed that Snape’s actions seemed to have gotten better the first few weeks of classes, so much so that the older students began saying that Snape had reverted back to the old “P.P Era” style of teaching. (“P.P. Era” of course meaning Pre-Potter Era) But after what had happened with Moody, the students all began to become uneasy with the nasty professor.

Unlike the others, Snape did not snap or lose focus or even complain under his breath. In fact, the Slytherin professor didn’t do much of anything except scowl more and look as though he could murder anyone at any time. It was this lack of physical or verbal response that frightened the students most. In the minds of the students, Snape was a ticking time bomb just waiting to explode in their faces should something happen again. Already this year Snape seemed to be having trouble with his House, he had Harry Potter to worry about, and now he was furious over Moody.

From the very beginning all of the students could tell that the Potions Master did not like the Defense teacher, as Snape didn’t bother to hide it. Word quickly spread throughout the student body to watch out for the Slytherin. “A screaming Snape is better than a quiet one!” was the motto throughout the four Houses.

But as these things went on, Harry could not help but worry about everything that was happening. He was in the middle of all of this whether he liked it or not. What happened with the teachers, the students, the Headmaster, and no matter what, all seemed to directly involve or affect him. He could no longer hide in Gryffindor Tower, safe and away with his friends. He was now in the middle of an island of Slytherin who had no compassion for him whatsoever. The only blessing that came out of the incident with Moody was that it distracted everyone’s attention away from him.

The whole school seemed to be in an odd, suspended state as the teachers had their own cold war with the Headmaster. The Houses simply did as they were told for the most part as no one knew what would happen should rules be broken. Slytherins and Gryffindors alike seemed to have called an unofficial cease-fire while the conflict with the professors raged on, and for the first time in years, there was no direct friction between Houses.

 ~*~

On a Monday morning, Harry got up to find Malfoy already awake, reading a letter. Harry had stirred from sleep, thinking he had heard a noise, and realized that he had heard the owl come down. For just a moment, he wondered how the owl had found his roommate, but he pushed the thought aside and got up out of bed. Draco glanced at him before turning away so that the other boy could not see what his letter contained.

Harry stopped himself from snorting. He really did not care what was in the letter. It was probably just Lucius Malfoy telling his son to remember that he was better than everyone else or some other pure-blood nonsense. Honestly, Harry was just glad that the letter at least distracted the other boy away from insulting him that morning.

Despite their unofficial truce and the Moody Incident, Harry and Draco still did not like each other and were not above throwing an insult here and there. Although they were both careful not to get too aggressive, as that would alert Snape. At the moment, neither of them really wanted the Potions Master’s attention on them while he was still angry with the Defense professor.

As Harry readied to take a shower, he locked himself into the bathroom as usual, and let his mind wonder. He actually had not talked to his father for a while, not as father and son anyway, since they had talked about what Moody had done. Snape had been furious and did not seem much like listening lately, and honestly, Harry had not felt much like talking. They both had their own separate problems at the moment, and they both were trying to sort things out.

Stepping into the hot shower, Harry could not help but sigh, feeling refreshed and calmed as the warm water hit him. He was so stressed lately, and he cherished his alone time in the morning. Usually Draco was still sleeping at this time, and Harry would spend his morning in complete silence. Last year it would have bothered him a great deal to be alone and quiet, but now it was one of the things that Harry looked forward to the most. Oh no! You’re becoming Snape! He thought in amusement, and couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought. But it still felt a bit strange to think of himself as a Snape. He didn’t feel much different, but he began noticing some similarities between himself and his father that weirded him out. Like the way they both tended to hold their silverware. Harry had never noticed it before until the other day when he had glanced up to see his father eating. Why he had perceived this, he didn’t know, but it was still funny in a way.

But what did confuse Harry was why he and Snape had trusted each other as much as they had. It seemed strange that they had gotten so close so quickly. When Harry had found out that Snape was his father, the first thing he really did feel— if he would admit it—was happiness, then came the disgust, the confusion, and the anger. When he had thought that Snape was leaving he had felt panicked, hurt, though he did not know why. The thought of having a father, having a figure to fill out the meaning, the role of a parent had always been something Harry had always wanted, something he had craved ever since he could remember, and suddenly having someone step into his life and taking on that meaning, that role had mean something to him. Even though that person had been Snape, Harry had to admit— again—that he liked the idea of having a father.

Granted, Snape was not exactly what Harry had thought a father would be like. There were still things about the Potions Master that Harry did not like. For instance, the man never really seemed to smile all that much, and he was way too picky when it came to making potions or cleaning the house. Snape’s sense of humor still left much to be desired, and he could be a very cold, detached person. But despite all of this, Harry was actually amazed that the cruelest professor at Hogwarts had so easily and completely took the boy he had hated for three years under his wing. It was as though Snape had completely set aside all differences…almost. There were occasions when he growled or snapped, but in general, Harry’s stay with the “dreaded” Professor Snape had been completely livable, even enjoyable.

While he rinsed out his hair, Harry thought more on his father. What had made Snape change? There had to be more to the story, something that Harry didn’t know. Had it simply been due to the situation that they had both found themselves in? After all, Harry had potentially saves Severus’s life, and on the other side of that, they were both thrown for a loop with what Aunt Petunia had told them. Sure, they both had their disagreements over the summer, both had been leery of the other for a while, both seemed to have been on “best behavior” with regards to one another, and all Harry could feel at the moment was grateful. Merlin knew that the start of their relationship could have gone worse… A lot worse.

After he was scrubbed and rinsed, and could not think of a reasonable excuse to stay in the shower any longer, Harry got out and began drying his hair. As he changed into his school uniform, he could not help but still feeling out of place as he tied his Slytherin-green tie. He still felt a bit like an imposter wearing these clothes. But then again, he did feel like an imposter whenever he looked into the mirror. It was a strange feeling to know that you were not really looking at you every time your eye chanced a glance into a mirror or other reflective object. But like the issue of being a Snape, Harry decided to shove all unpleasant thoughts out of his head for the time being and focus on staying alive in school this year.

Walking out of the bathroom, Harry received a nasty scowl from his roommate. “Finally decided to come out, did we?” Draco sneered. “Hope you left enough water for everyone else, Potter,” he growled before pushing Harry out of the way, and locking himself into the bathroom.

Several nasty replies formed in his mind, but Harry decided to let it go. Even though he still despised Malfoy with just about every fiber of his being, even Harry had to admit that the blonde hadn’t really been that terrible of roommate… at least not yet. But then again, with Snape watching their every move every moment of the day, and Moody also keeping sharp eyes out for both of them really hadn’t given the two rivals a chance to be too nasty to each other. A few snide remarks every now and again kept the two remembering that they hated each other, which is what they both want. It kept some things a little normal.

Once dressed and ready to go, Harry grabbed his bag full of his books that always seemed to weight ten tons each, and walked out of his room and into the common room. As usual, Snape was standing there waiting for him. The professor, true to character, sneered down at the boy before he spun on his heels and began his neck breaking stride out the portal door.

Although Harry knew that some of the cold behavior was an act— he hoped!— he also knew that the man’s foul temper mostly had to do with the Headmaster and Moody more than anything else. For the last few day, Harry had been more than a little worried about his father and if he would admit it, scared that the Snape he had known over the summer was gone now, and the old Snape, the one that insulted, the one that sneered, the one that hated him was back for good. Damn Moody! Damn Dumbledore! Harry though miserably. He hadn’t really had a “kind” word from his father in a while, and Snape did not seem all that willing to go out of his way to say anything particularly nice anymore…if he ever really had.

“Today, after classes, go back to your room,” Snape’s soft command almost made Harry jump out of his trainers.

“Huh? Why?” Harry looked up at his father with concerned emerald eyes.

“Because I said so,” the Potions Master snapped, scowling down at his son.

Harry had to fight to keep himself from looking too hurt. Why the professor’s words hurt so much, Harry did not really know. Although the Potions Master had been kind over the summer, the young Slytherin knew he should not really rely on the man being so all the time. This was Snape after all.

“Yes, sir,” the boy nodded, looking down at the floor.

Severus was not in a good mood today. He had not gotten much sleep— but then, did he ever?— and he had received a note from the Headmaster. This whole mess with Moody was starting to wear him down. Despite what people thought, Severus really did not like fighting. In fact, he liked to avoid conflict as much as possible. Was it his fault that conflict seemed to follow him everywhere he went? And Harry take after you in that, Severus’s conscience whispered to him.

The thought of his son as he was last year and when he had first come to Hogwarts gave Severus a bad taste in his mouth as he was suddenly struck with a realization. All those times Harry got into trouble, all those times he had broken the rules, put his life in danger…how was that any different than what Severus did himself? Sure, before he had known Harry was his child, he had always blamed it on the boy’s “Potter-ness,” but with that default gone, and knowing Lily certainly never acting in such a way left Severus feeling a bit uneasy as he recognized that Harry had inherited his reckless side. The only difference between the two was that Severus had always had the Slytherin cunning to not get caught while Harry had his mother’s Gryffindor emotions that seemed to make him want to get caught.  Well, the boy’s not going to let on to anyone about our little secret, he thought ruefully.

But Severus did not want to think about that at the moment. Such revelations were best to consider later on when he could actually afford to let his mind wonder. Perhaps he could think on it tonight? If the Headmaster did not wipe his memory again or some other such outrage.

It did, however, surprise the Potions Master how easily Harry acquiesced to his order. He glanced down at the younger wizard and found the boy looking quite deject. Severus frowned, wondering why the child was in such a state, when comprehension dawned on him. “I did not mean to bark at you,” the professor said softly. Why was it that Harry could make him apologize so easily? Severus hated apologizing, and rarely did it, but then when he and Harry found the other, Severus was apologizing right and left!

Harry was a bit surprised at the sudden apology, but he was glad of it. “It’s okay,” he reassured. “I…I know you’ve got a lot to think about.”

How was it that the boy was so understanding? Severus had been worse than a bear the past several days— and if he would admit it, the past several years as well— and the boy did not seem to mind his short temper. How easily the boy forgave! That, Harry certainly did not get from Severus. He got that from his mother…

“I have a meeting with the Headmaster after classes,” Severus felt inclined to say. “I do not want you wandering the castle when I’m not around to watch you.”

Although Harry knew that his father was just being protective, and he should be grateful, he really wasn’t. The thought of someone always watching out for him all the time made Harry feel like he was a little kid. He could take care of himself. He had been doing it long before Snape had ever showed up! “Can’t I go to the library with Hermione and Neville?” he asked, hoping his father would be gracious.

“No,” Snape said bluntly.

“Why not?” Harry asked, suddenly feeling as though he was being wronged. “We’re just going to study!”

“Because,” Snape came to a sudden halt and swirled around to face his offspring, “you and those friends of yours get into the most trouble when I’m busy. I don’t want to come out of that meeting to find you or one of your friends lost, stolen, or injured, like I normally do.”

“But we haven’t gotten into any trouble so far,” Harry argued. “And beside, there’s nothing interesting going on, so—”

“What did I say?” Snape spat. “I said no and I mean no. I don’t want you gallivanting about when Moody’s around and I’m not!” he hissed.

For a moment, Severus was pleased with himself, believing that he had finally gotten through to his thickheaded child about the dangers within Hogwarts. He did not necessarily like being cruel, but he would do it if he could make the boy understand the real dangers and show Harry that he wasn’t invincible. He knew he was being a bit harsh, but then Severus had been brought up on the philosophy “you need to be cruel to be kind.” But when large emerald eyes looked into his face, all satisfaction was washed away. Those blasted green eyes!

“Harry,” Severus sighed. “Just do as I say. I know things don’t seem so bad to you at the moment, but I need you to trust me.”

Harry was taken back for a moment by his father’s words. Snape was admitting that things were bad? No adult had ever really told Harry the truth about anything before, especially about the real danger going on within the school. The fact that Snape was telling Harry made the boy that much more willing to obey his father. This was all Harry had ever really wanted anyway, to be told why he shouldn’t do things, not just “don’t do it.”

“What’s going on?” the younger wizard asked. “Is something going to happen?”

Snape straightened up again and began walking. Harry quickly followed. “I am not sure,” the Potions Master admitted. “But I know that things could potentially get…bad. With the Tournament and the other schools coming soon, things will become more hectic, more disorganized. And that is exactly the sort of thing the Death Eaters will be looking for.”

The thought of Lucius Malfoy and the other Death Eaters getting into the castle or pulling some sort of stunt really frightened Harry. “Okay,” he said after a moment. “I guess I can tell Hermione that I won’t be in the library tonight.”

“Good,” Snape nodded once. “I will escort you back to your room after classes. I will retrieve you for dinner.”

“Yes, sir,” Harry said simply.

Father and son made it to the Great Hall and walked in together, much like every morning that year. As Snape stalked off to the Head Table, Harry walked over to the end of the Slytherin table and sat down alone. Nott was there by himself too, but true to their new tradition, neither boy said anything to the other one. Although the silence was nice, Harry still missed eating at the Gryffindor table with all of his friends. He missed Ron and Hermione bickering, or Ginny and Neville laughing…

Shaking his head, Harry went to filling his plate. He almost dropped the salt when Nott actually spoke to him. “Do you…” the other Slytherin trailed off.

“What?” Harry asked, still surprised that the other boy spoke at all.

Nott looked a bit nervous; as though it was the first time he had ever said anything to anyone. “I was just…did we have homework in Herbology?” he blurted out.

Taken aback, Harry nodded slowly. “Um, yeah. Seven inch essay. Didn’t you do it?”

“Huh?” Nott looked alarmed for a moment. “Oh, yeah…I did it…I just…wanted to make sure. That’s all.”

Frowning, Harry nodded. “Okay.”

There fell an awkward silence between the two, in which Harry desperately tried to cover by eating his meal in peace. But after a few moments, it seemed Nott could not take the silence any longer. “We didn’t have to work with our partners, did we?”

“No,” Harry shook his head, putting down his fork. “No, it was supposed to be individually…like always.”

“Right,” Nott nodded quickly, still looking very anxious… or guilty…Harry couldn’t make up his mind. “So…who’s your partner?”

The whole conversation made Harry extremely uncomfortable with its awkwardness. He wasn’t exactly sure what Nott was getting at. “Um...it’s Brittney…you know Brittney from Ravenclaw?”

“Oh yeah…right,” Nott smiled uneasily. “I think I remember her…She’s the blonde one?”

“Yeah,” Harry said, turning away to eat his breakfast.

There was another silence that fell over the two. Harry was just beginning to think that he had escaped the odd conversation when Nott seemed unable to keep silent. “Is she a good partner?”

“Um…yeah, she’s nice. Why? Who’s your partner? Aren’t they doing their job?” Harry asked.

Turning the questions around really seemed to fluster the other Slytherin. Nott’s eyes widened for a moment before he seemed to remember that he was rambling away, and to Harry Potter no less. So with a scowl, Nott looked away from Harry. “My partner’s fine,” he said softly.

Thus ended the longest conversation Harry had ever had with Theodore Nott. And truth be told, Harry was actually glad to be out of the conversation. It had been rather awkward and uncomfortable, something that he really did not want to feel that particular morning. Besides, he had his father to think about and the meeting Severus would have with Dumbledore that evening. Would it be good or bad? Did Dumbledore find out anything or not?

But before Harry could get too carried away with his thoughts, Draco came in. When the other boy sat down, Harry was forced to endure the blonde’s hateful glares every so often while trying to eat in piece.

~*~

After classes were complete for the day, Severus met Harry at his last class. The Head of Slytherin escorted his newest snake down into the dungeons and into the Common Room. Harry safely made it to his dorm room while Snape kept the other snakes at bay, and once Severus knew that his son was safely down the stairs and in his room, he turned abruptly and left.

With long, hasty strides, the Potions Master made his way to the Headmaster’s office. He did not know what it was that Albus wanted, but he was certain that he wasn’t going to like it one bit. Whatever it was, Severus was going to make sure that his wand was at hand. Just in case.

The walk to Dumbledore’s office seemed unusually long to Severus for some reason. His mind kept wondering to the question of why the Headmaster wanted to see him. Had the old man found something out? Did Albus know that Harry was Severus’s son? Or was it something about the Death Eaters? Did Lucius find a way to get the Death Eaters in Hogwarts? Was he going to have to run for it? What would happen to Harry then?

Roughly, Severus pushed those unpleasant thoughts behind him. There was no use dwelling on such worthless speculation and guesses. Whatever was going to happen was going to happen, and he couldn’t change that. All he could do was keep his wits about him and make sure that the old wizard didn’t try to pull a fast one on him again. Severus had no desire to lose his memory a second time.

When he finally arrived at the entrance, Severus mumbled the password, and carefully made his way up the stairs. When he got to the Headmaster’s door, he knocked purposefully. “Come in!” he heard Albus call.

Pushing open the door, Severus stepped in to see the Headmaster behind his desk, looking like he was actually doing some paper work. “Hello Severus, my boy,” the old man smiled weakly.

Severus graced Dumbledore with a sneer before he went to stand before the old wizard with his arms crossed and his wand ready. “What do you want, Albus? I’m very busy,” he snapped.

Dumbledore looked up at the younger wizard with a frown. “Forget not that I am your employer, Severus. You should speak to me with some respect.”

“Forget not that you also ruined my life,” Snape growled. “What do you want?”

With a heavy sigh, Albus motioned for Severus to take a seat. The Potions Master refused. “Severus…this feud that you and I have created has gone far enough, don’t you think? The students all know that many of the professors are angry with me, and their feeling towards Alastor is not good either…What I’m saying is that I believe you and I should talk to everyone and see if we can’t put this all aside.”

Severus gave a bark of laughter, startling the Headmaster greatly. “You want me to resolve all of this?” he sneered. “Isn’t this supposed to me a task for your Deputy Headmistress?”

“Severus, you know perfectly well that Minerva is stubborn when she’s angry.”

“And I’m not?” Snape scoffed.

“Severus, please,” the Headmaster pleaded. “If I reconcile with you, the others will follow. You know that. It’s your response everyone’s waiting for, not Minerva’s.”

“Flattering,” the younger wizard jeered. “But you forget, Headmaster, that I have no intention of forgiving you. The only reason I am still here is the fact that I have nowhere else to go, and I have no desire to get caught by Death Eaters.”

“Then you should do as I say,” Dumbledore scowled. “I’m the one keeping you safe. It’s because of me that you’re protected.”

“Ah! But do you not also need me?” Severus mocked. “Even though my uses as an active spy are over, I still know enough about you, the Order, and the Ministry to make it dangerous and stupid for you to let me go too far from your sight. Never know who I might talk to or what I may let slip.”

The two stood facing off for some time before finally, Dumbledore sighed. “Severus, the truth of the matter is that we both need each other. I wanted to reconcile because…well, because I actually have a job I need you to do.”

With a bitter smile, Severus held the old wizard’s eyes steadily. “You’ve figured out a way for me to still be a pawn in your games, eh Albus? Well, you don’t pay me enough for my real job, and I have no desire to play expendable puppet, so whatever it is you’re asking, my answer is no. Find someone else.”

“But you haven’t even heard what it is I have to say!” the Headmaster cried.

“I don’t care,” Severus said shortly, getting ready to leave.

“Would it interest you to know that the job I have for you involves leaving the castle?” Albus asked.

That did stop Snape. He was not certain what the Headmaster had in mind, but he was certain it was crazy. The old man wanted to send him out while there were still Death Eaters about and searching for him? Was Albus just trying to get him killed? Probably, Severus thought darkly.

Knowing he had the Potions teacher, Dumbledore went on. “Severus, I still need you. You’re the only one I trust with this.”

“Trust?” Severus growled. “What do you know about trust?”

“Severus—”

“No, Albus. I don’t want to leave the castle. Do you want me to get killed?”

“It’s about Voldemort.”

At the Dark Lord’s name, Severus flinched terribly. The thought of his old master sickened Snape to his core. He could not think about the Dark Lord without thinking about just how close the maniac had come to killing Harry, and that thought hurt. His whole left arm hurt actually, and many of his scars, in remembrance…

“Do not say that name out loud!” Snape hissed.

Knowing that the other man was listening carefully, Albus decided to act. “Severus, the other schools will be here soon. The Tournament will be taking up much of my time, and I fear things are accelerating faster than I had expected. I cannot have the school divided while we have guests, and I would have you help me make amends with everyone.

“And I have a job I need you to do. Because everything has accelerated, I have need of a very special memory, one that I have been unable to acquire for many years…but I need it now. For the good of everyone, I need that memory now, and it requires your specific skills. Will you help me?”

Although every fiber of Severus’s being told him to refuse the old wizard, more out of spite than anything else, the Potions Master began to understand just what the Headmaster was saying. “A memory?” he asked.

“Yes,” Dumbledore smiled gently, realizing that he had appealed to Snape at last. “One that belongs to an old friend. Will you help?”

Severus looked at the Headmaster, and then at the cabinet that held all of the Dark Lord’s memories. He had not wanted to do anything else for Dumbledore, but Albus was right, things were definitely accelerating faster than he had thought. And because of it, Severus knew that Harry would need to be protected as much as possible too. The only way to help Harry and make sure that he stayed safe was, unfortunately, by helping Albus.

Turning back to the Headmaster, Severus stared at the old man for a long moment. “What do you need me to do?” he asked.

Dumbledore smiled.

Chapter End Notes:
After such a LONG time being away, I present this new chapter to you with hopes that ya'll will still read and none of you hate me too much. I never intended to go this long without updating this, but things have been REALLY busy for me the past several months and my beta people too, so here it is, a new bright, shiney chappie for all of ya'll! I hope you enjoy and you leave me a review, because I could sure use it! Thanks to everyone who does! :D

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