"Evan."

Harry raised his head from the little dragon in his hands. "Neville?" he asked, a smile forming on his lips.

"Yeah, it's me." A chair scraped over the floor.

"I'm glad you came to see me," Harry said, setting the dragon on the table. "But don't you have class right now?"

"I have a free hour before lunch," Neville said. "Can…can I see your dragon?"

"Sure," Harry replied. "Draco gave it to me."

Neville's hand brushed Harry's as he grasped the dragon, and the little metal figure let loose with a tiny roar. "Do you like living with Pro…Professor Snape?"

"Yes, it's really good." Harry picked at the edge of the table. "Are you going to come down to the dungeons and see me?"

"I…I don't know yet." Neville said, his voice shaking a little. "Professor Snape has been treating me better during the last two classes, he doesn't yell or call me an idiot as much, but…"

"I understand." Harry said. "I know what it's like to be afraid."

Harry heard Neville shuffle on the chair. "Malfoy…um…I mean, Draco has been helping me in class. He asked Professor Snape if he could partner with me."

Harry smiled at the statement. "I know. I think he's trying to make up for smashing your Remembrall last week."

"Draco replaced the Remembrall," Neville said as he returned the dragon to the spot by Harry's hand. "He gave it to me yesterday."

"Oh," Harry said. "Then I guess he just wants to be your friend."

"Maybe." There was doubt in Neville's voice. Harry understood that, too.

"Is he a good partner?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, he gets a little impatient when I don't understand something, but he's better to work with than some of the other one's I've been partnered with. Most of them just get angry with me."

"Do you like your other classes?" Harry reached out and fingered the edge of his book.

"I like Herbology a lot," Neville answered. "I think I'm really good at it."

"Herbology…that's plants and things?"

"Yes," Neville said. "Do you think that you could get permission to go with me to the greenhouses? I could show you some of the things I'm learning."

Harry smiled. "I'd like that. When would we be able to go?"

"Tomorrow afternoon, after my last class."

"Okay, I'll ask tonight." Harry felt a warm glow in his chest. Maybe he would be able to do something with Neville, all on his own.

"Are you reading yet?" Neville suddenly asked.

Harry laughed. "Not yet, although I'm getting pretty good at the alphabet and I've started working on identifying words. Lizzy says that I should be reading by the end of first year."

"That's good," Neville said. "Will you show me your book?"

"Sure." Harry pulled the book closer, feeling the edge of the book near the spine until he came to a folded bit of parchment that was sticking out. He opened it to that page, carefully setting the folded parchment to the side. "Put your fingers here."

Harry heard Neville pull his chair closer, and then felt Neville's fingers next to his. "Each of the letters is made up of different dots." Harry ran his fingers over one of the letters, then placed Neville's in the same spot. "This is the letter "C"."

"That's so weird," Neville said and Harry chuckled.

~HPSSHPSS~

Severus watched as Harry's expression went from determined to wary. Oddly, his head was up, rather than facing the floor, and his unfocussed eyes were pointed somewhere off to Severus's right. Severus thought that Harry was trying to use the shadow of Severus in his head to make it appear that he was looking at Severus, but had missed slightly.

"You want to go to the greenhouses with Mr. Longbottom tomorrow afternoon," Severus repeated.

"Yes, sir." Harry's hands were fisted at his sides.

"Alone," Severus said, trying to keep his voice even.

"Yes, sir," Harry said again, but his voice had dropped and his shoulders were slumping.

"And it can't wait until this weekend?" Severus sat back in his chair, trying to relax. He couldn't believe Harry was asking to go out on his own already. Severus hadn't thought that Harry would be ready for this yet. After the damage done to Harry and Severus's relationship last week, Harry had clung fiercely to Draco, hardly leaving his side when Draco was not in class. Draco for his part was trying valiantly to support Severus, telling Harry over and over that Severus wasn't like Harry's uncle, but Harry was skittish. He allowed Severus to apply the salve in the evenings, but the joy seemed to have gone from the room, along with Harry's request for stories.

"It can wait, sir," Harry said turning away and walking towards his bedroom. "Sorry, sir."

Severus gritted his teeth with agitation. Normally being called "sir" gave him a sense of triumphant pride, but with Harry it was ashes in the back of his throat. He wanted Harry to start calling him Uncle Sev again, but he knew that Harry wouldn't, not yet. Not until Mr. Longbottom decided to come down and visit, and that made Severus want to bang his head against the stone walls in frustration. When had his calm, ordered life depended on a Gryffindor? And not just any Gryffindor, but Neville Longbottom, who seemingly had no courage at all.

Severus turned to look at Harry, who was standing in the middle of his bedroom, as if he didn't know what to do with himself.

"Harry," he called to him.

"Yes sir?" Harry asked without turning around.

"You have my permission to go with Mr. Longbottom tomorrow."

Harry's shoulders straightened and his breath let out in a long sigh. "Thank you," he said softly.

~HPSSHPSS~

Draco didn't like the resentful, jealous feeling twisting inside him. It coiled in his gut and made him want to strike out and hurt someone. Hurt Harry.

Harry was going outside tomorrow without him. With Neville. He stomped up the stairs to the Great Hall, leaving Harry behind in the hallway. If Harry was going to go off without him, he obviously didn't need Draco's help any more.

"Draco!" Harry called after him. "Where are you going?"

The monster in Draco's chest howled and writhed with anger, urging him to ignore Harry, but the tiny rational part in the back of his brain made him turn to see Harry making his way slowly up the stairs, fingers trailing against the wall. When Harry reached him, Draco put a hand on his arm to stop Harry from running into him.

"Dinner, obviously," Draco said bitingly and Harry flinched.

"Have I done something?" Harry asked in a low miserable voice.

Draco struggled to keep the anger out of his voice. "You're going to do things with Neville and not me."

"Why are you angry?" Harry tilted his head. "Why didn't you just say that you wanted to go too?"

Draco growled in the back of his throat. "You didn't ask me to go. You didn't say you wanted me along."

"Draco…" Harry hesitated, his face scrunched up in confusion, then his eyes widened. "Are you jealous?"

"No!" Draco exclaimed, pulling his arm away. Harry reached out and caught onto his forearm before Draco could move.

"Draco," Harry said earnestly. "Neville is my friend." He paused for a second. "You are my brother. He can't take your place."

With that simple declaration, the raging monster in Draco's chest disappeared. "Of course he can't," Draco said pompously. "I don't know why you would think that at all."

Harry laughed with relief.

~HPSSHPSS~

Neville came to get Harry out of the Infirmary the next afternoon. At first, the trip was somewhat nerve-wracking for Harry, as Neville didn't understand how to guide him. He hovered over Harry and tried to push and pull him before Harry finally stopped in the middle of the corridor.

"Just let me hold your arm," Harry said. "You walk a little slower than you normally do and I'll walk with you."

It took a few tries, but Neville finally relaxed. Harry gripped his arm as Neville led him out the main doors and down to the greenhouses. Neville talked about his Herbology classes the whole trip, chattering about different plants, and their properties.

"Are you going to be a Herbology person after school?" Harry asked.

"Herbologist," Neville corrected mildly. "Probably. It's what I'm best at."

They walked around the greenhouse that Neville had chosen. "There are no classes in this one right now," Neville offered in explanation.

Harry stroked the leaves of several plants while Neville described them. "I can feel the magic in the leaves," Harry said, his voice filled with awe. "I didn't realize that plants had magic."

"Some do," Neville said. "Professor Sprout has started explaining some of it. Most Muggle plants have only a little magic, but others like willow and wolfsbane have quite a lot."

"This is wonderful," Harry exclaimed with delight, poking a finger into the dirt next to the plant he had been touching. "Even the dirt has magic!"

"What do you feel?" Neville asked.

"I don't know how to explain it," Harry said. "It tingles a bit."

Harry felt Neville put his finger in next to Harry's. After a moment of silence, Neville gasped. "I can feel it. If I close my eyes and concentrate, I can feel it too."

When the classes in the neighboring greenhouses were finished, Neville led Harry back into the castle.

"I…I'll take you down to Professor Snape's rooms, if you want me to," Neville said, his voice sounding suddenly shy and nervous. Harry felt a weight he hadn't realized he was carrying lift from his heart.

"I would like that," Harry said. "Thanks."

~HPSSHPSS~

Draco ignored all of Uncle Sev's warnings about not walking in the corridors alone and ran all the way from his last class, catching up with Harry and Neville just as they turned the corner that led to Uncle Sev's rooms.

"Hi Evan, Hi Neville," he said breathlessly.

"Were you running?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, I was trying to catch up with you. How were the greenhouses?" He leaned against the wall of the hallway as his breathing slowed.

Harry was beaming. "It was wonderful!" he said. "I could feel the magic in the plants!"

Draco was shocked. "Really?" he asked. "I've never felt any magic in plants."

"I felt it too," Neville said quietly. "It just took a little effort. I had to really think about it."

Draco looked at Neville, who was shaking a little and had an expression on his face that was more than a little frightened. Draco thought that maybe Neville was afraid that Draco would say something nasty to him, but he held his place next to Harry. Apparently, Neville was finding his courage.

"That's great, Neville," Draco congratulated him and Neville visibly relaxed.

"Neville was walking me home," Harry said happily. Draco went to stand on the other side of Harry and the three of them finished walking to their rooms.

"Will you come in?" Harry asked when they reached the door.

Neville hesitated, then nodded. "Yes," he said and Harry grasped Draco's hand tightly. Draco knew how much this meant to Harry.

Uncle Sev was not in the room when they entered so Harry led Neville to their bedroom. "This is our room," he said with pride.

"This is nice," Neville said. "My dorm room isn't much bigger and I share with three other boys."

They climbed up onto Harry's bed and soon the three of them were talking and laughing while Draco tried to charm a deck of cards to have the numbers raised so that Harry could play. The cards wound up scattered all over the bed and floor, with Neville and Draco chasing after them and Harry rolling on the bed in laughter.

"You could…" Draco's words cut off as Uncle Sev came into the room. Harry immediately climbed off the bed and ran over to him. "Neville came!" he exclaimed.

"I see that," Uncle Sev replied. "Mr. Longbottom, welcome."

Neville scrambled off the bed and came to stand next to Harry. Draco could see him shaking and Harry must have noticed, because he placed a hand on Neville's arm.

"Th…Thank you, sir," Neville stuttered. "Ev…Evan has a nice room." Draco watched with amusement as Neville blushed.

Uncle Sev looked at Neville with a neutral expression. "You are welcome to visit at any time," he said. Harry let go of Neville and briefly wrapped his arms around Uncle Sev's waist squeezing him tightly before stepping back.

Thank you, Uncle Sev," he whispered.

~HPSSHPSS~

On the second Saturday in October, Minerva arrived at Severus's quarters early in the afternoon with news.

"I've found Remus," she said after she had settled in her usual chair.

Severus felt the muscles in his back tighten and his shoulders begin to hunch. He scowled at Minerva, who looked calmly at him, her teacup resting on its plate on her lap.

Turning his head slightly, he watched Harry and Draco, along with Daphne Greengrass and Millicent Bulstrode, sitting on the floor in the boy's room playing a board game. Draco was helping Harry with the little silver figures that were the playing pieces, placing Harry's hands on the board and describing the different objectives. One of the pieces, in the form of a tiny wizard that reminded Severus strongly of Dumbledore, was calling out advice.

"Severus?" Minerva softly called his attention back to her.

"I know," he said. "I know I need to contact him. I know that he will be good for Evan."

Minerva nodded. "And I know how hard this is for you," she said sympathetically.

Severus didn't reply, but his eyes were burning with resentment.

"When will you contact him?" Minerva asked.

"Soon," Severus replied with a strangled sound. "Probably within the next week. The full moon is on the twenty third; I'll send the letter so that if he chooses, he can be here well before then."

Minerva sipped her tea, looking at Severus the entire time. "He's in France, staying with relatives."

Severus nodded, but he felt his muscles constrict even more. Mentally, he tried to push the hate and anger away. He would not let those feelings take over.

"Does Lupin know?" Severus asked tightly. "About Evan?"

"I don't think so," Minerva said calmly. "I suspect that Albus kept him as much in the dark as the rest of us in regards to Evan."

Severus looked over at the huddled group of children again. "I have wondered," he said softly, "why Lupin never came to see him. Evan was the last tie to his friends, to those idiot Marauders, and he just…let go."

"I don't know the whole story," Minerva said, not rising to the bait about the Marauders. "But I know that he was denied guardianship after…"

"Black," Severus rubbed his hand against his forehead. "The Ministry would never have granted Lupin custody, even if he'd been richer than the Malfoys."

"No, they wouldn't," Minerva agreed. "Which is a shame. Evan would have been much better off with Remus."

Severus would have been lying if he disagreed with that statement, but he wanted to. More than anything, he wanted to. Instead, he just nodded abruptly.

"Have you heard anything from Lucius Malfoy?" Minerva asked suddenly.

Severus was glad for the subject change as he brought his focus back to her. "No, and that worries me. I expected Lucius to fight me over the guardianship, but it's been more than a month and as far as I know, he's done nothing."

"He may not be able to get onto Hogwarts grounds," Minerva said. "I think that Albus has prevented him from entering, even through the main gates, because technically he doesn't have a student enrolled here."

"He is a school Governor; I'm surprised that the school board hasn't tried to fight Albus over it."

"They may have." Minerva set her teacup aside and rose. "Albus said something the other day about want to hex the school's governing body."

Severus smothered a laugh as he accompanied her to the door.

"Have you tried to take the boys off of school grounds?" she asked as Severus held the door for her.

"No," Severus growled. "If you're asking what I've decided, I haven't. Albus is keeping his nose out of things so far, so we'll stay until that changes."

Minerva briefly touched Severus's arm. "Good," she said. "I'd miss you if you had to leave."

Severus's mouth was not hanging open as he watched her walk down the hallway.

~HPSSHPSS~

15 Oct 1991

Lupin:

As much as I may wish otherwise, I am forced to contact you concerning an item that I know you have regard for, which I acquired at the end of August. It was badly damaged three years ago by the Muggles who used to keep it and I am now attempting to repair it. I cannot say more in a letter.

Come to my office at the school as soon as you are able. I have set the wards there to alert me to your arrival. It is imperative that you tell no one you are coming, so do attempt to arrive secretly. If you choose to be here prior to the twenty-third, I shall provide a safe place for you on that night as well as a certain potion. Expect to stay here indefinitely, as this item will need daily care for the foreseeable future.

S.S.

~HPSSHPSS~

15 Oct 1991

Dear Remus:

Due to the length of time that it took me to locate you, I realise that you probably don't wish to be found. However, a problem has arisen here that could use your personal expertise. Someone else will also be writing to you, but I thought that I had better send a letter as well so that you would know that it isn't a hoax or a prank.

Please let no one know when you arrive beyond the other person or myself. We need to have a plan in place prior to making your presence public, especially to a certain person who has a penchant for meddling.

I hope you are well and can arrive as soon as possible.

Minerva