“A month and I’m still not used to it,” Severus groused, clamping his hands over his ears. The wooden floor felt particularly cold on his bare feet that morning as he slipped out of bed, shivering at the contact.

Harry was already up, smiling and looking more chipper than anyone had a right to be at five thirty in the morning. “It’s not awful.”

Severus gave Harry a look that clearly said he thought him off his rocker. The teen only shrugged and smiled, going around and opening all the curtains around the cottage.

Severus slumped into an armchair, contemplating if it would be worth it to invest in a thick pair of earmuffs. “I suppose your roommates are just as loud, but I for one enjoy a little quiet in the early hours.”

Harry didn’t respond to this, picking up his practice chanter to start warming up before he left for his lesson. Severus inched away from him, eyeing the chanter hatefully.

As Harry began to “play”, Severus gritted his teeth and tried his best to tune it out. A glance out the window proved that it would be a nice day, for which he was grateful. The day before was when the others had intended to come build the bed frame, but the rain had pushed those plans back a day. It would have to be after work, but he didn’t want to wait until he was able to get a day off again.

Harry left for his lesson and Severus relaxed, ears ringing slightly as he closed his eyes for just a moment…

“Sir!”

He woke up abruptly to see Harry tapping his shoulder, looking at him curiously.

“I wasn’t sleeping,” Severus lied as he stood.

“Right,” Harry smirked, pointing at the breakfast on the table. Severus was about to protest, as he never ate breakfast, but decided against it when he saw the look on Harry’s face.

“How did your lesson go?” He asked, piling scrambled eggs on top of a slice of toast.

“Great! I got some new sheet music to practice at home.”

“Great,” Severus repeated sarcastically, taking a bite. Harry smiled triumphantly at getting him to eat. Severus rolled his eyes. “Some people will be coming over to work on the bed this afternoon.”

“How much dinner do I need to make?” Harry asked, understanding where Severus was leading.

“Enough for six,” Severus said. “The two of us, as well as Malcolm, Francis, Jack, and Callum.”

“Callum’s coming?”

“Jack is Malcolm’s brother, and Callum’s father.”

“Ah,” Harry said as Severus, finished with his meal, stood and grabbed his apron.

“Thank you for breakfast,” Severus said dryly, and Harry smirked.

When their shift was over, Franics and Severus walked back to the cottage together. Along the way, they passed Harry and Callum, who were carrying a bundle of beams together upon their left shoulders. Harry gave a wave as they trudged past, and Severus shook his head.

They followed the teens as they bypassed the front door and went around the side to the back. Malcolm and Jack were talking to each other.

“Good lads!” Malcolm exclaimed as they set the beams on the ground. He pulled out a pocket knife and cut the chords holding the bundle together.

“Dinner will be done in twenty minutes,” Harry said, walking to the back door. Severus followed him to the stovetop.

“What are you making?” He asked, peering into the large pot set on one of the burners. “Smells good.”

Harry lightly smacked his hand away. “It’s not done yet!” He lifted his chin when Severus raised his eyebrows. “I’m making tuna casserole, with conchiglie noodles, cheddar cheese, celery, and milk.”

“And tuna?” Severus guessed wryly, stepping back as the teen removed a pan of boiling noodles from another burner and poured its contents into a strainer in the sink.

“Duh. We haven’t had fish in a while, so I had to add something.”

Severus rolled his eyes and went back outside to find Malcolm and Jack debating about where to start.

“What size mattress are you getting, Sam?”

Severus resisted a lip curl at the nickname. “Twin.”

Jack nodded and picked up two boards. He measured them with a tape, using a pencil to mark each at a certain length before beckoning Callum over. “Hold this.” He sawed each board at the mark while Callum helped hold it steady.

Meanwhile, Francis and Malcolm were cutting flatter, wider boards into slats to hold the mattress in place. Feeling out of his depth, Severus stood there, wondering what he should do.

Jack glanced up and waved him over. He explained what they were doing, and Severus nodded in understanding. He and Callum held the two long sides of the frame up while Jack used an electric screwdriver to attach the ends perpendicular to another board.

“Have much experience with this, Sam?” Jack asked, fitting a different bit to the screwdriver.

“He’s a city teacher, Da," Callum said, looking embarrassed.

“Really? What’d you teach?” Francis asked, probably wondering why he would work processing fish in a shop if he had a degree in education.

“Chemistry,” Severus said. It was close enough.

“What are you doing here, then?” Jack asked, although he only sounded politely curious.

Malcolm answered for him. “That’s his own business. How’s Henry adjusting?”

“Well,” Severus said shortly.

“He’s a nice lad,” Malcolm said to Francis and Jack, before grimacing. “Too bad he took an interest in old McAullife’s bagpipes.”

Severus heartily agreed.

“He’ll get better,” Callum defended his friend, although he sounded a bit doubtful.

“Say, Francis,” Jack asked. “How’s it going with Diane?”

Francis turned slightly pink as Jack, Malcolm, and Severus smirked.

“How is it going?” Malcolm prompted.

“Fine,” Francis said.

Jack laughed. “So that’s why I saw you outside of her house at two in the morning last week?”

Francis spluttered as Callum hid a laugh behind a cough. “Her cat was sick!”

“So, of course, you had to help her tuck it into bed,” Malcolm said.

“That prissy old tom cat has been sick for the past four years,” Jack grinned. “I don’t see why you had to go do something about it now.”

They stopped teasing him when he became too flustered to respond, and Severus realized with a jolt that he was feeling relaxed. He didn’t participate much in the conversation, preferring to listen; but the easy camaraderie between the men, while foreign to him, was not unwelcome.

“S’ready!” Harry called through the open back door, and everyone was quick to go inside. They all spooned a portion of casserole into bowls before heading back outside to sit down in the grass. Severus followed the others’ lead, and Harry came out to eat with them too.

“Henry, I didn’t know you could cook like this!” Callum said, already half-finished.

Harry smiled and shrugged.

“I hear you’re learning to play the pipes, huh?” Malcolm asked, sharing a glance with Jack.

“Yeah,” Harry said. Whether or not he knew they were poking gentle fun at him, he seemed composed. “I know I’m not very good yet, but I’m not going to give up.”

“No one’s asking you to,” Francis said honestly. “Six in the morning though… you have to admit, it’s a little early.”

Harry let a smile spread across his face. “I’m not arguing.”

“Henry,” Callum said, “I just remembered something. We’re—” he indicated himself and Jack, “—going to go out on the skiff sometime this week.” He turned to his father. “Could Henry come with us?”

Jack nodded affably. “If his da is alright with it.”

Severus hesitated when all eyes turned to him. The thought of Harry out on a tiny boat, out of his reach should something go wrong, was not one that he felt comfortable with. His mind immediately went to the Death Eaters. Don't be ridiculous. He's no more protected here than on a boat. Secrecy is our weapon here, and it will be the same on the skiff. If anything goes wrong, he can use the portkey to Dumbledore's office.

There were no true logical reasons that he should be nervous; but, as Severus would someday realize, the worries of an adult for a child they care about aren't always concerning logic. 

He glanced at Harry, who was looking at him hopefully, and sighed. "I suppose."

"That sounds great," Harry immediately told Callum, before the boy could even ask.

They talked excitedly about their plans for the skiff ride while Severus grew more uneasy. He collected the bowls from everyone and took them inside to clean, doing his best not to think about everything that could go wrong.

To his surprise, Harry put his enthusiastic discussion on hold to help him. He followed Severus inside and they washed the dishes together as usual.

"You seem tense," Harry said conversationally.

"I don't want you doing anything stupid on that boat," he said immediately, giving him a narrow-eyed look. "You'll follow Jack's instructions to the letter, do you hear me? If anything goes wrong, you'll use the portkey."

Harry nodded with a confused smile. "Okay. It's not like I was gonna tie myself to the mast upside down or something. I don't know why you're freaking out."

Severus drew himself up. "I am not freaking out."

"Of course not," Harry demurred, not sounding like he believed it.

"The Gryffindor who fought a troll at the ripe old age of eleven? Stopped his teacher from stealing a dangerous magical artifact? Killed a basilisk by himself with a sword? Snuck out to Hogsmeade despite the mass murderer after him? Not only survived, but won the Triwizard Tournament years younger than should have been possible? Yes, I am concerned that you'll land in some kind of trouble."

Indignant, Harry turned back to the bowl he was drying without a word. Severus suppressed a chuckle.

When they'd finished, they went back outside to find Jack and Francis cheerfully arguing about a headboard.

"What's your preference, Henry?"

Caught off guard, Harry stammered, "I, er, don't mind either way."

They picked a style, and the bed frame was finished in the next half hour. Harry was looking at it slightly starry-eyed, and thanked them quite sincerely. They maneuvered it inside and positioned it in the corner near the bookshelf.

Severus was about to offer some sort of payment when Malcolm said, "Don't you dare reach for that wallet, Samuel Paine."

"I'll take any excuse to get a free meal," Franic added, with a lopsided grin. 

"This is what we do here, Sam. I dinnae ken what it was like where you came from, but here, we help each other out." Malcolm said, and he and Severus shook hands.

Where we come from? Back "home", I can't afford to trust anyone. Having led a fiercely independent life in which he had always depended solely on himself, to do otherwise went against every instinct and lesson life had taught him. However, he knew that to reject their offers, given as overtures of both help and friendship, would be to alienate the village. That was not something he wanted to risk. Also, some small part of him wanted to be more than just an outsider here.

"If you ever need my assistance, I will do what I can," he told the older man, and Malcolm nodded.

The four of them left. Harry and Severus remained outside for a moment, watching them go.

"That was really good of them." Harry shook his head. "It's strange, to see people just easily helping other people like that."

"I think it is something we might have to get used to," said Severus, thinking that both of them had little experience with the kindness of strangers.

"There are worse things to get used to," Harry said with a laugh.

"Like fish?" Severus said, going back inside.

"Like always looking over your shoulder," Harry replied more seriously, following him inside and shutting the door.

"Ah," Severus said, looking over at the bed. "At least now you can do so without getting a crick in your neck."

Harry flashed him a brief smile as he hurried over to inspect his new bed. Severus watched, chest muscles loosening. He was one step closer to having kept his word to take care of Harry, and one step further from his own father.

He could tolerate interdependence on other people, if this was the result.