A/N – Hi! Welcome to 'Black and White's next instalment. Thanks for the feedback guys, can I please remind those of you who have not had replies, I can't reply to them if you don't sign them! No romance yet, but I'll keep the chapters rolling. Have the feeling this is going to be a very looooooong story! Much hugs guys! (Ugh, grammar).

My heart was pounding in my ears with trepidation as I crept down the dungeon corridor after Harry. Ron's breath was reassuring in my ear, but I knew that if we were caught it would be the end of our career at Hogwarts, and maybe even the end of Harry's lessons. We seemed to be heading for a portrait of an old intelligent-looking man at the far end. It looked very old. As Harry came towards it, it smiled in recognition.

"Evening Albert," Harry said politely.

"Good evening Harry Potter. He is waiting for you." Harry smiled and Ron and I hurried to catch up so that we could slip in through the portrait as it closed. We shrank back into a corner and sat down as Harry had advised. We were in what looked like a large arena. There were a few armchairs, a bookcase, a bubbling cauldron and a drinks cabinet on the raised level where the door was, and it overlooked a fairly large circular room with ropes rigged up around the sides. Professor Snape was standing next to one of the armchairs. He had removed his usual billowing robes and was wearing a black shirt and some black trousers. He looked very different and very odd. He looked up when Harry came in and almost smiled.

"Good evening. Gin?"

"Love some." Harry walked over and took the glass from his professor. As one they threw back their heads and emptied the stuff into their throats. Then Snape clapped his hands.

"Right Harry. To work. Go and warm up." Harry? Since when had Snape called Harry 'Harry'? Harry shrugged off his jacket and jogged over to the ropes. He began to swing from them in a figure of eight pattern. I hadn't realised before quite how strong he was. He sprinted from rope to rope, lifting himself around them without even breaking a sweat. I looked over at Snape. He was watching Harry with an impenetrable look on his face. This continued for ten minutes. Suddenly Snape vaulted into the arena with surprising agility and fired a jet of white light at Harry. "Legilimends!" Harry could not possibly have got his wand out in time…and yet he had and cried,

"Protego!" Everything was moving so quickly. Harry was in the arena already. Snape might have dodged his own spell but I couldn't be sure. Spells were flying everywhere, until I could barely see them for the veil of magic separating us from them. I could hear them though. Most of the spells I didn't recognise, but sometimes I heard 'Stupefy' from one of them or the other. I was stunned. I hadn't realised how fast and how much Harry's power had grown. Suddenly I felt a jolt as Harry cried, "Crucio," which was quickly batted back by Snape. I couldn't believe it. If that hit one of them…and the strength of it was growing with every Protego and Expelliarmus they protected themselves with. At last, it hit Harry in the stomach and he doubled over with the pain of it, but fired his own stunning spell at Snape as he did so which caught him and hurled him backwards across the circle. Harry recovered, panting, picked himself up and ran over to his teacher. "Enervate," he murmured, and Snape opened his eyes.

"Congratulations Harry." There it was again. Harry grinned and held out his hand to pull Snape up.

"Thank you, Severus. Sorry, didn't mean to hit you so hard." Ron and I turned to look at each other in frank disbelief. It was not only the hand; it was the friendly, intimate tone and the personal use of Snape's first name. And the way they smiled at each other as they returned to the middle of the arena…something about it wasn't quite right. Even if it hadn't been Snape, who we all knew hated Harry more than anyone else; they seemed just a little too close. I couldn't imagine speaking even to Hagrid or Lupin as they spoke to each other.

"Do your exercises, Harry. I need to add some ginger root to that potion soon."

"Battle of minds after?" I assumed Harry meant occlumency. Snape smiled again. It was definitely there this time. It was amazing how completely it changed his face. He almost didn't look so ugly anymore. Harry lay down in the middle of the arena and began to do sit ups. Snape climbed the stairs onto the platform and went over to the potion. He cast a spell on it, speaking too low for us to hear. The potion hissed, and he quickly threw in the ginger root. It turned a deep blue-purple and I recognised dreamless sleep. As though in a trance he began bottling it up. We watched him, until there was a slight groan from the arena as Harry turned over and began doing press ups. Ron was watching him enviously. I held his hand and looked back at Snape. And froze. He was looking at Harry in the way that no teacher should ever look at a student. It was only for a moment, and then he turned back to his potion. But I had seen, and I think Ron had seen that look. Pure desire. Heat. Longing. I shivered. And Harry thought Snape was teaching him out of goodwill?

It got worse. Soon Harry finished his exercises, and they began their goddamn battle of minds. I didn't properly understand what was happening, just that they stared at each other for a long time. Obviously mind magic was happening. It lasted a long time. By the time something happened they were both sweating and I had awful cramp in my leg. Harry gave a little cry and gasped,

"Stop, please."

"What's wrong?"

"That's private."

"I saw nothing."

"Oh." They stepped back from each other a little and I looked and there it was, just a tiny flare this time, that sudden heat in Snape's eyes…Harry had his back to me, so I could not tell if he'd seen it or not.

"And what is it you wish to hide?" Harry's feat shuffled and his ears were red.

"Oh, it's nothing, it's just personal…" Ron and I looked at each other. Harry did not have a girlfriend. He had no time to hide one. What else could he possibly have to hide? And did he have a hope of concealing it from Snape? And if he was keeping it from Snape, he was probably keeping it from us too. They were coming up the stairs to our part of the room now. I motioned to Ron to stand and together we painfully stood up.

"Same time tomorrow?" Harry asked. Snape looked at him questioningly for a moment and I could tell he was thinking almost exactly what I had. Harry could tell too. I could see his face this time as he blushed. "Please, don't ask, it's nothing serious."

"Next time you can put whatever memories you need to into the pensive. Tomorrow, yes. Good night." To my surprise, Harry blushed again and murmured,

"Yes, you too. I really need to get myself somewhere to sleep down here. Someone's going to notice I'm here every night soon." Ron and I exchanged glances.

"I'm not sure…well, we can discuss it tomorrow."

"Yup. Umm…bye." Harry flashed one of his rare smiles. Snape did not answer, but raised a hand slightly. Then he turned and crossed the arena and left through a door on the far side. I looked back at Harry. He was watching Snape leave with a strangely peaceful expression on his face. As soon as the door was closed, Harry turned towards our corner and put a hand to his lips. We left out of the portrait and Harry murmured 'goodnight' to the sleeping man in the painting. In the entrance hall Harry said,

"You can take it off now if you want."

"Harry what the fuck?"

"'Severus'?"

"Didn't you see the way he was looking –?"

"Shut up! Now calm down. What are you talking about?"

"Well Harry, you've got to admit you are a little…"

"What?"

"Close."

"Oh for fuck's sake, he's teaching me how to survive, of course we're close."

"Harry, he hates you. He bullies you in class."

"He's meant to be a death eater, remember? What do you think Lucius Malfoy would think if his precious little Draco told him that Severus Snape was all buddy-buddy with Harry Potter? Come on, Hermione, you've got brains."

"Harry, he looks at you."

"Well he's got to, he is my –"

"You know what I mean."

"He doesn't."

"I saw it, Harry."

"You saw what you wanted to see – Nasty old Snape doing something bad. He's never touched me, alright?"

"And what if he does?"

"He won't. You know what he's like. Even if he wanted to, which by the way he doesn't, he's far too wrapped up in himself to ever do something about it."

"But if he did, you'd tell us, right?"

"Like you'd want to know."

"Harry –?"

"I'm going to bed. Goodnight."

When we reached the common room he was waiting for us by the fire.

"Sorry I got angry."

"I'm sorry too. I was really impressed by your magic by the way."

"Yeah, oh my god Harry, what was that, seventy sit-ups?"

"One hundred, actually. I do them twice a day. It keeps my fitness up. I usually run too but…anyway. Goodnight."

"Night, Harry." He ran up the stairs and I turned to Ron and there was nothing to say. Something was pulling them together. I couldn't have stopped it if I'd tried.

HP/SS