*Parsel-Tongue*

Flashbacks, or just memories 

To say the Potion's Master was shocked that Harry had chosen to live with him; the greasy git of the dungeons was an understatement. The teen could see the puzzlement on the normally expressionless face at his answer before it was blanked away. Harry couldn't help but feel a tad guilty about deceiving him, but it was his only chance to be happy.

He figured that he would go to the Owlery and say goodbye to Hedwig before heading down into the Chamber of Secrets where he would then slit his wrists and drink a dreamless sleep potion. It was in his opinion a fool proof way to die; unless he somehow beat the odds and survived again.

That would suck and if that way failed he was just going to surrender himself to Voldemort. He followed his teacher further in the dungeons, amazed at deep they went as this was the furthest he had ever been in. He jerked to a stop as the man stood in front of a portrait of Salazar Slytherin with a snake around his stomach.

"Do you ssssmell that Ssssalazar? The young one there hassss been hurt quite extenssssively and not jusssst on the outsssside either. He'ssss drowning in grief. We are going to have to watch out for thisssss one, lest he doesss ssssomething sssstupid," the snake hissed out.

"For the record I'm sssstanding right here and I can undersssstand every ssssingle word you're sssaying. Pleasssse don't talk about me assss if I'm not here. Harry replied, obviously annoyed that they were talking about him as if he wasn't here.

Apologiessss young sssspeaker, that old ssssnake there is Ssssslither and he didn't mean any harm. He didn't know that you could sssspeak the language of the ssssnakesss, not many can. Come back and talk with me young one it'ssss been a while ssssince I've sssspoken with another sssspeaker, and Sssssseverusss lookssss more annoyed than usssual.

"Salazar, do you think you could let us in sometime today?" Severus drawled out.

"Apologies Severus I just got excited for speaking with a fellow speaker. What's the password?" The portrait requested.

"Lily Flower," Severus pronounced carefully so Harry would be able to catch it. Hopefully the boy would use his common sense and not ask why his password was such.

 They walked into the Potion Master's quarters, and the man was startled to say the least when the boy started hissing at the portrait. He wasn't used to hearing those sounds without feeling a sense of dread in fear in his stomach.

The child's eyes were wide as he took in Severus's quarters. They were very homey and Harry loved the color blue around the living room. He would have thought that Snape being the Slytherin Head of House would have green throughout his flat but he was wrong.

Severus showed Harry to his room and told him to go lie down and rest for a few hours and he would be in his lab. He warned him not to go searching through his things, as he had an urgent potion that he needed to tend too. He didn't think about much only on his brewing potion and also didn't fully realize that he had failed to give the boy a proper tour of his quarters. He should have though.

Harry watched Snape walk off to his lab, not wanting to get into trouble with the man so soon after all that he did. Even though he hadn't done anything but slept that morning, he was feeling quite tired from the walk down here. He huffed, as he was unused to feeling this week, especially when it wasn't any ailing injuries that were the cause of it.

As far as he was concerned he was fully healed, even if the open welts on his back spoke otherwise. At the moment they weren't stinging so for the time being he would pretend that he was just a normal boy.

With that thought he yawned before carefully allowing himself down on the inviting bed. He gasped softly in surprise as the soft dark brown comforter seemed to mold with his body; and couldn't remember when he had laid in a bed this comfortable. Pulling the elastic loose from his hair he shook it out and promptly fell asleep.

He managed to sleep about 4 hours of dreamless sleep, even though he had taken no potion. And when he woke up again around 3pm, he was very much content. This bed did wonders, he sat up and stretched and took a proper look around the room. It had a desk, a wardrobe, a dresser and in the corner of the room it looked to be a toy chest.

Since when did Snape have a kid? Shaking his head he made his way to the doorway and poked his head outside of it. He was dismayed to find that Snape seemed to still be in his lab. That wouldn't be a problem as he liked the fact that the man didn't hover over him.

However he had gotten no tour so how was he to know which room was the toilet? He huffed to himself, knowing that he could just go to each door and open it and see but he knew that was an insane plan if he every heard one. With his horrible luck Snape would come out of his lab just as he would be opening his bedroom door and he shuddered not liking the outcome of that. Behind closed doors anything could happen, he knew that first hand.

He turned back into his room and shut the door, trying to look around for something that he could use as he had no intention of wetting himself. Oh yeah he could see Snape telling his Slytherins that particular detail. At the thought of the snakes Harry got a weird feeling in his stomach, knowing he had forgotten to do something but he wasn't sure just what it was. His mind was still fuzzy, and he blamed the blow to the head from his Uncle and all the potions in his system.

Brushing it off for the moment as he had more important things to do, he went back to looking for some type of bottle, or in Snape's case a cauldron. After 15 minutes of fruitless searching he had to admit that he was starting to run into some kind of trouble with his bladder. Didn't anyone realize that potions were liquid and clearly could go throw someone fairly quickly.

"Snape!" He called out his urgent need getting the better of him. He held his breath as he tried to hear if the man had heard him.

He was of two minds at the moment, he wanted the man to hear him but at the same time he didn't. Sadly though as he didn't hear any footsteps he figured the Potion's Master didn't hear him. Harry stood up by the bed not wanting to mess it up in case he wasn't able to hold it.

He was starting to think realistically and he didn't like his chances the way things were going now. As he started to think that the stupid man wouldn't ever come for him, he felt to his horror the memories coming forth that he had been trying hard to suppress.

In his cupboard having been locked in all day because he had turned his teacher's hair blue with no knowledge how he had done. What a freak...Begging...for them to let him out...He needed the toilet. His horror....as he realized he had wet himself...and then laughter from Dudley and then Aunt Petunia sneering at him...and then his Uncle's angry face..he knew what that expression meant.

Harry wasn't totally aware of what was going on around him, and it didn't really matter as he rode the memory out. He currently had his arms up, as if to protect himself from the blows. In his memory they hadn't been much help, but he couldn't stand there and just accept it.

It didn't last as long as some of them usually did, but when he came back to himself he was panting heavily. It was as if he just got done running at Quidditch practice, and to his embarrassment he could feel that his brand new jeans were warm and wet. Great, he had pissed himself.

It was during that small moment of self disgust when Snape finally came through the door of his room. He stared at the man enraged, this was just his luck. And while a part of him was terrified of what the man would do to him, he was also pissed the fuck off.

How dare he? This was just too perfect of a timing and his eyes narrowed at the implications of that though. He didn't even have his wand come to think of it so he couldn't even spell himself clean. This was a set up, he knew it.

"You bastard," Harry hissed out furiously, watching with a sort of grim amusement as the eyebrows of the man disappeared in his hairline.

"Excuse me?" Severus said in a dangerous tone, as he looked at the child.

He wasn't blind, he could see the wet pants and he winced as an afterthought. He knew he had been forgetting something but everything always took a backseat when it came to his potions. And this was the price to pay for his forgetfulness. Whatever bit of trust the child may have had with him, was suddenly gone he knew.

"You heard me. I know you heard me calling you. I bet you're just loving this, one more up on James Potter. News flash Snape, he's dead. You prick," Harry ranted at his teacher, his common sense was gone and had flown right out the window; along with his sanity.

Severus clenched his jaw, it wouldn't do any good for him to say anything out of anger, Harry was clearly doing that enough for both of them. He couldn't honestly blame the child if he was being honest, but he truly had forgotten.

Harry scoffed at the man, but inwardly he was embarrassed beyond belief. Not to mention on edge, Snape had yet to say anything. Any other time and he knew he would have gotten hit with loss of point and a week of detention at the least.

"I'm not sure if you believe Mr. Potter, but it was not my intention for you...for me to find you in this state. I must apologize as I realized I neglected to show you around my quarters," Severus stated carefully, enunciating each word slowly as he breathed out calmly.

He had gotten his anger under control, and had even thrown an apology in there. Mainly because he knew he had been at fault, and he was seriously still worried about the child being pushed over the edge.

Harry stared at his teacher impassively for a moment, unable to believe his ears. Had he just heard correctly? Snape hadn't risen to the taunt of his father, nor had he belittled him. In fact he had apologized to him. What the hell was going on? He rolled his shoulders, unable to relax even a fraction. This was unfamiliar territory to him and he didn't like it.

When it became obvious that the child in question wasn't going to reply Severus pulled out his wand. "Would you like me to spell you clean?"

Harry lips took on a pinched look as he nodded curtly to the man. "Where's my wand?" He asked tightly.

"I have it, and no I didn't break it nor am I planning to keep it," Severus told him as he spelled the child and the floor below him clean.

"When can I get it?" Harry asked in a controlled voice.

Severus stared at the boy, he didn't like the tone of the child. His tone spoke violence but his posture screamed fear. It was disconcerting to say the least. "When I deem you fit to get it," he said slowly.

Harry swallowed his retort at that, but he was seething with rage. He made himself calm down when he felt something shaking to the left of him. He knew it was his magic and he balled his hands into fists allowing his finger nails to pierce his palm so he could calm down. It worked surprisingly as he narrowed his eyes at the man, who seemed to be calculating something.

"What?" Harry stated rudely, well the man was staring at him.

"Why didn't you, come knock on my lab door if you were in such an urgent need?" Severus asked plainly, he was occluding as the child was really working his last nerves.

But he knew he couldn't snap at him, that was not the way to go. He was watching the boy's facial expressions rather closely and was finally rewarded when he saw the anger leave at his question. He didn't like the change however; as sadness and a shame seemed to erase the anger.

"I wasn't sure if that would be okay," Harry admitted quietly.

"Why wouldn't that be okay?" Severus questioned.

"Because at the Durselys it never was, all right!" He rushed out before rolling his eyes, and turning away from the man.

His anger was gone in that moment, having deflated him like a balloon. He didn't want to tell the man how worthless they constantly they made him feel, and that years of hearing it he now knew it to be true. He didn't want his teacher to see what a freak he was.

"Don't close yourself off from me Potter. They were wrong, none of what they told you were right at all. Do you hear me?" Severus said through his suddenly clenched teeth.

How dare those monsters treat Lily's child as such. What other horrors had he gone through?

"I hear you Snape," Harry choked out but 16 years of abuse wasn't just going to go away in one day. He heard the man, but he didn't really hear his words.

"Now tell me. Why wasn't it okay to knock on the door?" Severus demanded in a quiet voice.

"At the Durselys I was always told that since I was a freak, I didn't have rights. And that I was only allowed to use the toilet, shower, stuff like that, if they felt like letting me out." Harry admitted with shame clearly on his face. Though he had to admit that once he had confessed that, he strangely felt a bit lighter.

"Let you out of what?" Severus asked dread in his tone. He could vaguely remember Minerva ranting at him about Potter's letter being address to a cupboard, but he had sneered at her until she left. But now, he started to wonder just what the hell had really been going on in that house.

"Dudley's second bedroom, it had about 1 dozen locks on door with bars on the windows. They 'gave' it to me after I got my first letter to Hogwarts," Harry said a small smile gracing his face as he remembered the feeling of finally getting away from them.

"Where were you before?" Severus asked carefully.

"Somewhere else," Harry said smoothly but he wasn't about to explain the cupboard. Besides the look on Snape's face was starting to scare him slightly, the expression was a knowing one and he didn't like it.

"So you didn't come to my lab because you thought you weren't allowed too?" Severus asked, getting back at the question at hand when it became clear that the boy wasn't going to give him a whole answer about where he had been sleeping before he got this room.

Currently he was trying to understand the child's logic and why he didn't seek him out. They weren't at the Durselys now, so those rules shouldn't even apply.

"Yes sir, I don't know your rules for your living quarters. And I didn't want to get into trouble, if they are anything like your rules in class," Harry replied glad they were back on almost steady ground, conversation wise. This he could answer, without sounding like a liar at least.

Severus was across from him having an internal battle in his mind. Merlin save him from this mess. What was going through this child's head? He knew that he needed to address this new situation with Potter. How had he ever claimed to know this child for 5 years? He was an enigma if he ever saw one and he didn't like it.

"Harry, we are at school are we not?" The Potion Master asked, trying another tactic at this point.

"Yes Sir, we are," Harry replied confusion evident in his tone. He was unsure of the changed subject, what was going on? And just why was Snape calling him by his first name?

"And has a teacher here ever denied you the right to use the toilet here?" Severus asked him honestly.

"I don't know sir, I've never asked. Anytime I've had to go I just held it in and waited until the class was over." Harry told him honestly.

He had learned in primary school to do that, because the Durselys had told everyone that he was the resident trouble maker. The teachers never gave him a chance, except one but he wasn't going to think about her at the moment.

He was never allowed to be excused from class to go to the toilet, and he just kept the habit. Besides if he was being honest, he wouldn't put it pass Snape to deny him, well before probably but he knew not now.

"What about during the exams?" Severus pushed, he was trying to prove a point here, but he didn't seem to be getting anywhere.

"I usually go beforehand," was the teen's answer as he took a seat on the bed. This was turning out to be a long conversation and he was tired of standing.

Severus was getting frustrated this didn't sound like the child he knew. This boy clearly thought ahead, maybe that Gryffindor impulse wasn't at the front part of his brain like he thought. He pulled the chair from the desk and took a seat as he gathered his thoughts together.

He couldn't help but to think what else this child had hid from them all. He was beginning to think that Harry Potter had been sorted wrong. The characteristics the child was currently displaying screamed of Slytherin.

"I'm beginning to think the sorting hat put you in the wrong house." Severus stated quietly, he wasn't trying to get a reaction out of the boy. This time he was just stating a fact.

"That's because it did," Harry replied with a sly smirk.

"Are you going to explain any of that?" Severus asked softly, not wanting to let on that he was dying to know.

"It wanted to put me into Slytherin, it still does in fact. Only I didn't let it because my 1st friends which were Ron and Hagrid told me that all Slytherins were dark. So I begged it to put me in Gryffindor. It kept saying I would be great, and Slytherin would help me on the way. I was young and naïve and I didn't listen to it. There isn't a day that goes by that I wish I hadn't chosen Gryffindor," Harry explained, and by the end of it his voice had taken on a slight wistful tone.

"Dumbledore was right," Severus murmured with a shake of his head. "A Potter in Slytherin," he sighed out.

"Yep, you would have seen early on that I wasn't spoiled. You would have seen the real me first, just because I would have been one of your snakes. Slytherins take care of their own," Harry quoted out, but there was no bitterness in his voice, only truth.

"How do you know our motto?" Severus asked quietly, as he turned to truly look at the boy across from him.

Harry shook his head at the question, he wasn't about to answer that. Snape wouldn't believe him anyway and he didn't want to open that can of worms.

"Alright fine, we'll come back to this another time as we need to get back to the situation at hand," Severus relented when it became clear the child had become tight-lipped.

He also needed some time to digest this new information he had been given. One thing that kept coming back to him was the Slytherin motto, that was only said in their common room, how had Potter known?

"What situation?" Harry asked with a sigh, he was tired of talking now.

"That using the toilet is your right. Once again the Durselys are wrong, you never have to hold it here or ask to use it. The bathroom is actually down the hall and to your left. You may use it whenever you wish too, the same goes for the shower," Severus informed him.

"Thanks I will remember that. Are we finished now?" Harry couldn't help but ask.

Severus he could hear the tiredness in the boy's voice but this needed to be done. Not to mention people, children in particular tended to share more when they were tired.

"Almost, just a few more things and then we'll be done. Why you didn't tell anyone about your home life?" Severus murmured out.

Harry sighed before answering but he had known this one was coming. "What good would it have done? I hinted to the Headmaster every year and all he replied was ‘it's for your own good' before he sent me back. I didn't want to have to bare my soul just to have it shoved back into my face. People only see what they want to see, you know that better then anyone. If you go back and look at your memories, and actually take a good look at me. you'll see the signs are there. I was just ignored because I'm the boy-who-lived. And besides whom would I have told anyway?" Harry said giving the man a pointed look. He couldn't have gone to Snape for obvious reasons.

"You're Head of House of course," Severus said his tone carrying the sarcastic one that he used when someone asked a stupid question.

"Right my head of house. I learned first year that McGonagall didn't care about me unless it had to do with Quidditch," Harry scoffed.

"That's not true Harry she cares about your, more then you will ever know," Severus told him sincerely.

"Oh isn't it? 1st year the night Quirrel tried to steal the Stone, we told her first but she refused to listen to us just because we were children. Hence why we had to go down there ourselves. I was nearly killed," Harry muttered out bitterness, layering his tone.

"Minerva made a mistake Harry, She's only human. Plus I'm sure she regrets it," the dark haired man replied honestly. He knew from experience that Minerva had regretted not listening but you couldn't go back, you could only move forward and learn from it.

"Really? What about Umbridge's Detentions? She told me to just keep my head down when I tried to tell her what the toad was making me do. That showed me that she didn't give a damn about me. So I'm done with her, Head of House or not," Harry said crossing his arms on one another as he unconsciously hid his hand.

"What happened in the toad's detention?" Severus asked calmly, he didn't like the way that Harry seemed to shrink into himself and he got a bad feeling about this.

"Why do you want to know?" Harry huffed out.

"Because you're my student and I need to know if she hurt you in any way," he replied truthfully.

"Why do you care now? When you never did before?" Harry sighed heavily.

Severus ceased all movement while he contemplated Harry's words. He had thought that Harry and him had passed this stage and had come to a mutual understanding of one another, apparently not just yet.

"I've always cared for you, I've kept you alive since you were 11. I was just blinded by my hatred for your father that I never saw just you. You will never know how much I regret treating you like I did, and I have no excuses Harry; I am so sorry," he said quietly.

It had taken Severus a while to shove his pride under the table and apologize to the boy. He knew that he didn't deserve to be forgiven but he hoped Harry would anyways.

"Why are you doing this sir? Is it because you hope I can bare my soul to you and you can laugh about it later?" Harry asked, ever the skeptic.

"What? Harry no, I would never do that to you," Severus promised him seriously.

"So you say; how can I know that? You're probably just saying that and then you're going to hurt me with it when the time is right. You and your buddies all having a laugh at my expense," Harry said darkly.

"Harry, remember I took an oath that I would never do anything like that. I even swore on my magic," Severus reminded him.

"So? There are always loopholes in oaths," the young Gryffindor pointed out.
"Then you're just going to have to trust me Harry," Severus said quietly.

"Trust you? The man who loathed me at no fault of my own mind you. Who berated me every day of the school year because of what I represented. Who made me feel like I was lower than dirt, and not even worth it. That man?" Harry asked out harshly.

Every word that Harry spoke Severus's heart dropped lower and lower in his stomach. This was a bad idea, too far-fetched to believe that Harry could ever forgive him after all that he had wronged him. He wanted to defend his actions but he said nothing. He didn't tune the child out, knowing this was his punishment, and he needed to hear it.

"Who risked his own life to save mine every year when he didn't have too. And the man who finally saw me when no one else did and saved me even when I didn't want to be saved?" Harry finished out strongly, his eyes never leaving the older man's face.

"But how can I trust you sir?" Harry whispered out.

"You just have to Harry," Severus replied thickly. He felt his heart swell at that, maybe there was hope for them after all.

"No, I mean; how do you trust someone?" Harry clarified.

Severus's heart plummeted then, the Durselys had a lot to answer for maybe Minerva would come with him to Surrey for a visit. What kind of monsters were they anyway? How did a child not know how to trust?

"You just have to believe that they won't hurt you intentionally. And I know that's hard considering how you grew up but it is possible; you just have to try," was the man's answer.

"Okay, I'll try sir," Harry murmured.

"Now can you tell me what happened in Umbridge's detention?" Severus repeated.

"She had this quill, which made lines in my hand. It hurt and it made my hand bleed, it left a scar," Harry said his voice quiet. Everyone was always leaving scars on him, at least he knew he was alive and could survive.

"Can I see it?" Severus asked curiously.

"Why do you want to see it Professor? It's just a scar," Harry said unable to help the flush of shame at showing the man just what he had been made to right.

"Because I need to know if that toad used a blood quill on you. I'm not sure if you know but it's a dark artifact. And if so she deserves to be punished," he told him matter-factually.

"Whatever, hopefully I'll be long gone by the time that trial takes place, but here it is," Harry said with a shrug when he realized that Snape wasn't about to be swayed. He held out his left hand carelessly.

Severus didn't register what Harry said because he was so disgusted at the barely faded scar on Harry's left hand it read ‘I must not tell lies'.

"She used a blood quill, in Albus Dumbledore's school?! How many others were there Potter?" Severus hissed out, his dark eyes flashing dangerously.

"Um most of Gryffindor, a few Ravenclaws, a lot of Hufflepuffs, and according to Draco a handful of Slytherins as well." Harry didn't notice his slip of the tongue and neither did Snape for that matter. He was focused on the fact that Snape seemed to be angry on his behalf, whoa right?

"And no one told their Head of House?" Severus asked in disbelief.

"Well they heard about me trying to tell McGonagall and they figured the teachers agreed with her, after all she's the Deputy Headmistress. We figured she knew and allowed it," Harry replied honestly.

"That's preposterous, go down the hall and turn left, go into the kitchen and call a house elf to bring lunch. I'll join you in a minute; I'm going to go talk with the Headmaster." Severus told him, barely able to rein in his temper as stomped out of the room.

Harry watched Snape leave with an awed expression on is face before he obediently walked to the kitchen and called for Dobby. Who he saw was excited as usual to serve his Harry Potter sir.

Harry laughed at his excitement; it felt good to laugh again. He ordered lunch and waited at the table for Snape. The food appeared but Harry still waited; he wasn't allowed to eat before anyone and he wouldn't forget his place.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

When Severus landed in the Headmaster's office, he was a little surprised to see Minerva there as well. But seeing as she was a part of this discussion he didn't care that she was here. He accioed the Headmaster's pensive and put the memory of his and Harry conversation and floated it towards them.

"Really Severus, no greetings or anything," Minerva said dryly.

But Severus wasn't in the mood for her, to disregard that child below, blew his mind away. He didn't even try to defend his own actions, but she was the boy's head of House! That's what they were there for. He ignored her in favor of answering Albus's question.

"What is this Severus? What did you find out?" Albus asked quietly, knowing whatever this was it had to do with Harry.

"Take a look first Albus, then we'll talk. You too Minerva this concerns you, and what vile woman did to Harry," He told her, granting her a stern look in her direction. Never mind that he was years younger then her, she had taught him for Merlin's sake.

That got their attention and they dove into the sphere; and as Severus waited for them patiently. As his brain went over the previous conversation he had just had with Harry and the things he missed.

‘There isn't a day that goes by that I wish I hadn't chosen Gryffindor' what did that mean? Did the boy wish even now that he could be resorted into the snake pit? Would the Headmaster even allow that? What was he saying since when did he want a Potter in his house? Since realizing he was nothing like his father, that's when.

‘Whatever, hopefully I'll be long gone by the time the trial takes place.' What was that about surely the boy wasn't suicidal; he was young and so full of life.Then again He didnt even know the real Harry as that was has pointed out to him. Severus only saw what he wanted to see. He pondered on that one for a while, and vowed to pay close attention just in case. He actually wanted to be there for Harry if he needed him in the future.

‘According to Draco a handful of Slytherins as well' since when did Harry refer to the Slytherin by his first name, they were rivals weren't they? Severus contemplated that one the most. If they had a friendship and that was a BIG if, then this could be a great advantage to the light side. He resolved to watch Harry closely to see how he interacted with Draco and the rest of his Slytherins. He hoped with all his might that his snakes were tolerant of Potter in secret and what the rest of the school saw was an act. Severus scoffed at that unbelievable thought, unaware how right he actually was.

They reappeared 15 minutes later both looking grave and angered. Albus couldn't believe that Umbridge had the audacity to use a blood quill in his school. He was going to show her that he wasn't Chief of Wizard Court and defeater of Grindewald for nothing. Albus Dumbledore was mad.

"I need to see Harry, where is he Severus? Minerva demanded to the younger man.

"I'm sorry Minerva but he doesn't want to see you, let alone speak to you right now," Severus told her honestly, not to hurt her but it was what it was.

"Who cares about what he wants he's just a child, I'm his Head of House and he...," but she never got to finish that sentence.

"Then where were you when he was on the brink of death and begging me not to save him?" Severus replied out harshly, she wanted to go there, he could as well.

"That's not fair Severus; I didn't know...he hid it so well, that I never suspected a thing." Minerva replied out sadly,

"I know but as of right now, he loathes you. You saw his expression in the memory, his anger towards you," he pointed out.

"Do you think he'll forgive me Severus?" She whispered out quietly.

"If that child can forgive me after all I've done to him, he can forgive you Minerva; just give him time." Was the man's answer and he knew it to be true.

Harry Potter had a good heart, and at the moment it was slightly broken. He would do whatever he could to make it whole again, and give the child the will to live. He was worth it, Lily's child deserved the world, and Severus would make sure he got it.