Last time:

Sighing, he put his hand on the wall, heading towards the Hospital Wing. He was exhausted, physically, mentally and magically. He hoped that Madame Pomfrey didn't yell at him, for he didn't think he would be able to take it. He had completely forgotten that he had missed a detention with Professor Snape, and would likely be in trouble with his Head of House. Just then he merely wanted to lay down and take a rest. It had been a night's good work.

Harry leaned against the wall, trying to catch his breath. It had only been a few feet since he left the tunnel, and yet it felt as if he had run a marathon. He was unaware that he had spent many hours in the lower reaches of the castle, and that had only exacerbated his exhaustion from using too much magic at once. All he knew was that he had to rest or he'd pass out. His vision, never good at the best of times, was blurred as if he had been drinking; which was not productive in getting him to a bed. He was beginning to be tempted in sitting down and sleeping right there, just to relieve the almost painful exhaustion that was lying on his shoulders and causing fluffiness of the brain.

It was like this that Severus found him. The Potions Master was still steamed from the early confrontation of the students who wished harm on one of his Snakes. He had also been worried for Harry, though he would never admit it. As was his wont, his anger and fear came out in a snappish voice "Where have you been, Potter? I've been looking everywhere for you." This, of course, scared Harry badly, who turned his green eyes upon his Professor. Severus was taken aback at the sheer terror that showed in the boy's right eye, while the left eye remained as dead as ever.

Had Harry not been exhausted, he might have fled in fear. As it was, it took all his self-control not to start shaking. Though Vernon didn't know it, he had given Harry an almost paranoid fear of men taller then the small boy who spoke in a loud voice. Which could be pretty much every male in the entire world. While this fear could eventually save his life, it was also a hindrance to Harry. For, if one fled or froze because of fear, one could not do what one had to, to survive. The only time that Harry was able to overcome his fear is when he had something industrious to do, which kept his mind off of the fear he felt. Which didn't help him just then, as he was pretty much cornered.

Severus halted, and just watch the child. His well trained eye could spot the tenseness in the boy that spoke of suppressed fear. He once more wondered what the youngling had been through, to make him so frightened of people. Sighing mentally, he pushed the thought aside in favor of calming Harry down. He said softly "Easy, child. I meant no harm. I was merely concerned about your safety. I heard from your tormentors that you had run from them, and the castle can become quite confusing at night. It can also be dangerous for the unwary." When this didn't seem to really relax Potter, he tried another tack "Why are you in this corridor anyways? Were you trying to reach Madam Pomfrey?"

Harry nodded, feeling himself calm despite all knowledge that said not to trust people who spoke softly after yelling. His Uncle did that often, trying to catch him unawares. After the first five times, Harry had stopped trusting the tone. Professor Snape, however, emanated trust-worthiness. It was just something about him, that seemed truly sincere. He hadn't encountered that in a grown man, besides Hagrid, as far as he knew. He suspected that he may have, when he was little, but that was beyond his recall ability. Which was fairly sharp for a young person, surprisingly. If one was to view it, they would state that he was as opposite from Peter Pan as could be. Those that did, however, had only met a handful of children. And Harry, felt both that he was alone in this world in his suffering, and that perhaps the way he'd been treated was the norm. If it had been at all possible to collect every child who felt that way, they would fill many gymnasiums.

Severus, sensing that the child was starting to calm down, approached. When Harry didn't flinch away, he drew his wand. He stated that he was going to cast a diagnosis charm, and proceeded in doing so. What he found was startling, and a bit worrisome. He pondered for a bit just what he should do now. The boy's magic was badly drained to the point where, if Potter didn't get some rest soon, he could easily slip into a coma to regenerate it. The worst case scenario would be if Harry died from his core being in the state it was. Now, the main thing was to get him to the Hospital Wing. But how to do that? He was obviously too tired to do it by foot, and yet Severus didn't wish to scare the child by carrying him personally. A stretcher would be the best choice, but it was very impersonal, and that just wasn't the Head of Slytherin's way. Not to his Snaklings anyways. He always tried to seem approachable to them, and being personal towards them as Firsties set that precedent for them in following years.

Harry solved the problem of how to move him by starting to fall as his awareness began to collapse. Severus was barely able to catch him before he hit the ground. Swinging the small pre-teen up into his arms, he walked to the Hospital Wing. The child gave only a token protest, and it was so sleepy as to barely be heard. Once Severus got inside the Hospital Wing, he placed the boy in a bed, and went to find Poppy. Harry was so tired that there was no chance he could even attempt to escape. Not that he wanted to, apparently, as the child had already started to settle down. By the time he got the Healer back to him, they had to shake him awake. As soon as he was, Poppy gave him a glass of warm milk mixed with a Magic Replenisher potion.

After drinking the milk, Harry drifted in and out of consciousness as Madame Pomfrey questioned Snape. He didn't hear the whole conversation, and only stirred briefly as he felt a hand carding through his messy black hair. He soon fell asleep, however, totally calmed by the hand and the warmth in his belly. He never knew that it had been Snape who had been carding the hair. Nor would he know that the Professor stayed by his bed until midnight, when Pomfrey kicked him out of the Hospital Wing to get some sleep himself. Harry would only remember that someone had touched him with gentle hands. And, though none knew at the time, that first touch was the beginning of Harry's healing.

***

Severus groaned, and sipped at the drink he had poured himself. Despite his need for a stiff drink, he had chosen one with a similar alcohol content as butterbeer. He never drank the hard stuff during term if he could help it, for it would be a bad influence on his Snakes if he was to turn up in class with a hangover. Or worse, drunk. He sighed, and stared at the flames of his fireplace, contemplating all he had seen just in the past few hours. It was as his mind turned to Harry that the fire turned green, and a familiar voice came through the Floo "Severus, can you turn off the wards so I can come through?"

Getting up, he turned off the wards that prevented any but Albus from flooing directly into his study without a password. Once the wards were down, he stepped back, and watched as a figure came through. He was not surprised to see the body to the voice was his old school friend. He greeted him like a brother, saying "It's good to see you, Luc." Lucius Malfoy smiles, and replied in kind. He stated "How have things been going for your new Slytherins, Sev? I hear you have Potter in your House." Pointing to a seat, Severus poured the blond a drink. He then began to tell his old friend all that had happened in the past two or so weeks. When he reached the end, Lucius was stunned.

"Abused? Are you sure of that, Sev?" asked Lucius. Severus nodded, saying "There is no doubt about it. All the evidence points to abuse, from the striped back to the missing eye. As well as the fact that my Slytherins have been reporting in that he seems shy of the staff. Draco even said that he'd been nervous around Filch until told that none of the staff can hurt him." The other man grew contemplative, his eyes glittering with an un-named emotion. Though Lucius appeared almost as cold as Snape to strangers, he had never been one to condone abuse. Especially after he'd seen what Sev had gone through at the hands of his own father. The one mistake he had made was to join the Dark Lord in an effort to gain more power, which he'd wanted to use in the protection of children. Instead he'd been ordered to kill those he wished to protect, and was punished the same as any if he refused.

Severus remembered the night he had been discovered by Lucius as a spy. He'd been serving Albus as spy for nearly a year, and had started to grow careless around his old friend. On that night's mission Lucius had caught him saving one of the ones they had been sent to kill. But instead of turning him in, which could easily have gained him prestige with the Dark Lord, he had kept the secret in spite of the danger of doing so. Severus would always be grateful to his old friend about that, and had done all he could to get Lucius in a better position then as a Death Eater. He hadn't managed it while Tom had still been around, but after his defeat he'd gotten Albus to accept that the blond would serve the Light in the next war. In turn, Severus had gained a permanent confidante, and had been named godfather to Draco though he'd never met the child before the Malfoy scion came to Hogwarts.

Lucius began to speak, having apparently come out of his thinking "What are you going to do, Sev? It's apparent that the boy can't return to his relatives next summer, and yet what can be done about the blood wards?" Severus sighed, and stated "We're looking for an answer. Can you help us on that point, Luc? And, of course, be discreet about it." Lucius nodded, saying "Of course. I will do all I can, Sev. At least we have till the end of the school year to truly worry about it." Severus smiled, a rare and wonderful thing to see when it was true, and offered to fill up Lucius' glass. The other declined, and headed home as it was late. After his friend had left, the Potion Master got ready for bed. His heart was just a little bit lighter, knowing there was one such as Lucius on the case. It was a great comfort, as the blond had access to more books on the subject of wards then any except, perhaps, Albus. It was to that good thought that Severus fell asleep, and for once his dreams were not troubled.