.

Harry was feeling safe, he felt comfortable and could currently feel something warm under his belly. When he felt himself snuggling down onto something soft he opened his eyes a little to see what was happening and saw Severus's face close to his own making him mewl happily. This is what he'd craved, the touch and the warmth that the fire was producing making him drowsy and content. He knew he was dreaming though and closing his eyes fully he rolled over so he could feel the warmth extending the length of his back and fell into another slumber.

When he woke later on, it was to the sound of water running in the next room and he rolled onto his back as he opened his eyes. He had never felt so rested, like he did at this moment, for months but the scenery was wrong, the scent lingering around the room didn't match up and when he fully opened his eyes coming awake and alert he realized that he could hear a shower. Glancing around, his claws shot out and clung to the soft black rug he was laying on in front of the dimly lit fire suddenly aware of exactly where he was. I'm so dead, he thought and went to stretch out his limbs before standing, turning towards the shower door as he heard the water shutting off. He didn't know if he should be here, what would the man say if he still found him here? More importantly would Dumbledore know he was there at this moment?

He didn't have time to move another muscle as seconds later the door handle moved and a door opened to reveal a very shower clean Severus with a towel wrapped around his waist as he walked into his bedroom. It was almost as if the man didn't realize he was there because the door wasn't shut meaning that from his position he could see pieces of clothing and the towel coming into view every so often as the older Wizard was getting dressed. Instead of feeling the heat from arousal, Harry had fear seeping into his organs, his tiny stomach felt as though it was knotting uncomfortably at the situation. I have to leave, he thought but his legs weren't cooperating with his brain meaning he was just standing there as if waiting for the man to come out into the living area and find him.

It turned out he wouldn't have gotten very far anyway when Severus stepped out, raking a hand through his hair as he moved across the room. Harry was confused, he was sure the Professor could see him, he was basically standing in the middle of the room so how he could miss him was a mystery. He felt a little bit defeated by this, so slowly as he could without disturbing the man too much he slinked over to the door though he froze half way there when he heard a surprised gasp from his left and he looked up to see a white faced Severus.

"Harry? You frightened me, I didn't…" He didn't finish the sentence out loud and inside his head he thought, I didn't think last night was real but a dream.

Harry too had thought this whole thing to be a distant memory with the spooky feeling of déjà vu he had felt waking up on the rug in front of the fire. It was almost as if the summer previous was on repeat and he was living through happier times again. It suddenly dawned upon him that last night, Severus had most certainly been there and had moved him, he hadn't thought he'd made himself at home on the rug and realized that he had jumped up onto the pile of exams over by the desk that night.

"Apologies… I – I hadn't intended to be here at all last night." Harry explained as he transformed back, he snorted at the absurdity of the situation, "I feel like we've been here before." He continued and then met Severus's eye.

"Indeed." Was all the man could muster before looking to the door, he had intended on going up to breakfast but now he had his boy here he didn't want to go and face the world, just spend his time standing with Harry in his arms.

"I – I should go… Hermione and Ron, they'll be wondering – "

"Of course, no you should be going…"

They stood there awkwardly, Harry couldn't draw his eyes away, all he wanted to do was step forward and wrap his arms around the man but the responsible side of his brain was dominating any other thoughts. It seemed Severus was in the same predicament and he sighed before making his way over to the door, his hand itching to brush against some part of the boy's body as he passed him. Harry transformed as the man passed him and padded slowly to the door, it was opened a little and he made his way out of the slim gap and into the cold corridor. He turned to see if he was going to be followed but the portrait was closed behind him, his heart aching terribly at the sight. I need to get back to the common room, he thought and picked up into a run as to avoid suspicion from the rest of his friends.

Severus turned around once the door was closed and leaned his back on the wood, sliding slowly downwards until he felt the ground hit his backside. Harry had come to see him last night and they hadn't touched once… Well, the time where he had lifted Harry off his desk didn't really count as he felt like a normal cat to touch and what he wanted was the feel the soft hands taking hold of his own just one last time. He had been so close to that wish but he felt as though it would implicate them both… No, he had to do this properly.

After sitting on the floor, looking ridiculous, he stood and brushed himself off. Harry was bound to have left the Dungeons by now so there was no way they could bump into each other at this time. See, I can follow orders you old fool, he thought bitterly as he envisioned the Headmaster watching the situation right now.

Unfortunately when Harry arrived, he had just stepped into the common room, the darkness of the little corridor sheltering him, before he actually stepped into the main area assessing the situation happening before his eyes. He quickly melted down into his cat form before creeping forwards and looking around the room, it was trashed and he could see now why there was a loud female Scottish voice piercing throughout the room.

"… disgrace upon the Wizarding name of Godric Gryffindor not to mention Professor Dumbledore and myself. When I allowed for a celebration at the end of examinations there was absolutely no mention of underage drinking, you should all be ashamed of yourselves. There will be no headache pain relief given out and you will all tidy this disgraceful mess up without the use of magic. It's too bad the House cup has already been awarded because by this mess you would have been last, I do not tolerate this kind of behaviour. Now clean this mess up!" McGonagall finished her speech and huffed, he arms crossing her chest to make her look imposing as ever.

Harry let a breath out, whatever had happened that night certainly had gotten out of control. He probably wouldn't have stuck around for this type of thing anyway last night so he felt justified in his outing last night, though when he looked towards Professor McGonagall again she was eyeing him critically and he swallowed. Small cupboard, just remember the cramped small cupboard with everything hidden behind the wooden paling, he chanted before slinking towards the woman, it was too dangerous to try and make it through the common room with so many people rushing round.

"I didn't think you would have had anything to do with this." She commented as he approached her and he shook his head before ducking as something flew past his head.

Looking over his shoulder it turned out to be a Quaffle, how that had made it into the common room that night he didn't know, but currently what he did know was that a hand was lifting him off the floor. The hand was cold, different to everyone else who he knew would pick him up and he glanced round to the Gyrffindor Head of House who was watching him carefully.

"I don't suppose you'll tell me where you went last night?" She asked quietly and he frowned, the best a cat could before narrowing his eyes.

He knew what she was getting at, but he didn't really know what to say. He decided in that moment that he would deny ever being in the Dungeons, well at least not going into the man's quarters because he didn't want any trouble. So to try and answer her question he growled and shook his head, his claws slowly revealing themselves until she hissed in pain a little and he retracted them. She apologized for suggesting the notion before pulling him close so they could watch the common room slowly getting tidied.

Half an hour later and it almost looked spotless if it weren't for a few stains on the floor. McGonagall huffed and told them she would sort it and dismissed everyone so they could get dressed and ready for the day, at this she put Harry down and raised an eyebrow at him before disappearing through the portrait. Waiting until the majority of Gryffindor's had exited into their dorms he padded over to the stairs, and taking one at a time he managed to make it to the boys dorm where he found the door ajar allowing him to slip through. Everyone's backs were turned so he voiced his arrival making a few of them jump and Ron turn around half angry and half relieved his friend was okay.

"Where did you get to last night? I don't even remember seeing you leave." Ron said, his voice full of curiosity rather than irritation.

"You can't remember anything that happened last night, Ron what are you talking about?" Seamus laughed quietly making the rest of the boy's smile, though not even a tug of a smile was seen on Harry's face, he was just here to shower and change his clothes.

"Oi, shut it will you. I wasn't even that bad." Ron sulked and threw his pillow at the boy's on the other side of the room.

The question about Harry's whereabouts forgotten, which he was rather happy about, he didn't want to lie to them but he knew Hermione was going to be harder to convince. He was able to slip away from the boys and into the showers with no one else questioning him, the hot water felt amazing and he sighed in content as he felt the tension in his shoulders being washed away by the water. He knew he shouldn't have stayed the whole night in the man's quarters, hell, he shouldn't of even been down in the Dungeons to begin with but he couldn't remember a night recently where he had slept that well and peacefully. On another note, he was happy that he wasn't fully conscious when Severus had touched him when picking him up, he didn't know what would have happened if they were both conscious of the contact.

"So, Harry, did McGonagall tell you about the Summer?" Ron's voice flowed over the cubicle wall and Harry closed his eyes as he absorbed the warmth from the water.

"Dumbledore told me the other day that I'll be living with you and your family. I hope you're okay with that." Harry replied and he heard a snort from the other side of the partition.

"Well too bloody bad if I wasn't happy about it mate." There was humor in his voice so he knew that Ron was fine with him staying, though he knew that there would be a time where he would need to explain himself to the red head as well as Hermione.

Perhaps this would be a good chance to gather the courage to speak freely about what happened.

Harry finished up his shower quickly after this and went back into the dorm so he could get dressed. He chose simple today and chucked his tight black jeans on again, as well as his shoes but found a white tee that he could wear. He didn't want to look too formal on the train back to Kings Cross today and no one else was going to be wearing their uniform, well Neville was adjusting his tie when he looked over and saw everyone else in normal clothing and grumbled as he went about to change.

"He had a rough night too." Ron whispered to Harry before they made their way downstairs to find Hermione and the other girls lounging about.

"Why didn't you celebrate with us last night?" Ginny pouted, punching Harry lightly in the arm.

He immediately wanted to turn around and force his wand at her throat for touching him but he resisted, he was after all going to be spending half the summer with her and the rest of the Weasley family. Instead he bristled a little, his eyes grew darker and waved his hand in a dismissive manner to claim he didn't want to a part of the festivities.

"Hmph, be a sour broomstick about it then." Ginny whined and stormed out with Lavender in tow.

"Too harsh?" Harry whispered to Ron but he shook his head.

"Nah, mate, come on I'm starving." The red head announced and with Hermione they made their way out into the corridor, Hermione quick to voice her concern about his lack of attendance last night.

"Slept in the Astronomy Tower." He replied but she didn't buy it and narrowed her eyes at him.

"You know what Professor Dumbledore said, and yet you still went anyway? What were you thinking?" She hissed at him and crossed her arms.

"Hey, he said he was in the Astronomy Tower, he was there okay? Besides, it's not like you missed him anyway, the way you and Gin were parading about." Ron defended surprising both Harry and Hermione with the admission.

"Well, you know… Just don't get caught." She huffed, clearly not convinced but she dropped the topic in favor of teasing Ron about the night they had.

"Oh thank you, Severus. You got these marked quickly." Dumbledore said as he took the paper with every student's grade from their exams.

"Well what else would I be doing?" He sniffed, before turning around with the intention of leaving the room.

"He came to see you last night, didn't he?" Dumbledore sighed in resignation but Severus didn't make any move to act like he had been caught and barked back his denial of such occurrence.

"Severus, I need to speak with you. If not now then I will come and find you at another time so I would rather you stay so we may get this over with." The older Wizard called from behind his desk.

The Potion's Master sighed this time and pinched the bridge of his nose, all he wanted to do was leave this school and seclude himself away in his home away from everyone and he literally meant everyone. He went back over to where his employer was sitting and took a seat from the selection of chairs available, his face full of irritation and attitude, he wasn't going to be nice about this.

"I only wish to inform you of what will be happening with Mr. Potter over the duration of the summer."

"And I care, why?" Severus snipped back, Dumbledore arched an eyebrow at the remark but didn't comment on it.

"He will be residing with the Weasley family until his birthday… From there, because he will be of age, it will be Harry's choice where he goes. I have reminded him about Sirius Black's home in London that has been left to him following Black's imprisonment."

"I will repeat myself, I care, why?" Secretly though he was hopeful about he and Harry finally being together again, he was going to make sure of it.

"Damn it, Severus. You and I both know that the relationship you two share runs deeper than anyone apart from the two of you know of. I am trying to tell you that whilst I am still against the two of you partaking in certain actions I cannot, and the Ministry cannot, stop you being together once he has reached the Wizarding adult age." Dumbledore's voice was strained and Severus knew exactly why he was reacting this way.

"Shared," Was all he replied with and at the confused expression on the Headmaster's face he elaborated, "I thought it looked clear last night that he doesn't want anything to do with me now." And with that he excused himself and stormed to the other side of the room in record time, not stopping when the old Wizards voice carried after him.

So, Harry will be living by himself then, he thought as he walked back to his living quarters. If that was going to be true then he was going to make damn sure the boy was eating properly, this vision made him incredibly happy and he let a smirk pull at the corner of his mouth as he passed some Slytherin's, wishing them a good holiday.

When the trio arrived at Kings Cross station, they quickly waved off their other friends before the motherly voice of Molly Weasely made its way through the crowds. She was followed by Arthur Weasley and she was soon crushing every one of her children, including Harry, until she was satisfied. Though when her eyes fully took Harry in, she shook her head muttering, this will not do, referring to his slim frame and told him she was going to make them all a large meal when they got back home.

Hermione wasn't going to be coming along just yet, she was spending some time with her parents before visiting the Burrow so they quickly said goodbye with Harry's taking a little longer.

"You know you can write to me about anything? Please, Harry I want you to know I'll listen and not judge you."

"Yeah, I know, Hermione."

"Because I don't want you to self-destruct… I... Things happened at that school and when you're ready to talk about it I'll listen." She continued and Harry nodded before she reached forwards and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, "Just be safe." She whispered before pulling away and looking into his eyes.

"I will, I promise." He assured her before she called out to everyone and disappeared into the crowds with her folks.

"Well, come on then." Molly said, hustling them all together so they could get to the car.

The Burrow was everything Harry had remembered; nothing had changed except maybe the reeds growing taller around the house. When they jumped out of the car, he heard Ron muttering, home sweet home, and he felt a little jealousy at the statement, he didn't have a home; he didn't even have a family. Not that Ron's family didn't think of him as their own but it wasn't the same and he had a feeling Molly knew this when she kept shooting him sympathetic glances when she thought he wasn't watching. It was unnerving. He didn't want to seem rude however, and when they got inside they found a bountiful lunch ready and waiting for them so he sat with the rest of the sea of red heads and nibbled away.

Mrs. Weasley fussed over them all, especially Harry when she thought he hadn't eaten much but after some words from her husband and Ron she backed off, allowing them to settle in for the rest of the day. Thankfully, he and Ron weren't going to be sharing a room and he had one all the way up on the top floor all to himself. It wasn't that he didn't want to be around his friend but the space was welcomed even though he didn't want to be truly alone.

"Up here all by yourself, mate? You should ask Dumbledore to relocate you to the Astronomy Tower, you seem to like being up in the clouds." Ron's voice was full of humor and Harry made the effort to let a small smile creep across his face.

"I don't want to be the negative one in your family, it's probably best up here for me." He sighed and sat on the edge of his bed.

"Look, no one blames you for leaving and Hermione has told me not to ask you about what happened at Durmstrang… But well, I'm concerned."

Harry thought about this for a moment and he looked out the window, he knew he was going to have to tell them both something eventually but now wasn't the right moment. Perhaps a week or so when he was settled and had a chance to think about what exactly it was that he wanted to say. The only problem now was trying to say this without Ron getting offended, which, in all honesty was a hard thing to do but he was going to try anyway.

"I… I know I lied to you both earlier on in the year about… Where I was going and all that so I have learnt that to get by I will need to tell you what it is that's going on but right now I need some space and time to think about what has happened this year. Rest assured, when I'm ready I will tell you." Harry was true to his word about this, there was no deceit and he got the feeling Ron knew this as well.

"Okay then, I'll leave you to it for now… Perhaps tomorrow we could go for a fly?" His friend offered and Harry nodded just to please him, he hadn't actually been on a broomstick since he had originally left Hogwarts.

Harry did take Ron up on the offer, though his hesitance to jump onto his own broom was noticed by the red head before he chucked one of the Weasley brooms at his friend. He didn't know why he was being so cautious but Ron supposed there was a lot his friend had bottled up over the course of the year. He knew he should be worried about this but he was going to trust Harry on this one, trust that he got the answers he needed by the end of the summer. Right now though, he was up in the air watching as Harry mounted the broom on wobbly legs before he pushed off from the ground and slowly rose in the air.

"I guess a Seekers game is out of the question?" Ron asked when Harry slowly made his way over.

"It's been a while." Harry mumbled before gripping the broom tightly and turning it the other way so he could get some distance from the obviously humored red head.

He was a little embarrassed about this, he didn't know what was wrong with him, he was the youngest seeker of the century, he was a Potter legacy when it came to riding a broom, so why did he feel so insecure whilst up in the air? He sighed and narrowed his eyes off in the distance, he had learnt a thing or two whilst at Durmstrang and was going to literally tackle this head on and trust that his magic would save him. So lowering himself over the broom and gripping on tightly he maneuvered himself so he shot off into the distance. The air whipped through his hair and across his face but he wasn't deterred as something blossomed inside him and he took a large breath, holding onto it as he curved off to the side and shot up higher into the air.

He was no where near the Burrow at this current point in time, but just how far away he was shocked him a little when he finally came to a stop and turned towards where he thought the house would be. Oops, he thought as he spied something in the air that seemed to be getting closer, turned out it was his friend and as the boy got closer he almost looked worried before a look of relief washed over his face.

"I see you got your courage back." He almost huffed and Harry rolled his eyes.

"Race you back?" Harry replied with, he didn't want to say something he regretted towards that kind of stab at his abilities, or lack thereof when he first mounted the wood.

"Sure." Ron said and spun quickly, darting back towards the house.

Harry was quick to follow suit and pressed himself against the long wooden broom to minimize the drag created by his upright body. He was quickly gaining on his friend, the red head was by no means an effective endurance Quidditch player as he mainly stayed by the goal posts but he was agile, something Harry was too but his skills were clearly out doing his friends' as they flew side by side. They both arrived at the same time, Harry not wanting to beat his friend too much, and they hovered above the house for a while in silence though Ron broke the silence with a question.

"Sorry for asking, mate but why didn't you want to ride your broom? Is there something wrong with it?" His voice timid, almost as if he was afraid of asking or even upsetting Harry.

"Sev…" Harry sighed and raked a hand through his hair, "Professor Snape brought it for me as a Valentines Day present." He finished, not meeting his friends eye.

"Ay?" Ron was confused and when Harry looked at him he could see his friend frowning so he elaborated.

"He had taken the catalogue from my bag one night after seeing the one I was going to order. He said he was going to take care of it and was going to surprise me the night of Valentines Day… He ended up giving it to me early because of the… state… I was in…" He trailed off, not really feeling too comfortable about bringing up the past like this.

"So… What you're trying to say is that you could have ridden it earlier therefore it was almost because of him that we could have lost against his Slytherins." Ron was looking at him slightly angry and Harry shrugged because when his friend put it like that, its what it sounded like.

"Git." Ron whispered but his eyes went wide and he looked at Harry worried.

"Agreed." Harry said and this time Ron's eyebrows rose in surprise at the admission.

"But I thought – "

"Ronald!" Both boys looked beneath them and saw Molly standing there with her hands on her hips.

"Better go and see what she wants." Ron said before he flew towards the ground to see what his mother wanted.

As Harry looked out into the horizon, the sun was starting to set into the ground and he watched it, caught up in his thoughts. Severus had given him that broom, he had cared enough to spend that obscene amount of money on him for a day that he didn't even believe in and for a sport he hated. It had all been for Harry and he was sure that if the man hadn't of felt something more than a shag between them he wouldn't have spent that time and money. Seeing him at school had been hard as well, not because he hadn't seen the man for a long time but because he was unsure and confused about his feelings. Gah, I've spent long enough analyzing my feelings on this, he grumbled to himself and headed down towards the ground as Ginny was coming out of the house. She smirked at him cheekily and waltzed over.

"I saw you getting on that before. Lost your touch I see." She teased and he bristled at her and frowned.

"I haven't been on my broom since I left." He felt the need to justify himself at that point.

"Figured, but you seem to have found your feet, I bet I could out fly you tomorrow. Seekers game?" She asked and came closer, her hips swaying into his own taking him off guard and he stumbled sideways.

"You're on." He huffed and watched as she walked back inside, looking over her shoulder when she was in the door frame.

True to her word, the following day Ginny put him through his paces and he almost, almost, lost to her a couple of times in the morning before they flopped onto the ground just before lunch that next day. He was puffing hard and he could see black spots appearing in front of his eyes as he blinked, trying to gain a handle on what was happening around him. She was wanting to have one more game before lunch but he had to decline, he knew that if he pushed himself too hard he was going to pass out. He hadn't had a workout quite like this for a good month due to exams at Durmstrang so their Physical Education class had finished.

"Come on then, after lunch you'll be all mine." She said, helping him up before bounding off inside, however what he missed was Harry crumbling back down towards the ground, his legs unable to help him stand.

Ron however had seen everything from the kitchen window and turned away to sit with his family.