Potions and Snitches
Snape and Harry Gen Fanfiction Archive

Chapter 27 The Threat

A few hours later, Harry stood in front of the Gargoyle statue guarding the western tower and took a deep breath before uttering the password. Snape had not changed it since last night and he was let in. He waited for a long while after he knocked on the door to the office, before Snape finally opened with a frown.

“How did you get into the tower?” he asked without greeting Harry. “I had no notice of you coming.”

“Er... You haven’t changed the password,” said Harry. Snape looked suspiciously at him.

“Did I tell you, yesterday? Did I say it aloud? What a bother, I don’t remember!” Snape was irritated. Harry had no intention to reveal that he had managed to guess his way to the password.

“Er... yes, you were very ill,” he emphasised instead.

“Good evening, Harry,” Mrs Steadfast rose from one of the armchairs in front of the fire-place and came over with an out-stretched hand that Harry accepted.

“I apologise for this morning, Ma'am,” he said.

“Don’t mention it, you were right to scold me. Far too wrapped up in my own success. And not enough enlightened about Grief Swallowers. Haven’t been around so many. I honestly thought the professor here was able to take care of himself. That’s what he always tells me, anyway, when I want to press an attending Auror on him,” she said.

Snape muttered something and Mrs Steadfast changed the subject.

“You know, Harry, when you’ve got an invitation to come here, all you need to say to the Gargoyle downstairs is ’Harry Potter, here to see Professor Snape’ and you’ll be announced up here to warn the headmaster someone is coming,” she explained.

“Oh? Dumbledore always sent me the passwords by notes when I was invited over. Sweets mostly,” said Harry.

“Sweets?” asked Mrs Steadfast.

“The passwords, I mean, names of sweets,” clarified Harry.

“Dumbledore was a little too trusting sometimes, as well,” Snape said sourly, referring to their conversation in the dungeon earlier. Harry and Snape simultaneously shot quick glances at the portrait of Dumbledore which did not betray that he was aware of being spoken about, however. The old headmaster’s face was completely closed and serene.

“I’ve meant to ask you, Sir,” said Harry, still looking at Dumbledore, but addressing Snape. “That night of the battle. Did you know I would come back to your office? When I needed to use the Pensieve? Because I was able to let myself in. I just had one guess at the password and it worked. It was incredible.” Snape looked puzzled.

“When I left my office that night, Alceto Carrow had alerted me that she had intercepted you in the castle” he said slowly. ”I had a feeling the end was near. Voldemort’s anger had grown since the break-in at Gringotts which told me that you were at last making progress with the commission Dumbledore had charged you with. I prepared for fight that night, before I walked over to Ravenclaw to check out her alarm. I wanted to find you, desperately, and warn you. You know what happened. I suppose you were there, beside Professor McGonagall, under your invisibility coat?”

Harry nodded.

”I left the castle,” continued Snape. ”Naturally, I had not foreseen that I was going to be attacked by Nagini and that you would need to come back to the office to use the Pensieve. I still thought I would be able to find you and speak to you myself.”

“The password was ‘Dumbledore’,” said Harry.

“No, it wasn’t,” retorted Snape, puzzled. Harry frowned.

“I was let in,” he said. A silence ensued. Mrs Steadfast looked at them with interest.

“The gargoyle must have reacted to the emergency of the situation and let you in anyhow,” she said. “I’ve heard of enchantments like that.”

“A dead object that reads and reacts to the emotions of humans?” said Harry and looked at Snape. “Ancient Magic. Dumbledore himself must have... before he...” The three of them looked with awe at the slumbering old wizard in the portrait, before Mrs Steadfast brought their attention back.

“Harry, I meant to say that I believe we’ve treated you with some negligence. You’re indeed a central part in the aftermaths of Voldemort’s reign and should, I feel, be a little better informed about the work at the Auror Office on the cleaning up after Voldemort,” she said.

“I’d like to help. If Voldemort’s prisoners are still out there somewhere - if there are still other secret places to discover, we all need to contribute...” Harry started to say. Snape shot a warning glance at Mrs Steadfast.

“We were afraid you’d feel that way, Harry,” interrupted Mrs Steadfast, ”but I have to say that it’s out of the question that you should join in the search in a practical way. Next year, if you enter the Auror program, I won’t be able to stop you. But you’re a student this year and your obligations are here at Hogwarts. Moreover you’re their target, you must not expose yourself...”

“So is he,” said Harry, pointing at Snape, feeling the anger rise inside him.

“Now, please don’t fly into a temper like this morning. I’ve never seen the like…” Mrs Steadfast made an almost comical, defensive gesture before she added. ”That’s not true actually... Your outburst reminded me of your mother. You’re so like her.”

Harry lifted his eyebrows in surprise.

“I’m afraid I did not know her very well, because she was younger than I and started on the Auror program after I had already graduated. I still met her, a couple of times when I helped train the first years on a number of occasions, before I moved abroad to the US on an assignment. And that’s exactly how I remember her: in a flying temper. We used to laugh at Lily Evans, because she had trouble keeping the boys in order.” Mrs Steadfast pulled a wry face. ”James and Sirius, that was. Those two were always up to things. You would hear her scold them and rage at them with those green eyes of hers flashing. Then, the next minute, she would laugh and all would be forgotten. She was always ready to forgive.”

“You met her...” said Harry staring at Mrs Steadfast. He cast a glance at Snape who had lowered his head so that his long hair hid his face. 

“Just a couple of times, like I said. My grand-mother knew her better. I think Lily confided quite a lot in her. My grand-mother was the head of the Auror Department for nearly forty years, you see. She retired just before I started my education, thank heaven. She was present at the department, though, as some kind of senior consultant. I guess she couldn’t keep away from the office. I think she became a mentor to Lily. The last time I met your mother was at my grand-mother’s house one year after my moving abroad. I had temporarily returned to Britain for some top secret work. Britain was not to be trusted at the time… with Voldemort pulling the strings behind the scenes... My own children were in the US with their father. We were in the middle of a divorce actually and... Never mind...  I stopped by Granny’s place and Lily happened to be there visiting my grand-mother with you, Harry. You were only a few months old and Lily let me hold you. You were adorable as a baby.” Mrs Steadfast smiled at him and Harry stared back. Snape lifted his head and approached them almost involuntarily, with a curious mixture of stiffness and helpless longing on his features.

“I’ll tell you this, with regard to the awful articles in yesterday’s paper, that the woman I met showed no signs of being abused or defeated, believe me. They had just gone into hiding, and of course she didn’t like it. She said that James in particular bore the confinement with ill humour. I believed her because your father always struck me as a slightly impatient kind of man, with great appetite for amusement and action. Lily was resigned to it and did not mind so much because she had you. She took so good care of you, Harry. She was absolutely radiant and happy despite everything. She might have had problems like everybody else to deal with, but she was not a broken person, far from it. Of course she had never been abused by Voldemort in any sort!” Mrs Steadfast said forcefully.

A long silence followed. Snape had shut his eyes as she spoke. He stood completely still with his fingertips touching the desk, his chest heaving deeply. Harry’s eyes were glazed and he played absentmindedly with a quill he had picked up.

“I’m sorry guys,” said Mrs Steadfast softly, “I didn’t quite realise... After so many years… Such an open wound… Listen, whenever you’re ready, come back to me, please.”

The glare Snape gave her when he opened his eyes, was black and furious, but she met it steadily. Harry’s gaze was riveted far away and only came back gradually. Eventually he met Mrs Steadfast’s warm brown eyes and blinked.

“I’m sorry,” said Mrs Steadfast again, “I sometimes talk too much. My big mouth had better stayed in the United States. I sometimes believe I do not fit in at all in my home country. It’s a sensitive subject with you, I understand. If I have offended you, I apologise. I just wanted to...” Harry interrupted her.

“I don’t mind speaking about my mother,” he said in a clear, but somewhat brittle voice. “On the contrary... I knew it wasn’t true what they wrote, but there are ways you start doubting... and it’s nice to hear someone who met her at that time confirm your own sentiment. It was kind of you, Mrs Steadfast, to tell us. Thank you.”

Snape let out a low muttering growl when the Gargoyle suddenly made an announcement and Mrs Steadfast turned her head.

“It’s Kingsley. He wants a report from today’s investigations and he said it suited him to come over to Hogwarts as he had some business with you as well, Severus,” she said.

Snape went over to the door and let the minister in before he had time to knock. Kingsley was accompanied by two Aurors - Soundy and Simmings, to Harrys’ surprise. Simmings saw him frown and sneaked over by his side as the others greeted each other.

“Hello, Harry. Nice to see you. No, I’ve not been upgraded to Personal Auror of the Minister.” Simmings grinned. ”He left his attending Aurors downstairs on guard and swapped for us. Soundy and I have been working with the interrogations today and are to report to you now,” said Simmings.

Kingsley came over to greet Harry in his usual friendly way and Harry was glad to see that he looked the same as last time he had met him which had been in this very office at the start of term. Kingsley seemed to cope well with his work.

“May I have a word with you two, please?” said Kingsley to Harry and Snape who followed him to the side and left Mrs Steadfast talking to her Aurors. She shot an interrogating glance after them. Kingsley sighed as he looked at Snape with an annoyed crease between his brows.

“You are aware of the state of things, Severus,” he started without preamble. “We’re balancing on an edge constantly. Not a day passes by without forceful demands from various directions in order to dismiss you from your position as Headmaster. The School Board, the parents and other relatives with influence put a constant pressure on me. The articles in the press have brought a storm of protests. Up to now, I’ve retorted that the Daily Prophet is not a court and that the public will have to wait until the proper inquiry. Your attack on Lucius Malfoy deteriorated your position, not so much in the press or in the eyes of common people, but in a juridical sense. Another charge - you do realise that?”

Harry felt slightly embarrassed to hear his professor being rebuked by the minister and wondered why he had been asked by Kingsley to listen in on this, while Mrs Steadfast had not.

“I understand the strain they put you under. Don’t think that I underestimate the effects of the speculations in the press. My condition to continue to support you, however, is that you keep your temper under control and do your job until the inquiry takes place – do I make myself clear?” asked Kingsley.

Snape looked at the prime minister with an impassive face.

“Hmm...” continued Kingsley. “At the Ministry we were made uneasy the other day, by the testimony of that former student at Hogwarts as to being Obliviated by you in this office last year.” Snape made an irksome gesture.

“There’s an explanation,” he said shortly.

“Yes, I believe you as a matter of fact, because there’s something else. Someone from your staff owled me, anonymously, to state that the teachers were brought together by you at the start of term and that they were given an account of these Obliviating sessions with the Crucioed students. Is that correct?” insisted Kingsley.

“Yes, it is. I needed to regain my colleagues’ confidence. They had all witnessed the atrocities of the Carrows towards the pupils and I needed to convince them that I really was on their side last year, even if it did not appear so to them at the time,” said Snape.

“I understand. The person who wrote to me states that they were made to promise not to reveal the nature of these Obliviatings, but in view of the revelations in the press, the staff feels differently and the person who wrote asked me to convince you of going public with it. I gather that they dare not on their own,” said Kingsley.

“I’ll give you the explanation, later,” said Snape sternly. He clearly resented Harry’s presence. “I refuse to have anything to do with the newspapers, even to defend myself,” he added.

“Very well, then. We’ll move on to the second point which involves Mr Potter. The same person who owled me about the Obliviatings, was concerned that you were mistreating Mr Potter, giving him a hard time and bullying him because of the speculations in the press. If that’s true, I have to tell you that I won’t accept it, Severus. I know of your difficult relationship with Harry - it was made clear to me last time I was here - but he’s your student and there’s no excuse to use your powers to oppress him,” Kingsley said sternly.

Snape looked a bit disconcerted and Harry hastened to intervene.

“Professor Snape has not…” he said. 

Kingsley turned to him.

“Harry, I want you to tell the truth. If Professor Snape has indeed been mistreating you, it’s unacceptable, you understand. The person who wrote to me seemed quite convinced that something serious had happened between you two. I wanted, in the presence of Professor Snape...” Kingsley shot him a stern look, “...to make clear that my priority is to stand behind you, Harry. You must defend yourself even against an authority. You don’t need to be afraid of him. I will sack him if it’s true he has done something to you.” Harry found himself bewildered.

“I‘m not...” he started in an affronted tone “...afraid of him!” he hissed in a lower voice as Mrs Steadfast turned her head in their direction. This was ridiculous. Harry felt like a child and resented Kingsley’s misdirected protection, but he started to have an idea of who could have written to Kingsley.

“Has he bullied you?” insisted Kingsley.

“He has not bullied me... in particular, I mean...”

Kingsley frowned and Harry tried, annoyed, to untangle himself.

“I mean that he sometimes shows a bit of temper in class... he does have a kind of bullying way with his pupils... but that’s a teacher thing... that’s just how he is... in class... He hasn’t targeted me in particular... not this year...” Harry added truthfully. He could see he had not convinced Kingsley.

“I’m not speaking of his teaching methods, Harry. I’m sure he keeps within the limits, mostly.” Kingsley gave Snape another stern look. Harry shook his head and looked Kingsley straight in the eyes.

“The person who wrote to you misinterpreted the situation, Minister. Professor Snape and I did have a... discussion. It was after that article yesterday morning. I suppose you’ve read it. It concerned my mother... and we were both upset... but it was because of what it said in the article. I’d prefer if you sacked Rita Skeeter and a bunch of the reporters on the Daily Prophet instead of pushing him over the edge... not on my account anyway!” Harry concluded firmly. Kingsley finally looked convinced and relieved.

“Excellent... excellent, Harry! I’m Kingsley to you by the way. We were in the Order together, remember?” he said, suddenly jovial.

“Thank you, but I was never allowed into…” Harry started to say, but Kingsley interrupted him.

“You mean that you stay loyal to Professor Snape despite everything? That’s excellent news, Harry! I wasn’t sure of the state of things between you here at Hogwarts and I was indeed beginning to feel alone in my support for your headmaster.” He turned to Snape. “Now, your work yesterday evening which led to the incarceration of several criminals might have ameliorated your image. At least you show people who you are and where you stand right now. People might say that you do it only to redeem yourself in the eyes of others, but I think your actions must speak for themselves. I’m sorry I don’t have the power to sack some of the reporters…” added Kingsley.

At that time, Soundy let out an exclamation. He had started to go through small pieces of parchments and letters from a wooden box he had brought with him.

“Look!” He showed Mrs Steadfast and Simmings a small parchment. Harry recognised it for having been rolled up and deduced that it was probably a note sent by owl mail. Simmings' face clouded with fear as he glanced at Harry. Mrs Steadfast hesitated before she walked over to Harry with a serious expression in her eyes.

“This was found among the belongings of the young Death Eater that we arrested the day before yesterday and who eventually led us to Voldemort’s Pleasure Temple,” she said.

The note she showed them had been scribbled on in two different handwritings as if sent back and fro between two correspondents. The first line was dated nearly a month back.

Harry Potter unlikely to be son of Voldemort – conspicuous signs,” said the first line in tight capital letters. A smaller sprawling hand answered. “M and H want to know whether HP can be recruited notwithstanding parentage?” An answer came promptly. “No. Unlikely. Disposition difficult to judge.” A line dated a few weeks later said: “M impatient. Wants to know what to do about HP. Need plan.” The answer had been sent only a few days ago: “Propose to kill. Difficult at castle. No Auror, but vigilance and power equal to other target.

They stared at the note for a while, then Harry said with a voice dripping of irony:

“Wonderful! This is really good credentials for me! When not even the Death Eaters believe me to be the son of Voldemort, surely the Daily Prophet will stop harassing me about it? Let’s sell this note to the paper!”

Simmings looked appalled and Mrs Steadfast frowned, whereas Snape had a violent fit of coughing and Kingsley raised his eyebrows at Harry.

“That’s how it all started, isn’t it?” Harry went on. ”Rita Skeeter got hold of some stupid rumour from the wizard underworld and decided to make a big thing out of it. Now their source is denying the truth of the same statement.”

“Harry, this is serious! You do realise they’re planning to kill you, don’t you?” said Mrs Steadfast.

Snape stopped coughing. Harry looked at Mrs Steadfast, no trace of fear in his gaze.

“I’ve known that since the start of term, right?” he said.

“Yes, but this is evidence,” replied Mrs Steadfast.

“Maybe, but at the same time they state that I’m probably safe at Hogwarts. That’s good news, is it not? Wise Death Eaters... They think I’m capable of taking care of myself. Flattering really...” Harry added to himself, “...comparing me to... The other target, surely...” His eyes met Snape’s.

“The most disquieting in this,” Snape said slowly, “is that we might have a spy inside Hogwarts... One of the correspondents gives the impression to have you under his or her eyes... ”

A silence ensued. Harry, too, became serious. It was not a nice thought, that someone sneaked upon him, watched him and reported to a gang outside the castle who seemed resolved on killing him.

“Do you know who M is, or H?” asked Kingsley.

“We don’t have any names, but a qualified guess is that they would be the leaders of the gang that calls itself ’The Shifting Successors’ or ’The Shiftings’ in short. It’s the same gang that has approached the Death Eaters for collaboration,” said Mrs Steadfast.

“Why the ’Shifting Successors’?” asked Simmings, “Sounds like a tautology to me.” Mrs Steadfast shook her head.

“Harry...” she started to say.

“It’s still no, Mrs Steadfast,” he replied firmly. He did not want a personal Auror to stalk him. She looked at him sternly.

“You must take care, Harry. This makes me very uneasy on your behalf. There might be a spy inside the castle. Report everything to me. Consult with me before every move out of the ordinary, okay? Will you let me speak to your friends? They need to be vigilant too. Maybe you could decide to move about two by two, at least?” she said. Harry pulled a bothered face, but nodded his approval.

Harry suddenly felt the tiredness that had assailed him all day return and he listened almost distractedly to the reports from the interrogations that Soundy now accounted for.

“The prisoners are pretty unyielding as yet,” said Soundy. “I don’t think it has sunk in that they’ll soon be sent to Azkaban. When it does, some of them will want to negociate, and give us information. But they all start off defying. Our focus, of course, is to locate the remaining cave. We’ve searched the environs, but if it’s under a protective spell, we could pass right in front of it without noticing. It all depends upon whether we’ve caught the Secret Keeper and whether we can uncover and break him or her.” Soundy spoke in a decided tone of voice that told Harry that the experienced Auror would not give up until he had exhausted all his resources.

Simmings continued to describe what the examination of the cave had shown, but he mostly shook his head.

“Dark magic, stuff created by Voldemort himself no doubt. We’ve only managed to undo a third of the curses. One Auror, Swablu, was hit and is at St Mungo’s... Maybe you could have a look, too, Professor? Your area of expertise,” he asked Snape.

“Of course – I’ll go tomorrow,” said Snape.

Simmings went on, giving an account of the state of the victims. He had visited St Mungo’s just before coming to Hogwarts and had spoken to the healers.

“There’ll be some time before they’ll let us interrogate them properly,” said Simmings. “And it’ll have to be done very carefully.” He described the wounds, the state of mind and the general health condition of each of the seven victims. He was visibly affected by what he had seen at the hospital and he spoke quietly with lowered eyes as if taking the shame for what had been done to them on himself. Cold shivers run down Harry’s back and unconsciously he wrinkled up his face in horror and disgust.

Snape, too, looked nauseated by the account and moved away to the window with his back turned on them. Harry wondered if Snape recalled his nerves vibrating with the victims’ suffering from the Relievings he had performed the previous night, or if he was simply appalled by the thought that he had once mixed with the Death Eaters who had tortured those people. Harry wondered if Lucius Malfoy, for one, had been in on those orgies at the Pleasure Temples. As if Mrs Steadfast had read his thoughts, she said to Soundy:

“We’ll need to bring in the Death Eaters who are not yet in Azkaban, the ones who are awaiting trial, and extort confessions out of them. I want a new round of interrogations and find out exactly who have been to those Temples.” She started to give instructions in a low voice to Soundy and Simmings.

Harry too withdrew to a window. He felt the anxiety he had had difficulties to keep away all day mount in him again. He knew that Mrs Steadfast would never let him join in the work to find that other cave and he understood that he could not do anything, that he was compelled to stay at Hogwarts, but it was agonising to realise that people were imprisoned and enduring torture right now and not be able to help. He would almost have preferred not to have known about it at all.

“We’ll find it,” said Snape suddenly to him. He had approached Harry from his window. ”And we’ll catch those people who are planning to kill you.”

Harry nodded and tried to compose his features. Was his anxiety that easily read? He wondered how Snape managed all this. The man had triple jobs: he was the headmaster at Hogwarts, he was a teacher in two main subjects, and he was a consultant Auror at the department.

“Can I ask you a personal question, Professor?” said Harry.

Snape frowned and looked suspicious.

“Not about her, obviously...” muttered Harry with some irritation.

Snape inclined his head an inch and looked inquiringly at Harry who cleared his throat.

“When you woke up after I Rennervated you last night... you said... you were sort of confused still, but you said quite clearly that you wanted out. ’I want out,’ you said... twice. At first I thought you meant you needed some fresh air, but now it seems to me more like…” said Harry.

“I probably meant nothing,” Snape answered evasively, colouring a little. “Maybe I believed in my confusion that I was still a spy… still tied to Voldemort…” Harry glanced hesitantly at him.

“Because... because, I don’t think that you should give up, or leave Hogwarts, or anything like that, Sir,” said Harry in an uncertain tone of voice.

Snape blinked a couple of times, but otherwise he stayed impassive. There was a silence.

“Could I ask a favour of you, Sir?” Harry continued.

Snape narrowed his eyes.

“You know my friend, Hermione Granger…” continued Harry. ”She’s so very grateful to you for helping her to get her mother into care at St Mungo’s, that she has sort of... Well you know how smart she is and... and very good at expressing herself, too...”

Snape looked puzzled and Harry sighed.

“...which I’m not. Sorry Sir, I’ll get to the point. The thing is – she wants to work with wizard law when she leaves Hogwarts, and when she read that you have refused to engage a lawyer to defend you at the coming inquiry, she took upon herself to prepare a defence for you. She knows you won’t let me testify, so she has thought out some other ways... And I’d like to ask you as a favour, Professor... I did defend you against Kingsley ... if you’ll let her represent you at the inquiry? She wants to repay her gratitude to you...” Harry looked at Snape in suspense.

Snape hesitated.

“If it doesn’t matter to you, Sir, you might as well let her do your defence as not have a defence at all,” insisted Harry.

“All right, I might just as well let her have her bit of training, then...but only at the inquiry, not at the real trial when it comes to that,” conceded Snape.

“Excellent!” exclaimed Harry. “We have... I mean she has found out some ways to at least make things look at little better for you. And she told me to say to you that it’s essential that the inquiry is held here at Hogwarts...”

“Here, why? It’s scheduled at the Ministry, I believe” said Snape, surprised. “Kingsley is delaying it for as long as possible.”

“Good, that’s Hermione’s view too, that you should have it as late in the term as remotely possible. But let’s ask Kingsley... Minister, Kingsley, please!” Harry called out before Snape could object and Kingsley walked over to them.

“Professor Snape and I were talking about the inquiry,” said Harry. “We believe it would be best to have it here at Hogwarts in the presence of pupils and parents, people from the School Board and whoever is in charge of the case from the Ministry.”

Kingsley raised his eyebrows.

“I told you, the majority of the parents are against you,” he said to Snape.

“Well, that’s exactly why it’s so important to convince them of Professor Snape’s innocence, face to face,” Harry hastened to say before Snape could answer. “We’ll focus on the accusations of mistreatment of pupils last year and if we’re able to persuade them that those accusations are false and win them over, we’ll have an advantage at the real trial. There might not, in that case, be so much focus on the motive Professor Snape joined Dumbledore from the start - which is what he wants to avoid, right?” Harry said briskly.

“You might be right,” mumbled Kingsley. “I’ll listen to your explanation for those Obliviatings, Severus and if it’s satisfactory, there’s a chance we might convince the parents that you worked with Dumbledore and you’re right that it’s better done face to face than through the media which has obviously taken a stand against you. I’ll see what I can do, but I do get your point, Severus. Good of you to support him, Harry.” To Harry’s relief, Snape did not say anything, but shrugged with a sideway look at Harry.

Harry’s back had gone damp with sweat and cold from the nerve-stringing effort of persuading Snape and Kingsley. The tiredness rumbled over him again. He started to shiver and felt dizzy.

“Harry, are you unwell?” whispered Simmings with concern, not all too quietly. Mrs Steadfast looked up and Snape and Kingsley turned their heads towards him again.

“You’ve probably caught a cold from running about recklessly in the forest like you did yesterday,” Mrs Steadfast said disapprovingly.

“I’m just a bit tired,” Harry defended himself, clenching his jaws not to chatter his teeth. Mrs Steadfast looked demandingly at Snape for a diagnosis.

Snape stepped up to Harry and scrutinised his face. He put a finger on Harry’s wrist feeling for his pulse. For the third time that day, Harry felt tears well up in his eyes, and quickly averted his gaze. Yelling and taunts were apparently easier for him to handle than kindness, he thought, annoyed with himself.

“Probably just tiredness,” Snape confirmed in a mutter.

“Well, we only have some minor things left to discuss. You may leave, Harry. Thank you for joining us this evening. I’ll speak to you and your friends again tomorrow about security. Take care now. Simmings, accompany Harry to the Gryffindor tower, please,” said Mrs Steadfast. Harry pulled an apologetic face at Simmings, but did not protest. Simmings smiled reassuringly and put a hand on Harry’s shoulder to usher him towards the door.

“Thank you for inviting me, Mrs Steadfast,” said Harry before he left.


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