A/N: Thank you all for all the wonderful reviews. It makes me feel soo good to know that people like my story. I would like to take this time to thank my wonderful friend and co-author, Luna4917. She is amazing and I don't know what this would be without her.

As always, I own nothing HP ( but if anyone wants to throw Sev or Harry my way, I won't complain)..the amazing JK does and we should all worship her as she deserves.

Chapter 7

Severus spent a relatively peaceful night next to Harry, waking only a couple of times when he heard the boy moan in his sleep. Poppy watched the professor's vigil and wondered if there was more to this than the kinship he appeared to feel.

"Why don't you go and get some breakfast Severus."

"I don't want to be away if he wakes up. He may forget that he is safe now and I want to be here to reassure him."

"Severus, the draught I gave him was strong. I'm hoping he will sleep for the next day or two to help his physical healing progress faster. If he wakes, I will send someone for you."

"No. I'll have one of the elves bring me something from the kitchen. I'm not leaving."

Poppy summoned an elf and asked him to bring Severus food at each meal time. Once Harry woke, Severus told her he would take his meals with the boy or go to the great hall, but he would not starve himself in the meantime.

Severus napped on and off through the morning and just after finishing lunch, finally admitted he needed to move around and little and clear his head. He walked to the opposite end of the room and stood, looking out the window, remembering his last night at home before leaving for good and wishing he had had the courage that Harry had shown last night. He also began to wonder, for the first time, how exactly Harry did it. How had he created the magic that was required to destroy his uncle the way he had and how had Severus been pulled from his rooms straight to Harry's room? It should have been impossible for him to apparate out of the school and into the home through the wards.

"Severus, how is he?" Sirius quietly asked as he walked in the door. "Has he woken at all?"

"No. He mumbles occasionally but hasn't opened his eyes. Poppy said he will likely be out for a day or two because of the strength of the draught."

"Have you slept?"

"Yes, thank you for asking. I slept some last night but I don't want to be away from his side until he wakes," Severus replied looking over at the boy.

"Why don't you go shower and change and I'll stay here with Harry. Don't worry, if he wakes, I will let you know immediately." Sirius looked at the man standing before him and added, "I promise I will call you right away."

Severus slowly walked by Harry, never taking his eyes from him and left the ward.

Sirius sat in the vacated chair next to Harry's bed and sighed heavily. He wished he had been smarter all those years ago when Harry had needed him most, but he knew it was pointless to linger on the past he couldn't change. He had the future in front of him and was determined to make it better and easier on Harry in any way he could.

Severus returned quickly, afraid he would miss the boy's waking, and stopped just inside the door. He was taken with the sight of Sirius sitting next to Harry, he looked both exhausted and in pain. He knew there was something going on with between Sirius and Lucius or they wouldn't have arrived together, but the look on the face before him had only to do with Harry. He could see the love Sirius had for the boy and realized having him involved in the Harry's recovery would be important.

Severus cleared his throat to make his presence known, "Sirius, I have asked the kitchen elves to bring us the evening meal here so we can talk. I know you, like myself, don't want to be away from him," Severus began as he indicated the still slumbering boy. "I think it's time we had a talk."

"I agree. Why don't we move away from the bedside a bit. Harry doesn't need to listen to this."

As they moved to a sitting area be the windows, Severus asked, "Where do we begin?"

"Let's talk about you. Why do you insist on helping Harry? Lucius told me you have had a similar experience but he didn't tell me anything else. Why would you want to help him now?"

"Sirius, I can't begin to explain this in any way that you would believe, but I will try. I still, at times, don't believe it myself."

Severus took a deep breath and began to describe his childhood, the beatings, the emotional abuse and the constant berating from his father. "I know you've been told of my last night at home. What no one other that Poppy knows is that many years later, thanks to Tom, I had the chance to end my father. To pay him back for all the…torture of my childhood. Unlike Harry, I could not do it. I was standing in front of him, wand in my hand, running through a list of spells in my head, any of which could have ended his life. All I could see was this old man, and I realized, time had taken care of him when I couldn't."

"Albus approached me then and asked if he could talk with me. I had no problem turning from the man who had been my father and walking away. Tom may have put me in the street that day with some well placed words and subtle hints about what I should do, but Albus helped me walk out and not look back. I will now repay that favor by helping Harry in any way I can so he can get past this and live."

"Severus…thank you," Sirius replied. He could think of nothing else to say that would convey the emotion he was feeling at having Severus trust him with this information. He hoped the "thank you" was enough.

Both men sat quietly, each thinking over the conversation and wondering if they could work together to help this remarkable child. After several minutes, Sirius looked up and said, "I think we should talk about how to get this started and where to go from here."

"I agree." Severus said with a small, modest smile on his face.