Author's Note: So a lot of this is paraphrased or slightly changed stuff from the original book, and a lot of the lines are actually the same, but I tried to get through that part as quickly as possible because we know it already.

-SQ

Disclaimer: I'm running out of witty ways to say that I don't own Harry Potter...

Chapter Twelve: Complicated

Harry spun quickly past the blurred shapes of many fireplaces, elbows tucked tightly into his sides. Finally, he slowed down and came to a jolting halt in the Weasleys' kitchen fire, barely managing to keep his feet and he lurched out onto the hearth.

Looking around he saw Ron, Fred, and George sitting at the kitchen table with two red-headed people who he guessed must be Ron's two eldest brother's, Bill and Charlie. This was confirmed as they introduced themselves to him genially.

Charlie, who Harry knew worked with dragons in Romania, was short and stocky like the twins, with calloused hands, muscular arms, and a broad, weather-beaten, very freckly face.

Bill was taller than Charlie, and not at all what Harry had expected. All Harry had known of Bill was that he worked at Gringotts and had been Head Boy when he was at Hogwarts. This had made Harry assume that he would be similar to Percy; fussy, bossy, and uptight. But Bill, with his long, tied back hair, fang earring, and dragon hide boots, looked, well, cool.

Both of them shook Harry's hand, smiling down at him good-naturedly. Ron, however, was not looking so happy. He was sitting at the table with his arms crossed, scowling at the wall. Fred and George also appeared rather tense.

No sooner had the introductions been made than Mr. Weasley appeared in the fireplace with a faint pop.

"Well then," he said, looking rather ruffled. "That's that, isn't it? Welcome, Harry. We're glad to see you looking well."

"Thanks, Mr. Weasley," said Harry.

Mrs. Weasley appeared in the doorway. "Oh, hello Harry dear," she said, smiling at him fondly. "It is so good to see that you are well."

"Er—thanks," said Harry, wondering why everyone kept making such an issue of him being well.

Mrs. Weasley turned to the twins. "You," she said, not so pleasantly. "I want a word with you two."

"What about, Mum?" said Fred innocently.

Mrs. Weasley did not look amused. "You know very well what about," she said.

Hermione and Ginny had appeared in the doorway behind Mrs. Weasley while she was talking. Now Hermione said, "Why don't you show Harry where he's sleeping, Ron?"

"He knows where he's sleeping," said Ron moodily, "in my room, he slept there last—"

"We can all go," said Hermione pointedly.

"Oh," said Ron, realizing what Hermione was getting at. "Well, okay."

"Yeah, we'll come too," said George.

"Oh no you won't!" said Mrs. Weasley.

"Alright, come on Harry," said Ron as soon as the four of them had reached his room. "Stop holding out on us. What in Merlin's name were you doing at Snape's?"

"Yes," said Hermione, "why were you there?"

"If that bloody git did anything to you—" started Ron.

"Ron!" said Hermione.

"I'm just saying—"

"Shut up!" said Harry. "You don't know what you're talking about."

All three of them turned to look at him, surprise etched plainly on their faces.

"Well," said Ron huffily, "you think you'd trust your best mates with why you were there."

"He didn't do anything to you, did he Harry?" asked Hermione in concern.

"No," said Harry. "I don't see why it's such a big deal anyway."

"You were living with your aunt and uncle and then out of the blue you send me a letter saying you're living with Snape," said Ron. "I think that's a big deal!"

"I didn't like living with the Dursleys," said Harry.

"I know that," said Ron impatiently. "But you'd rather live with the greasy git?"

"It's complicated," muttered Harry. "And don't call him that."

"What?" said Ron incredulously. "Are you actually defending him?"

"He saved my life, remember?" said Harry. "Twice now."

"So?" said Ron. "He owed it to you for how awfully he treats you. And it doesn't stop him from being an evil git."

"You don't know anything about him," Harry snapped. "He's not..." he rubbed his forehead. "He's not always mean, okay? And he didn't treat me awfully the second half of last year. He can actually be kind of...nice."

"Nice?" said Ron in disbelief. "He tried to kill S—"

"Ron!" hissed Hermione, with a pointed glance at Ginny.

"Ginny, go away," said Ron.

Ginny looked outraged. "Oh, that's nice!"

"It's my room," said Ron. "Get out."

Ginny got up and flounced out, shooting a glare over her shoulder at Ron before slamming the door behind her rather more forcefully than was strictly necessary.

"He thought Sirius was guilty, Ron," said Harry once Ginny had left. "He thought he wanted to kill me. We did too at first. I was about to kill him myself, remember?"

"Yes, but—" said Ron.

"Harry has a point, Ron," said Hermione.

"But that doesn't change the fact that Snape hates you," said Ron. "And you hate him!"

Harry ran a hand through his mess black hair. "Well..."

"You do hate him, don't you?" said Ron.

"It's complicated," said Harry again.

Ron and Hermione just stared at him.

"I—he—we—well—no," said Harry finally. "No, I don't hate him, not anymore, and he doesn't hate me either. I almost think...he sort of...cares about me."

"What?" This came from both Ron and Hermione this time.

"Cares about you?" said Ron. "Are you mental?"

"Harry," said Hermione cautiously, as though Harry were a bomb that might explode any second, "Snape has made it pretty clear in the past that he doesn't like you at all."

"I know," said Harry. "But you don't know what it was like, when I was sick. He took care of me, he could have so easily let me die and said that he simply couldn't save me, but he didn't. He sacrificed his own health for me, worked so hard to keep my alive and make me better than he got sick himself. And when he was sick he wasn't...wasn't so...guarded, I guess. We found out that we had more in common than we realized. After those weeks we had a bond that we couldn't fully ignore. And, well, I guess we did ignore it, but it was still there, you know? I wouldn't go so far to say that we were friendly after that, but we didn't hate each other anymore. And, I know it sounds bizarre, but I trusted Snape."

Ron spluttered, but Hermione held up a hand to silence him.

"That trust was shaken after the night in the Shrieking Shack, but then he came and got me from the Dursleys', he kept his promise."

"Promise?" asked Hermione.

"He promised that he wouldn't let me stay with them, at least not without—what did he say?—'serious intervention'," said Harry.

"That sounds more like a threat than a promise," said Ron dubiously.

"Why would he say that, Harry?" asked Hermione. "What did he mean, 'serious intervention?'"

Harry stared at the floor. "I don't want to talk about it."

"How could you trust Snape?" said Ron. "At least you knew where you stood with the Dursleys!"

"I know," said Harry, "but...Snape...understands things."

"What kinds of things?" asked Hermione.

"Look, I really don't want to talk about it," said Harry.

"I still don't get why you stayed at Snape's house," said Ron. "Okay so...so Dumbledore told him to come get you, yeah, that's it, but why didn't you come here then?"

Harry shook his head. "It wasn't Dumbledore's idea, though it was his idea that I keep living with Snape after he went and got me, but taking me away from the Dursleys was Snape's idea."

"I don't get it," said Ron. "What's he after?"

"He's not after anything, Ron," said Harry. "He and I...we kind of...understand each other now. Did you know he was friends with my mum when they were at school?"

Ron's and Hermione's mouths both dropped open.

"You're kidding!"

"No." Harry shook his head. "For my birthday he gave me a bunch of pictures of her."

"He was a stalker!" burst out Ron.

"No!" said Harry. "They were friends. I know it's hard to believe. But he was in some of the pictures too. He looked...well, he looked happy."

"Snape? Happy?" said Ron. "He's only happy when he's taking points and giving out detentions."

"It sounds like there's more to Snape than it seems," said Hermione quietly.

Harry nodded. "There is." He didn't elaborate; he had a feeling that his professor wouldn't appreciate him talking about his personal business with Ron and Hermione.

Ron still looked disbelieving. "I still don't trust him," he said. "He just seems dodgy."

"You don't have to," said Harry shortly. "It's me who was staying with him, not you."

"It sounds like they've stopped arguing downstairs," said Hermione, changing the subject.

"What did your mum want to talk to Fred and George about, anyway?" Harry asked Ron.

"Probably Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes," said Ron.

"What are Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes?" said Harry curiously.

Ron laughed and, his bad temper and suspicion forgotten for the moment, began to tell Harry about Fred and George's new joke business.

AN: I know some of you might have been wanting Ron to go all over-the-top, major git, huge row with Harry, but I like Ron. Yes, he's hot-headed, but he's a good person at heart, and I don't like it when he's portrayed as just a total git or a complete moron.

Some of you may notice that Ron sending Ginny away and Ginny's response is really stolen from the third book.

You can, of course, still review ;)

-SQ