Snape had not been at his office Wednesday afternoon because he had been called by the Headmaster. He arrived ten minutes later and expected to find a first year Gryffindor at his door but Potter was no where to be found.

He looked in the corridor and saw three sixth years standing by the wall talking.

“Gentlemen, did you happen to see someone waiting for me?”

“No, Sir.”

“How long have you been here?”

“I don’t know Sir… 10 or 15 minutes.”

Could it be possible that the boy was late? He had been punctual the two previous days….. He should wait a little more, after all it was only 15 minutes past the hour.

Snape looked at the clock every five minutes. Where was the blasted boy?

Had something happened to the boy, was he sick? Madam Pomfrey would certainly inform him, wouldn’t she? Unless of course she was attending the child first….. He used the floo to call the Infirmary and Madam Pomfrey said that she had not seen Potter at all.

Minerva also said so. She had not seen Potter. He knew that her house was playing a ‘very forbidden’ game of hide and seek with the rest of the houses except his. He knew it was a custom to do it before the first Quidditch game of the season. He forbid his Snakes to participate in those silly games…..

Was there where his wayward ward was? Was there any evidence at all, that the child had not forgotten or decided to ignore the appointment?

Surely he had been invited to the stupid game and had gone along with the rest of the dunderheads. They would have a very serious talk about peer pressure…..

He realized that he had better things to do than waiting for that ungrateful brat!

He knew about the boy’s schedule and about the Astronomy class, he sent an elf with a note to be placed over his bed. He requested the child’s presence first thing in the morning. They would have breakfast together, he would have enough time to give boy a very good tongue lashing before it was time for him to go to his first class of the day!

Next day Snape asked for a simple breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast and some porridge. He kept them heated but the boy did not appear and his leg was killing him.

He had cleaned it thoroughly on Halloween and kept it clean since, it had seem to be closing with out any problem, but yesterday it had been a little… itchy and today the itch was worse, he looked at it and it had a not at all healthy purple color…….

He drank a strong pain killer and rested, breakfast and Potter forgotten for the mean time.

He woke up refreshed but the leg was not better. He decided to call on Hagrid to find out if the dog had any particular disease that he should be aware of.

Hagrid was not home, he had gone to care for the thestrals in the forest…. He walked back to the castle thinking of the benefits he could obtain if he substituted his hurt leg with a wooden one…. He was delirious…..

He found Potter and his friends gallivanting in the yard. Not an ounce of remorse from the boy about the missing appointments!

He considered taking the boy by the ear and escorting him to the dungeons, but his leg was really killing him and he contented with confiscating the silly book he was carrying. That will give the boy a reason to go to his quarters!!

On his way back he asked the caretaker Filch for his help. His leg needed care and it was not possible for him to do it alone.

It was hard enough to explain to Filch why he should help him remove the dead tissue from the leg, they should cut until nice clean blood start oozing.

And that was the moment blasted Potter decided to appear! Had the boy no sense of proprierty at all?

He shouted and saw the boy run out…. That was inappropriate but his leg really hurt.

Filch balked, it was too messy for his delicate taste, so Snape had to take his pride under his arm and go to the infirmary.

Once there Madam Promfrey delighted herself tending him.

She explained about the colonies of bacteria that live inside the mouths of dogs and said that those bacteria had taken residence in his leg. She made him go through the indignity of having to drink his own potions! He should do something about the taste!

The potions and the cleaning helped and before he finally went to sleep that night it was better. He had a fever during the whole day.

Pomfrey insisted and even called Dumbledore….. Snape’s classes were cancelled for Friday.

He wished he could cancel all quidditch games for the time being!!!

Madam Promfrey allowed him to leave the infirmary Saturday morning. He only had time to change his robes before going to the Quidditch game.

The fresh air did not improve his mood at all. He missed his students, he needed someone to berate…. Even a couple of Hufflepuffs, even when they were easy to drive to tears. He would wait for the game to end and then would corral Potter and would put some light to the happenings of the last week.

He saw the boy soar the sky! That broom was too big and fast for that slim child…. Then he saw the boy almost fall.

He knew it, the boy was so thin that the air would make him fall….

It took him a moment to realize that the broom was moving on its own account! Some one was cursing it!

He started using the counter curse, trying to find out who was sending the curse, but it was no use, the broom flew up every time he lost a little concentration!

He needed to do something else. Where was Albus when he needed him? He was not on his best condition, not after all the pain in his leg and the fever…. He stopped the broom, the boy’s team mates were trying to change him to their brooms. He should ask someone else to place a cushioning charm…. But he couldn’t loose sight of the broom….

Then there was a little commotion behind him….. and he heard Quirrel’s voice screaming….. then the broom was free. And Potter could control it again…

He started breathing but caught the smell of smoke…. What the …..? His robes were on fire! He stamped on them to put them out. And turned to see the crazy stunt of Potter catching the snitch with his mouth!

He almost passed out. Hagrid helped him down the bleachers.

He had always thought that he wouldn’t live to be and old man…. Now he was sure, he would not arrive alive to the end of the term.

Of course after the end of the game it would be impossible to find Potter. He would be surrounded by his fans… Snape went to his quarters and decided to take a calming potion and rest until Monday. Yes, he would give Potter a dozen detentions….on Monday.

Snape had grown up in a Muggle house, where pictures do not move or meddle in the resident’s business. He did not like to have pictures inside his rooms. He tolerated some of the pictures of the castle and banned the rest from getting close to his quarters. The residents of the pictures usually left him alone, all but Niguellus Black.

As he had been head of Slytherin and Head Master, he felt entitled to have conversations with Snape.

Snape could usually tolerate him. He had a small portrait in his office and also in the dungeon corridors.

Black appeared in the landscape portrait in Snape’s living room.

“What do you want Black? Can’t a man drink himself to oblivion on his own any more?”

“You can drink all your Potions until you choke Snape, for all that I care, but I think that you should know that there is a little bullying incident outside in the corridors right now.”

“Let them kill themselves, that would mean less bother for me….”

“Only Slytherins are involved, there are this three big ones…. I don’t know what their mothers feed them to get them so big…. Maybe nutrients did not go to their brains at all…. They are playing catch with some firsties….”

“They are playing catch?”

“They are throwing a couple of firsties in the air and catching them back……”

Snape went out immediately. The bullies were so entertained that they did not see their head of house until it was too late to play dumb.

Snape sent the two boys to see Madam Pomfrey and send the three bullies to look for Filch for a day long detention and then to come back to hear about the rest of their penance.

He returned to his room in a better mood.

“Still there Black? Don’t you have better things to do than haunt me?”

“Not at all, and you always amaze me…. I have to congratulate you, those bullies really needed to be stopped.”

“When did they start….?”

“Last Wednesday, a Gryffindor firsty was walking the corridors outside your office….a green-eyed boy. They almost put him inside the cleaning cupboard, but he was faster. He should have run all the way back to his tower. At first I thought that it had served him as a lesson not to wander so far from his tower…. But Slytherins shouldn’t bully their own.”

So that was why Potter had not been waiting for him on Wednesday….. he wondered if he could find as simple an explanation for the rest of the grievances he had concerning the child……

He called an elf and with his help realized that the boy had not seen the note at all, because it fell under the bed…. And he had confiscated the book in his worst possible mood. Feverish and with his injured leg….

“Oh! Lily I never thought this could be so difficult!”

He had felt better Sunday morning and had decided to face the child. He was too old to play hide and seek but realized that the boy was scared and they really needed to talk.

He saw the children leave the great hall and walked as far behind as possible….. then he sent a shadow charm ahead of them and heard them telling Harry to hide. It was easy to find the child hidden beside the door. And it was priceless to see his eyes once he realized who was beside him.

Snape could almost ‘smell’ the child’s nervousness, as they walked, they passed in front of a mirror and he realized the disparity in heights.

He did not want to terrify the child.

Harry remembered that he had had Belgian waffles for breakfast…. Not so bad for a last meal.

“Take a seat Mr. Potter, we have a lot of things to talk about.”

Snape sat in a couch nearby.

Rapport…. He needed to establish some rapport with the child, that would make them take it easy and talk freely.

“You played a good game yesterday Mr. Potter.”

What could Harry say? Of course Snape had seen the game….. he had hexed his broom after all…. He only looked at Snape…..

“Don’t you wonder why your broom acted like that?”

“Hermione said that…. That y…. someone was cursing it….” He looked down.

At least Snape could count on the know-it-all’s brains.

“Yes, someone was cursing it to make you fall.”

Was Snape going to admit it just like that? Should Harry run to the door?

“But why…. Did ‘someone’ want us to loose the game?” Wood had said that Snape would want the house cup.

“I don’t think the game mattered at all Potter. You were the target.”

Was he going to admit it just like that?

“But why…Sir?”

The child was too young to understand that he was a target the moment he vanished the Dark Lord.

“I don’t know, but until we find out, you have to be careful….”

“Be careful….?” This was confusing, Snape had hexed his broom, and did not know why…. And wanted Harry to be careful…. He hoped that the door was not locked….

“If you don’t know then…. Why did you hex my broom….?” If this was not Gryffindor Bravery…..

Harry stood up and as the door looked locked he looked for a place to hide.

Snape recognized the flight instinct and said, “You think that I Hexed your broom!”

“You didn’t…?” What should Harry believe?

“Of course not….. I…. was trying to stop it.”

Snape stood up also and placing his hands in the air walked a step back.

“But Hermione said that it stop after she burned your robes.”

“She burned my robes…..” That girl was dangerous “No Potter, it stopped a moment before….. when my robes caught fire, you had already regained control of the broom.”

“You were not…..”

“Is that why you are so scared, do you think that I wanted to throw you from your broom?”

“Yes…”

“Why?”

“Because… because I saw that you were hurt by the three headed dog…..”

“How do you know about it?”

“Weren’t you trying to kill me?”

“No, I was looking intently at you but…. I was using a spell to keep your broom still…. That was all I could do….”

Harry placed his back to the wall and let himself slide to the floor, he was saying…. “You do not want to kill me…. You were saving me……”

Snape walked closer and sat also on the floor. Near but not menacing.

“I was trying to protect you Potter.”

“I know… I told Hermione…. But you looked so angry when I came to take my book and I saw your leg….”

“I was in a lot of pain Potter… you are right the three headed dog that is in the forbidden corridor bit me. I couldn’t deal with you then…. Please forgive me for shouting at you like that….?”

“I am sorry…. Sir…. After all, you had said that you would take care of me…. I shouldn’t have believed that you wanted to hurt me….”

They both sat in silence. Until Snape asked, “Do you want some tea?”

“Yes, Sir. Thank you.”

“Get up and sit on the couch, the floor is no place to drink tea.”

They both stood, Snape went to the small kitchen and Harry to sit on the couch.

At that moment they heard a chime and a voice was heard from the fireplace.

“Severus!” McGonagall voice said and Harry saw her face….

“Minerva…” Professor Snape came out of the kitchen.

“Severus, is Mr. Potter there with you?”

“Yes he is.”

“Am I interrupting the torture, are you placing toothpicks under his nails?”

Harry looked at his hands.

“We are about to have a cup of tea, there won’t be a torture session today.”

“Mr. Potter?”

Harry stood close.

“Yes Ma’am.”

“Are you in need of rescue?”

“No Ma’am, I’m all right…..”

“That is good to hear Mr. Potter….. Your friends will be in the common room when ever you finish.”

“Yes Ma’am. Thank you….”

“See you later Severus.”

They finished their respective cups before talking again.

“I was late for our appointment on Wednesday…. I know that you were bullied away by 3 sixth year Slytherins….. I will give you the password to enter to the sitting room in case I am not here on time.”

“Thank you, I couldn’t read the note you sent because I was very tired and I forgot about it in the morning.”

“You may take out library books, as long as you take good care of them.”

“Thank you for helping with the broom….. I thought I would fall off.”

“You got hold of the broom, that was very good….. Would you let me place an anti-hexing charm on it Mr. Potter? I don’t want any thing like that happening again….”

“Yes Sir.”

“Now tell me how did you encounter the three-headed dog….”

“We…. I was running from Mr. Filch.”

“And why would you run from him, what were you doing Mr. Potter?”

“I was out after curfew Sir, I didn’t mean to go there but it was the only place to hide.”

“We have talked about roaming the corridors after curfew Mr. Potter.”

“Yes Sir…. But this happened before you told me your rules….”

After the emotional rollercoaster ride they both had have Snape could not scold the child.

“Then should I trust that you won’t do it again?”

“Yes Sir……”