Disclaimer: Yup- I don't own anything HP- wish I did, otherwise I wouldn't have tons of student loans hanging over my head. Alas, it belongs to JKR. At any rate, anything else that you haven't seen in a JKR book is mine all mine! Ha ha ha ha.
Severus quietly closed the door to his quarters, allowing the fledgling to sleep peacefully. He knew that at the rate that Harry was adapting to his new condition, Harry was going to be a strong being- like himself. And maybe, just maybe, if Erasmus approved, Harry would receive a gift of the great master's blood. With that, Harry would not need the potion to help with the sun allergy. And if he gave enough of himself, perhaps Erasmus would grant Draco that same gift. He would never ask for himself- he was a mere servant to Erasmus, but the boys would have a better life, that, Severus was going to ensure.
Suddenly, as he walked down the hall, he bumped into something warm, but invisible.
"Ahhhh, it appears some obnoxious Gryffindor has decided to run amok in the halls. Mr. Weasley is not here seeing as he had some family tragedy, so who could it be?"
Hermione let out a surprised squeak; hoping that the invisibility potion would not wear off, and began to walk around Snape. Snape, fast as lightening, grabbed her by the arm forcefully, but not enough to injure her, just as long as she didn't struggle too much.
"Miss Granger…what are you going out of your dorm at this time of night?"
"Uh…Professor Snape…I."
"You, what?"
"I was trying to find Harry, he sent me a letter, and I'm afraid he's done something to himself." Snape raised his eyebrow in a slight state of amusement.
"Mr. Potter is quite alright, I assure you." Hermione looked at Snape in disbelief.
"But, how do you know?"
"He is resting in my chambers as we speak. Before you get ridiculous, Dumbledore has already been informed. Mr. Potter needs his rest, and so do you. Classes are early tomorrow, are they not?"
"But, Professor-"
"Miss Granger, if you are that concerned with Mr. Potter, you can come and check on him, after my class tomorrow. I'm sure that he would want to see you."
"But, Professor, if he's that bad off, why isn't he with Madam Pomfrey?"
"Miss Granger! I am potion master at Hogwarts am I not? I do believe that I create all the potions for Madam Pomfrey. Mr. Potter's condition is rather delicate, and he needs timed potions. For this reason, Mr. Potter is staying with me, so Madam Pomfrey can deal with the rest of the school. Now, get to your dorm before I deduct points for being out past curfew!" Hermione took a deep breath, and although Snape could not see it, she shuddered.
"Yes, Professor."
Severus heard her quick footsteps patter down the hall and shook his head. He made his way up to the Owlery and completed the proper transformation. As a bat, he would be able to get to Carpathia without the Ministry's knowledge, and anything that the Ministry did not know about was something he highly valued.
The next morning, Harry woke. He no longer felt tired at all, just a gnawing pain in his gut. He wished he could leave this damn room, but as Snape had warded all the exits- he knew his goose was cooked. He could only hope that the strange man would hurry up and bring him his morning meal…Oh, right. No more meals…drink then. He waited for several minutes and when Snape still did not return, Harry sought out Snape's bathroom facilities, and gave himself a nice long bath. After he got out of the bath, he grabbed his clothes and threw them back on. They would have to do, and Harry didn't want to call on Dobby. He simply felt too weird.
At last, Harry heard the door to the main part of the chambers open. And Snape carefully opened the door to the inner chamber- as if not to wake Harry if he were indeed still sleeping.
"Ah. I see that you are no longer sleeping."
"Yes, Professor."
"Now what I am going to say to you is very important. Much more important than anything else I will ever tell you." Snape held out a small red colored stone. "Whatever you do, do not loose this stone. It is the only thing that will truly preserve your existence." He held it out to Harry, and as soon as Harry touched it- the stone began to leech blood all over Harry's hand.
"You see, it can already sense that you are hungry. Go ahead, drink from it."
Harry did as he was told, if not carefully, somehow still wary of Snape, even though the man had managed to save his life. When he was sated, he pulled the stone away from his lips.
"Professor, now what do I do with it?"
"Potter, you will need to keep it in a safe place. If you like, you can keep it down here for now. I will give you the password to my chambers so that you may feed whenever you feel the need. When I have you and my son completely prepared, I will teach you how to transfer the blood into vials for easier and less messy use."
"You…have a son?"
"Yes, Potter. And before long, he will find out. But for now, you will simply feed in this manner. When the color starts to fade, I will show you how to renew the stone. But it should last the week."
Suddenly, they both jumped at the sound of someone yelling at the portrait. Snape turned to Harry.
"I'll be right back." Snape walked out of the room, and into the main section of the chambers. Harry was surprised that he could hear everything…including the sound of a certain female voice heatedly arguing with the portrait.
"Miss Granger! Cease making this ruckus immediately! Otherwise, I take back last night's invitation."
Hermione immediately froze when she heard Snape's voice. "I'm sorry, Professor."
Snape allowed the portrait to open, stepped aside, and let her into his domain. Hermione was surprised that the Potions master's quarters were not scary at all. Simply tasteful, and refined- somewhat like the way he spoke. She was even surprised to find that the entire room was not bathed in green and silver- but rather, the room, while cold with the stone walls, only had slight nuances of color- mostly in the form of dark colors.
"Miss Granger, you will find Mr. Potter through the next door." She nodded thanks to the professor as she walked gingerly into the room. She took one simple look at Harry. The blood running down his chin, and the spots of blood on the white sheets of the bed, made her swoon. Snape wasn't even able to catch her before she hit the floor.