“I think he’s overreacting just a tad.”

“Overreacting?” Harry asked incredulously, “We knew not to cross the boundaries, we’re lucky he didn’t cut us into potions pieces. A few days of being confined to our room is getting off easy.”

“Are you serious? He should be grateful we’re alive and unharmed! You could have died falling out of that tree—“

“If he hadn’t broken my fall.”

“We could have been eaten by some sort of creature, we could have froze to death, we could—“

Harry rubbed his aching temples, wanting nothing more than to find a roll of tape to shut his roommate up, “I get it, but really, it could have been worse.”

Draco ignored Harry, and Harry used the brief silence to roll onto his stomach and open a book. Maybe, just maybe, if Draco saw he was doing something else, he’d stop carrying on about their grounding. After all, it really could have been worse. After seeing Snape’s look of fury, Harry had expected to be sent back to his relatives to spend the rest of his summer being forced into chores with the threat of a beating if he didn’t do exactly what they expected of him. And what they expected of him was to pretend like he wasn’t a wizard. That he wasn’t himself.

Sometimes, he didn’t blame them. He wasn’t a huge fan of himself most of the time, lately. While they branded him as a freak because of his magic, he felt like an even bigger freak because of his fame, his link to Voldemort, his knack for those around him being murdered. Sometimes he wished he was someone else, anyone else! Even knowing his own faults and shortcomings, though, he was more than relieved not to be at the Dursley’s.

He had spent a lot of time contemplating exactly how screwed up he must be, mentally, to prefer the company of Snape and Malfoy, the two people who hate him nearly as much as Voldemort does, over his own family. He had come to the conclusion that: one, it was dangerous and depressing to spend too much time thinking, and two, his relatives were possibly the most vile creatures on the planet.

“We should insist that we take meals in our room, in the spirit of being imprisoned here for the next few days.”

Harry rolled his eyes, more than a little irritated with Draco’s constant complaining, “I think we should just do what he wants in order to avoid further punishment. We’re lucky he let us off easily; I don’t think he’d be inclined to look the other way if we intentionally try to rile him up. At least he’s letting us have meals; things could be a lot worse.”

Draco chose to ignore Harry once more, in what seemed to be a trend when Harry was the voice of reason, and Harry started to skim through his defense against the dark arts book. Snape had definitely been angry with them. There was no mistaking the fury in his expression, the hard black rage in his eyes. He had apparated them back straight into their room, and after briefly checking to make sure neither boy had any injuries that needed repair, he had started in on a lecture about the stupidity of their actions and how they must absolutely want to be captured by death eaters.

Harry had heard Snape’s speech on his idiocy before, so it wasn’t as traumatizing as Snape had probably intended it. By the vague expression on Draco’s face, it was probably not the first time he had heard this particular lecture either. After the lecture came the punishment, a minimum of three days confinement to their room, which had the option of being extended if Snape still ‘felt it necessary’ after the three days had ended. Harry was certain their punishment would be extended, it wasn’t as if Snape ever really needed an excuse to come down hard on Harry for nothing at all, and this time he had a legitimate excuse for his temperament. After being told that they should work on schoolwork and not to even attempt to step foot out of the room unless they wanted their extremities slowly extricated from their bodies and turned into ingredient for his NEWT level classes, Snape had reassured him that they would indeed not die of boredom from staring at the same four walls, because they would be allowed for an hour three times per day for meals and a tad of fresh air. All in all, the punishment was very fair considering the number of rules they had broken and the way they had endangered themselves. At least they wouldn’t be starved or thrashed.

Things could definitely be a lot worse.

~~

Draco let out another angry sigh, trying in vain to gather some support in his lamenting from his roommate. He could not believe they had been banished to their room for days and that he hadn’t been able to talk his godfather out of their punishment. Sure, Severus was known for being a stickler for his own rules, but outside of a school setting he sometimes relaxed a bit. Apparently this was not the case today. 

What was worse than the punishment, though, is that he had no one to brood about it with, Harry was more than content to stay in their room reading. Severus should have anticipated that and dealt out a punishment accordingly. Giving Harry the option to hide away from the world was more of a privilege than a punishment. It just wasn’t fair!

And more importantly, what was he supposed to do for three days?! Schoolwork could only take so long before he was left completely and utterly bored. He had never wished he could do summer magic more than he did at this very moment. If he had his wand, he could create something to do, some sort of entertainment.

“I hope he lets us out of here soon for breakfast, I’m starving. You would think he would be a little more compassionate to the fact that we were stranded outdoors all night and are in need of a warm meal.”

He had expected Harry to agree with this at least, but when his roommate muttered something about not being hungry, he felt his own temper rise a bit. Could Potter never do anything normally? What would it take to get him riled up enough to at least develop some sort of camaraderie about their situation? He had seen Potter get upset over much less at school, and he suspected Harry was being nonchalant about this just to bother him.

It made sense, after all, Potter usually liked to see Draco miserable.

He had hoped that they had made some sort of progress in their friendship—if you could call it a friendship, it was more of an understanding/acceptance than anything. At least if Harry was on his side he would be more willing to go against Severus’s ‘do your homework’ rule and engage in a game of gobstones or exploding snap.

He was about to offer a game when Severus appeared in the doorway, “Wash up and be dowsnstairs in five minutes to eat.”

Draco was immediately on his feet and moving towards the washroom, but he stopped when he noticed Harry wasn’t following. Looking back at the other boy curiously, Harry whispered, “I’m not hungry.”

“I don’t think attendance is optional.” Draco countered, studying Harry carefully. Since he had arrived, he hadn’t seen Harry eat a normal meal and he had noticed the other boy was significantly thinner than usual. He knew Harry was depressed, and he knew that Severus knew. So why would Severus let him starve himself?

“Just let Snape know I’m not hungry, would you?”

Draco nodded curtly before going to wash his face and hands. He felt an unfamiliar sensation of worry bubbling in his chest, but decided to write it off as worry that he’d be hearing the ‘you endangered your life’ speech alone throughout his meal without having to share the  blame with his co-conspirator. After all, there was no way he could be worried about Harry Potter!

When Draco arrived downstairs, it was clear that his godfather was not pleased to see only one boy.

“Where is Potter?”

There was no mistaking the barely controlled anger in his voice, and Draco winced slightly as he imagined Severus swooping in on Harry and putting him in his place.

“He said he’s not hungry. Do you want me to get him anyway?”

He was shocked when Severus told him no and they sat down at the table together. Pleasantly surprised by the lack of mention about their nightly escapade, Draco dug into his meal with the gusto only a teenage boy can emulate.

They ate in silence for a few moments before Severus spoke, “Are the two of you getting along?”

“As well as we can, I suppose.” Draco replied after swallowing a bite of his food, “I still want to throttle him sometimes, but for the most part I just try to ignore what a prat he is.”

“That’s very mature of you.”

“I know.”

“Cheeky brat.” Severus smirked, before turning somber once more, “I think you two would make powerful allies if you would put in the effort. This summer is a great opportunity for both of you, there is no one to separate you and with only each other to confide in, a friendship would not be unheard of. Now that you are on the other side of the war, it wouldn’t hurt to have a powerful ally.”

“I’ve put some thought into it.” Draco murmured, “But I doubt friendship is anywhere on Potter’s mind, he seems more interested in isolating himself and burying his head into books.”

“He is a very compassionate person, perhaps if you shared some battle stories from your home life and the pressures which have been exerted upon you, he would be inclined to ‘take you under his protection’, so to speak.”

“As if I need protection from a Potter.”

“You know what I mean, Draco.” Severus chastised, “Just think about it.”

Draco nodded and finished his meal quickly. The idea of being told to befriend Harry was a bit unsettling, not to mention the idea of revealing some sordid family secrets made him feel sick and ashamed. No, that would be unnecessary. So far, he and Harry had been getting along pretty decently, considering their past, and he’d build off of that. And not because Snape wanted him to, but because he would do anything to help make this summer pass quickly and painlessly given the vast amount of nothing to do.

He excused himself to retire to his room, acutely aware that he was still “free” from his room for 25 minutes and was sacrificing the little free time he had away from his confines. Upon arriving, he was more than a little surprised to see his roommate asleep on his bed, and after remembering their sleepless night, he didn’t object to a nap himself.

He had only been asleep for a few minutes when he was torn from his slumber by a terrified scream. Jerked back into reality, he sat up, fear clutching his chest. Looking automatically to Harry’s side of the room, he realized that the agonizing shrieks were coming from the raven-haired boy. He scrambled out of bed and to Harry’s side, shaking his shoulders roughly and calling out to him, with no result.

Harry writhed around on the bed, his face chalk white as he screamed, his arms swinging wildly to lash out at anything he could, and Draco barely managed to avoid a few punches as he tried to wake him. Draco’s stomach churned as Harry fought off some unknown attacker, the fear and hysteria visible on his face even as he slept. He shuddered as he imagined what could possibly be going through Harry’s mind, making him try even harder to wake the boy up. His screams grew louder, and his hands went up to his head, pulling on his hair in a panic.

“Harry! No! Wake up!”

Draco didn’t fail to notice his own voice was coming out rather hysterically at this point. He disappeared into the bathroom, coming back with a glass of water that he threw at Harry’s face, although it did not have the intended result.

Harry stilled, sobs wracking his body as he began to shake, still trapped in his unconscious mind. He curled into a ball, his cries saturated with pain and despair and Draco wondered which was worse, the terrified Harry or this broken Harry in front of him. He looked about the room anxiously, trying to find something to wake the other boy up with. He contemplated getting Severus, but as Harry began to thrash around again, he decided waking the boy up was far more important.

As Harry began to grow more agitated, Draco grabbed him by the shoulders, kneeling practically on top of him as he forcefully began to shake the younger boy. When that didn’t work, Draco felt close to tears himself. He was about to run out of the room to find Severus when Harry’s eyes jerked open and he bolted upright, nearly knocking the blonde boy off the bed. His eyes were unfocused, his breathing close to hyperventilation. He put a shaking hand to his chest, practically clawing at his shirt as he struggled to breathe.

“I’m going to get Severus.” Draco said quietly, knowing there was no way he’d be able to calm Harry on his own.

He was stopped, however, when Harry grabbed his hand, panting, “No.”

“I have to; I don’t know how to help you.” Draco insisted, hating that his fear was so evident in his shaky voice. “He’ll give you a potion or something.”

Harry pushed harder on his chest, still holding on to Draco. He was barely able to choke out the word ‘grounded’ before doubling over, his lips faintly blue.

“I think he would be more upset if I stayed here instead if getting him.” Draco hissed, jerking his arm from Harry’s grasp.

~~

Harry didn’t have the energy to argue with Draco as he rushed from the room, and he vaguely wondered if he was going to die from a lack of oxygen. It took him a few minutes to remember what had gotten him so upset, but it flashed though his mind quickly and he jumped to his feet, staggering to the door despite the overwhelming dizziness that threatened to incapacitate him.

He only made it as far as the hallway before he ran into an ashen Draco and (what looked to be) concerned Snape. He struggled to vocalize what he had seen, but the words, as his breath, wouldn’t come and he felt disoriented as blackness started to overpower his vision. He was only slightly aware of being carried the short distance to his bed before a potion was forced into his mouth, and before he knew what was happening, his head was being forced between his knees and someone was rubbing his back.

“Do you feel ill?”

Harry weakly shook his head, the intense nausea he had first felt upon waking had subsided into a general repulsed feeling. His chest burned as it began to receive oxygen once more and his mind felt fuzzy. After a few moment of deep breathing, it dawned on him why he was so panicked to begin with.

“Ron…Voldemort, he attacked his family, I don’t know if he was there. They were all—They’re all…” he trailed off, feeling queasy as he remembered the attack, “…they’re dead. He tortured them.”

He let his head fall again and he began to sob, the reality of the situation crashing down on his shoulders, “It was because of me, because he’s my friend.”

“Are you sure?” Severus asked, his hand still resting on Harry’s back.

Harry nodded miserably, trembling slightly as he desperately tried to control his emotions. He had never felt so helpless in his entire life. This was worse than when Sirius died, at least then there had been a battle, fighting on both sides, a chance for retaliation. This was just a malicious, unnecessary attack. They didn’t need to be targets, if only Harry had run into another family the morning of September 1st at Kings Cross, they may still be alive. Ron was his first real friend, and the Weasleys were the family he never had. And now they were gone. They were gone because he cared about them.

He was unable to stop the tears from flowing this time as his heart shattered into a million pieces.

~~

Severus didn’t know what to say. He would look back on this moment as one of the few times he had been rendered absolutely speechless by a student. His arm burned angrily as he ignored the call of the Dark Lord, and he had no doubt in his mind that Harry had just experienced a vision.

He had never felt comfortable around distraught people, children at that! His hand rested on Harry’s back, which was shaking with sobs, and he tried to think of a logical approach. First, minimize Potter’s embarrassment. Second, assess the damages. Third, do damage control.

“Draco, would you please wait for me in the den?” Severus asked quietly, his eyes drifting to the pale blonde boy, “I’m sure Harry would feel better without an audience right now.”

Draco nodded, quickly leaving the room. Severus could tell by the uneasy expression that this situation was as awkward for his godson as it was for him. Looking back to Harry, Severus frowned. Assess the damages…where should he begin?

“Do you need a headache potion?”

Harry shook his head, rocking himself back and forth, his arms wrapped tightly around his thin frame.

“I am going to floo the headmaster to verify what you saw, would you like to go with me or remain here?”

“I’m not supposed to leave my room except for meals.” Harry reminded Severus, frowning up at the professor, “Draco would be pretty upset if you bent rules for me and not for him.”

“On the contrary, Draco is downstairs as we speak and it would only be fair to bend the rules for both of you since I have for him. If you wish to stay in your room, though, that is acceptable as well.” Severus said lightly, “I just thought you may not want to be alone right now.”

Harry was silent for a few moments before he shakily stood and followed Severus to the door, an unreadable expression on his normally expressive face. Severus walked to the library, wondering what else could go wrong for this boy. As much as he didn’t want to admit that he was worried for the child, it was now undeniable. Anyone would be worried, seeing how much Harry had been through in such a short span of time. It would be enough to bring a grown man to his knees, much less a teenage boy.

“Headmaster Dumbledore, Hogwarts.”

The floo roared and Severus stuck his head through, relieved to see the headmaster sitting at his desk.

“Ah, hello Severus. How are you today? The boys?”

“I wish I could have come under better circumstances, but Harry and I need to speak with you at once.” Severus said irritably. If the boy’s vision was correct, why was the headmaster calmly sitting at his desk? And if the boy’s vision was incorrect, why would the headmaster assume everything was fine if Severus was making this call? Sometimes he didn’t understand the older man at all.

“Would you like me to come there, or would you rather come through?”

“I think it would be better if you came here.” Severus replied after stealing a glance at the pale, still Potter sitting rigidly on the sofa, staring into space.

Severus stepped back and Dumbledore walked through, the twinkle disappearing from his eyes as he spotted Harry.

“I see…Harry, you have had a vision.”

Harry’s eyes locked with the headmaster’s, but he didn’t speak. Severus sat next to Harry, his hand on the boy’s knee in what he hoped was a reassuring gesture. He was not accustomed to such behavior, and the touch felt awkward and unfamiliar, although surprisingly not unpleasant. Harry broke his gaze with the headmaster and turned to Severus, clearly surprised, and then leaned into Severus’s shoulder.

Severus stiffened slightly at first, then slowly relaxed. It wouldn’t do Harry any good make him feel uneasy by his unusual display of trust, and as strange as it was, the feeling of warmth from the boy was overwhelming. Deciding that giving Harry strength was the least he could do in this situation, he turned his own gaze on the headmaster, his eyes hard and narrow.

“What do you know of this vision?”

Dumbledore sighed, seeming much older than usual. He pressed his hands together and spoke slowly, as if carefully choosing his words, “I would assume that Harry witnessed an altercation between Tom Riddle and the Weasley family, specifically Arthur, Molly, the twins, Ronald and Ginny.”

Feeling Harry tense, Severus pressed, “And if your assumption was correct, would you have any knowledge of such an…altercation?”

The pained look of sorrow that crossed the headmaster’s face was enough confirmation for Harry, who buried his head in Severus’s shoulder as he began to sob once again.

“There will be a memorial service, Bill and Charlie are making preparations. I’m sure we can take safety precautions so Harry can attend.”

He stood and put a hand on Harry’s shoulder, a deep frown on his face, “I am sorry you had to witness that. No one should be subjected to that sort of trauma.”

Harry refused to lift his head and Dumbledore stepped back into the floo, disappearing in the green flames. As he watched the headmaster leave, Severus thought back on his three-point plan of action. Privacy, damage assessment and now damage control. This part would be most difficult, seeing as he had nowhere to begin. The only friend he had ever lost was Lily, and the circumstances had been far different, even if they did involve a lot of the same people.

“I’m sorry for your loss.” Severus said quietly, “If there is anything I can do-“

“It doesn’t matter, it won’t bring them back.” Harry replied, his voice muffled by Severus’s robes.

They sat in silence for a few moments before Harry spoke again, releasing his professor and staring down at his hands, “Ron was my first friend. I met him on the platform for the train on the first day of school, they helped me cross the barrier because I didn’t know how. The summer before second year, he cared enough to rescue me from my aunt and uncle’s house in a flying car—the one we arrived at school with. He took me back to his family’s home and they welcomed me as if I were one of their own. I felt closer to them than I did to my own family.”

“Sometimes love is stronger than blood.” Severus commented, “You were very lucky to have a friend like that.”

“Look what good it did him, being my friend got him and his family killed.” Harry muttered.

Severus was at a loss, he didn’t have the slightest idea of what he was supposed to do or say. There were some hurts that were just impossible to fix, and Severus had an inkling that this would fall into that category. His heart ached for the trembling boy beside him, he had been through so much over the last few months, more than any child should have to go through in a lifetime.

“I’d understand if you wanted me to go back to the Dursley’s.” Harry whispered, “I practically killed them myself.”

Severus crossed his arms, staring intensely at Harry, who seemed many years younger as he fidgeted with his hands. He was more than a bit concerned for Harry’s emotional well-being.

 “Nonsense, Potter, you have done nothing of the sort. You are more than welcome to remain here…I’d like you to stay.”

He was unprepared for the sudden tight embrace from the black-haired child, and his stiffened a bit at first. But even he couldn’t deny that when Harry pulled away, his face pink with shame, he felt cold and wished the contact had lasted longer. The boy never ceased to amaze him.