…faintly insulted…

Harry wasn't sure what it was that triggered the realisation he would not be returning to Hogwarts as a student. The knowledge was a blow, as it meant that he would lose the support of both Albus and Severus, and lose Ron's much needed companionship. Ron was quick to realise that Harry had discovered their impending separation, and also quick to offer to throw away his own future in order to stay with Harry. As much as he wanted Ron at his side, Harry couldn't bear to be that selfish.

Albus noted the downswing in his mood, Harry was sure of it, though the Headmaster didn't press Harry to speak of his troubles. He was relieved that the older Wizard wasn't pressuring him to talk, well aware that the Headmaster was a big believer in 'getting things out in the open' when it came to traumatic or upsetting events. Given that the man was already ignoring, or at least choosing to forget, the fact that Harry hadn't confided the details of his torture, it was a consideration that Harry hadn't been expecting.

Severus also noted his mild depression, but chose to simply work him harder at the spells he needed to master to gain independence. The Language of Books was fascinating, and Harry was picking it up quite quickly, a fact that he was proud of. The other spells took a bit more concentration, and as he was still sleeping for most of the afternoon and all night, concentration was in short supply. Knowing he was going to lose them all to Hogwarts made Harry want to spend as much time as possible with them, not in lessons but in play. Or at least the sort of play you could do with the Headmaster of Hogwarts and the Head of Slytherin House. The Headmaster would take him for walks around the garden, bring him 'mystery objects' to deduce through touch, play cards with him, though Harry had to be taught to play things other than Exploding Snap, and talk to him about all manner of things he had seen and done in his long life.

Severus joined in the card games and accompanied them on the walks though he disapproved of the way that Albus held Harry's hand. Ron did his best not to fuss over the fact that only the Headmaster could lead Harry along when no one else was allowed. His redhead still wanted to coddle him to some extent, though Harry was aware he hadn't helped matters when he'd clung to Ron in a panic and refused to let go.

At night when everyone else was asleep, Harry thought about the future. He knew that he couldn't demand that Albus stay with him, and despite the fact that they were getting along better now, he didn't think that Severus would be willing to give up his position at the school either. Ron of course had an education to complete, and Harry doubted that Mr and Mrs Weasley would be too impressed if their youngest son decided to throw away his education to baby sit his best mate. Several nights of thinking brought Harry to the conclusion that he was going to have to find a 'babysitter' as the Muggles called it, and another night of thinking led him to choose the Weasley's. For starters they'd benefit from the extra protections that the Burrow was sure to be given if he was residing there, and he knew that Mrs Weasley would quickly get into the habit of letting him do for himself. Although she had held him tightly in their brief time together he'd also heard her tut of disapproval when Ron had led him along to the chair in the Great Hall.

Having come to this private decision, Harry now had to grapple with how to discuss this with Albus. He also had to be careful about how his friend took the decision, after all he didn't want to just announce to Ron that he was expecting his friend to leave him with his mother, and he didn't want to upset Albus by implying that he expected the Headmaster to drop him off at the Burrow and continue on his merry way either. Harry was well aware of how many things the Headmaster must be putting off in order to spend so much time with him, and he appreciated it. Albus Dumbledore was a very busy and important man, and while it could be argued that he should be concerned with the welfare of the Boy Who Lived, Harry's upbringing didn't let him see it that way. Anyone who took a moment to kindly consider him was to be treated with grateful respect, not taken for granted.

In the end, Albus brought the subject up just prior to Harry's birthday. Harry was spending more time awake during the day, as he had more energy and felt a lot better. The terrible weakness that had plagued his waking moments was dissipating, and Harry was relieved about that. After all, he needed to be strong if he was to fulfil the prophecy. Harry knew that the three people caring for him had some sort of birthday surprise in the wings, and was cautiously probing and dropping hints to see if he could figure out what it was. They were trying to distract him of course, and Harry thought that Albus brought up the end of summer as a sort of distraction.

They were in the garden - Harry's favourite place as he still disliked the constraining feeling of walls around him, though that had abated somewhat, and they were walking down the path towards the stile that led into the forest. Harry had become very familiar with this path, despite the fact that Albus still insisted on holding his hand. Harry didn't mind, the Headmaster got terribly upset if Harry stumbled or fell, something that was luckily becoming a rare occurrence thanks in no small part to Severus' training in various spells, and it was nice to have someone grown up be so solicitous of him.

They had been talking about the plants around them, and Ron had offered to do a bit of gardening provided Harry supervised him, the redheads sneaky way of getting Harry some free time to carefully explore a new part of the garden without anyone watching him crawl around and sniff things, when the Headmaster mentioned that one of the plants would need pruning at the end of summer.

"We can do it before I go to the Burrow," Harry took the chance to bring up his solution to his future housing needs and was surprised that Albus nearly stumbled. The Headmaster stopped dead on the path and even Severus, who had come along for a change instead of brewing in the house, seemed astonished if his swiftly drawn in breath was anything to go by.

"What are you on about Harry?" they might have been getting along better, but that didn't stop the man from using an acerbic tone on the teens when they were 'talking rubbish'.

"Well, you and the Headmaster have to go back to Hogwarts, and Ron's parents aren't going to let him stay out of school so… I just thought that meant I'd be going to the Burrow when school went back. I know I can't go to class like this. The first spell to hit me would bounce back, and that would be dangerous, so it's better to stay away, and if I go to the Burrow, Ron's mum and dad will benefit from the extra protections that will go with me."

It was all so logical to Harry that he was unsure why they seemed so lost for words.

"Harry, you wouldn't expect someone to stay here with you?" Albus asked and Harry squeezed the hand that was holding his. Albus had made a few trips to the 'outside world' as Harry thought of it, coming home tired and drained. He couldn't run the school and care for Harry at the same time.

"It's not that I don't want you here sir, its that I understand how important your job is," Harry said simply, "I don't expect you to give it up, and I'd feel better knowing that you were at the school to protect the students anyway."

"And you expect me to leave as well?" Severus sounded faintly insulted, which meant that Harry had said something that hurt his feelings. Severus tended to take insult when you implied that he was not up to a task.

"You're the school Potions Master and Head of Slytherin House. You've already had to do a lot of brewing here for the school stores. I didn't think that Albus could spare you to baby-sit just me, Severus. Slytherin needs you, and so does Albus," Harry pointed it out as matter-of-factly as he could, knowing the proud man would only get more offended if Harry tried to soothe his feelings. Ron hadn't spoken up, but Harry simply knew, the way they always knew about each other, that his friend had seen the sense of the matter. There was no way that the redhead could stay and take care of Harry by himself during term time. It had been different when Harry was first hurt, but now that things had settled down there was no way to justify him staying. Harry wished it otherwise, and felt horribly selfish about the whole thing, but he knew how much he relied on Ron's presence every day and wasn't looking forward to losing that comfort and level of understanding that they had with each other.

"I'm taking a sabbatical," Severus recalled him to the moment with those sharp words, "Albus and I have already hired a replacement teacher and organised a temporary Head of House. I wish to conduct some research, and Albus and I both thought that you would not object to my company."

"I wouldn't," Harry confirmed with a smile, "I just didn't want to be in anyone's way."

"You won't be," there was a faintly menacing tone to that reply, but Harry didn't mind it. He grinned in the direction of the Potions Master and let Albus tug him down the path once more. He'd have to talk to Ron of course, his friend had been surprisingly quiet during this discussion, but otherwise things had gone surprisingly well.

He was looking forward to staying here - the house had become a safe haven, much as the school had when he was first a student there.

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