Propriety: Chapter 21

I'm back from break and already exhausted. Story of my life. Here's a new chapter for you. :) For all of you Sirius fans...please don't kill me!

***My updating schedule will alter to every 2 weeks (or earlier if I can). I am NOT abandoning this story (I get asked 20x's a week whenever I go back to school) and you will get to see the end to it. Thank you and enjoy.***

Warnings: Please see the first few chapters for warnings.

Disclaimer: I think we all know at this point that no one other than JK Rowling owns these beloved characters. I just own this plot line. ;)

Please Enjoy!

Now the Fat's in the Fire

It was study hall and Draco was currently watching his intended practically rip his hair out as he scribbled furiously on many, many pieces of parchment. It was a bit amusing and, dare he say, cute at first, but now Draco was getting concerned. He put down his own quill and reached a hand across to still Harry's frantic writing.

"Harry, is everything okay? Do you need help with something?" Harry jolted and quickly covered the paper he was writing on. His mouth opened and closed a few times, looking for something to say. Draco narrowed his eyes and observed the other wizard and was not pleased to find the other boy seemed distinctly nervous and pale.

"I…I don't," Harry started. Then he sighed and put his head in his hands. Draco's eyes widened, not used to seeing the Gryffindor so defeated. "Draco…how do you forgive someone who really hurt you? Someone you care about? Love, even?" Draco's jaw dropped open for a second, not that Harry saw it. He was unaware of any rift between Harry and his friends. With both of Harry's godfathers gone, Draco didn't know who he could possibly be referring to. When Harry looked at him expectantly, Draco forced himself to speak.

"Well…the Slytherin answer would be to forgive but never forget. Gryffindors would probably tell you to just forget it ever happened." As expected Harry didn't look thrilled with either option. "However, I think you need to make them understand how much what they did hurt you. If they really love you and you really…love them, they'll understand you're right to be upset. There's also the option that you don't forgive them, Harry. You might be a martyr, Harry, but that doesn't mean people can do whatever they want to you and you have to accept it."

Draco had taken ahold of Harry's hand again during his mini-speech, and Harry grasped it tightly. His other hand was fiddling with the owl pendant on the necklace Draco got him. Harry seemed to really consider Draco's words, but when he looked down and saw their hands clasped, he quickly but gently extricated himself and stood. He gathered up his things, banishing all of the crumpled up drafts with a wave of his hand (something that still astounded Draco), and gave Draco a small smile.

"Thanks, Draco. I'll…I'll definitely think about it some more. I've got to go. I didn't tell you but…Professor Snape and I…kind of made up. I guess? At least, I'm meeting him for dinner tonight. Hermione wants to go over Defense first though." Draco's concerns were swept to the back of his mind with his happiness at the thought of his intended and his godfather reconnecting. He gave Harry a smile so bright, the other boy couldn't help but return it.

"Happy to hear it, Scarhead." The old taunt got the response Draco was hoping for. The other boy snorted and rolled his eyes, grin still firmly in place.

"Whatever. See you later, Ferret." And with that, Harry was gone from the Great Hall. Draco was glad he was able to make Harry smile, especially given what day it was. However, whatever the other boy had been writing seemed to have distracted him well enough from the anniversary. The other students were either jabbering on excitedly about the holiday or giving Harry sympathetic looks. Draco had glared down the few who seemed determined to come up and offer Harry condolences.

The arrival of Theo and Blaise shook him from his thoughts.

"Ugh. Thank Merlin, Potter's finally gone. We never get to see you anymore, Draco." Blaise hung himself all over Draco in his greeting. Said Slytherin rolled his eyes at Blaise's dramatics and pushed the other wizard off of him.

"Please. You like him almost as much as I do. And I see you plenty for all the classes we share, the time Harry spends with his friends and when I'm in the dorm." While Blaise held Draco's attention with his attitude and whining, Theo saw something balled up right by his foot. He reached down and grabbed the ball of paper.

Opening it up he found what appeared to be a letter with most of the words hastily scratched out. However, what he could make out brought up righteous anger for his friend.

David….I love you…Harry…..

Harry arrived at Snape's quarters ten minutes before the regular time. Hermione kept staring at him, both concerned because it was the anniversary and excited for him to be meeting with Snape again. He just couldn't take it anymore and was out the door before she could prod him again.

If the Potion's Master was surprised by his early arrival, he didn't comment on it. He simply invited Harry inside and directed him to the dining table. As Harry glanced around, he wasn't surprised to find absolutely no Halloween decorations. There was some awkward silence as they put food on their plates, but before they even began eating Harry had to break it.

"Sir? What…what exactly does you being my guardian entail?" Severus already had a bad feeling about Harry's home life, and that question alone wasn't encouraging. The Potion's Master set down his cutlery and met Harry's gaze. He could see the boy was anxious, but then again, so was he.

"First off, I would provide you with the basic necessities, such as a place to stay, food, clothes, schooling and the like. There would be the matter of discipline," here he saw Harry tense, but went on as if he hadn't noticed, "only if required." That didn't seem to reassure the boy. "One of the most important parts of being a magical guardian however, is teaching you how to control your magical core. I'm sure Miss Granger informed you that your core is still maturing, yes?" Harry nodded, but then his brow furrowed.

"What's the other thing, Sir?" Snape tilted his head inquisitively. "You said one of the most important things. What's the other thing?" Severus pursed his lips and did his best not to shatter the handle of his tea cup in his grasp.

"I believe it is something called Basic Human Decency and Affection, of which I am actually capable of giving, Mr. Potter. Something I'm starting to think your muggle family wasn't well versed in." Harry bit the inside of his cheek and picked at the table with his finger nail.

"Well, Sir….you're not wrong," Harry mumbled. The rest of the meal was taken in relative silence. It wasn't totally uncomfortable though, as they each had important things to think about. When the house elves popped the remains of their meal away, Severus looked at his ward and sighed.

"Would you care to stay, Harry? It is still a bit early…" Harry looked at the clock and nodded.

"If that's alright, Sir. I was…I was wondering if you could tell me some more about mum? And…" Harry trailed off and Severus stood, gesturing for the boy to follow him to the sitting area.

"And?" Harry seated himself in his regular armchair.

"And my dad, maybe? I know you hated each other but I mean…he still meant something to mum, yeah? She sounds so wonderful, I can't imagine she'd marry someone as terrible as…well." Snape sighed.

"As terrible as I have made him out to be. I will have to fortify myself for this conversation." He walked over to where he kept his stash of alcohol and was about to pour himself a finger of Fire Whiskey when he noticed Harry eyeing the stuff distastefully.

"Does my drinking make you uncomfortable, Harry?" The boy quickly ducked his head.

"No, Sir. It's fine." Severus narrowed his eyes and turned fully away from the alcohol.

"You'll learn pretty quickly, Mr. Potter, that I do not tolerate liars." Defiance sparked in Harry and he glared up at his guardian for a moment. When the Professor didn't budge, Harry knew he had two choices: tell him or leave. He really…didn't want to leave. So, he sighed and rolled his eyes.

"My uncle used to drink and he'd get…meaner. He's not kind to begin with but the bottle makes his tongue a bit sharper for all he slurs." Severus was sure Harry would stop there, but the boy continued, shocking him. "And Sirius…" Harry's breath caught for a moment. "Sirius…" Snape relaxed his harsh features a bit and stepped forward.

"Harry…did your godfather hit you?" The reaction was instantaneous.

"What?! No! Never! Sirius never hurt me! It's just…when he got drunk he would…say things. He kept calling me James and telling me about all the stuff they did together as students here. Not all of it was good." Harry's eyes glazed over for a few moments, before he shook his head to clear it. "They were bullies; I know that. But sometimes it sounded like Sirius really enjoyed it. And the way he talked about Dad was just…it sounded almost like an obsession." Harry couldn't help the little shudder that went through him.

Severus shook his head and internally cursed the Marauders. Then he took a deep breath.

"Harry, you know that I did not care for your godfather, so what I am about to say is in no way biased towards him." Harry nodded though he was confused. "You must understand that Azkaban truly deteriorates the mind. For Sirius Black to come out of that Hell Hole with as much of it in tact as he did was a miracle. But, think of it this way…for Black, his days at Hogwarts were his glory days. His friends were all alive. He was the top of the food chain. Things were good for him. I did notice that Black and your father were attached at the hip, and Azkaban can twist such things. The more innocent, the more corrupt they can become." Severus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Your father and godfather must be rolling in the grave with laughter right now." Harry snorted and gave him a grateful smile.

"Thank you anyway, Sir. That can't have been easy for you." Snape gave him a hard stare.

"It was the single most painful thing I've had to do in my life." Harry laughed again and Severus sat down, alcohol left behind and expertly ignored. From there the conversation flowed easily enough. Despite everything Severus had told him over their previous meetings, Harry still had plenty of questions and Severus had plenty of answers.

As the night wore on, Snape saw Harry's health and appearance decline. Not many would have noticed, as it was gradual, but Snape was observant, especially when it came to Harry Potter. Harry started to get pale, and then he kept clearing his throat. When he started to seriously cough, Snape stood and placed the back of his hand to Harry's forehead.

"You are running a fever, Harry. Did you not ever go to the Hospital Wing?" At Harry's sheepish look, Severus rolled his eyes. "No, of course you didn't. That would require you to actually care about your health." The Potion's Master turned his back and walked over to his potions supply.

"Despite what you- cough- think. Cough, I do c-cough- care about my health."

"Stop talking," Snape said as he came back and handed Harry a vile looking yellow potion. Harry grimaced, but drank it. He had to clamp a hand over his mouth to keep it from coming back up.

"Deep breaths, Mr. Potter. I'd rather not have your insides all over my carpet." The young Gryffindor rolled his eyes but did as bid. Eventually, his stomach stopped rolling and he could breathe without feeling his lungs itch with each inhale.

"Thank you, Sir. I guess I should…uh, go then." Harry tried to stand from his chair and was suddenly hit with a dizzy spell hard enough to knock him back into his seat. Severus rolled his eyes and sighed heavily.

"As if, I would let you out of my sight when you are clearly too ill to walk." Harry scowled.

"But I'm-"

"If you say I'm fine, so help me, I'll-"

"Severus!" Both boy and man jumped as the fireplace erupted to reveal Lucius Malfoy's head sticking through.

"Aurors are raiding the Manor! They've hurt Narcissa," he growled. Snape's face turned to one of stone, a terrifyingly harsh expression that Harry hadn't seen since Voldemort was alive. Lucius's head disappeared and Severus stalked towards the fireplace. Harry moved to follow, but Snape whipped around and glared at him.

"Stay here." Snape didn't even wait for his protest, before he was stepping into the fireplace and was gone. Harry was stunned for a solid five seconds. Snape must have never learned.

"Like Hell," Harry muttered. He stood quickly…too quickly, but after a moment of closed eyes and deep breathing, the room had stopped spinning. Harry checked his wand was in his pocket, and then walked calmly over to the fireplace.

He crossed his fingers and prayed to Merlin that he landed on both of his feet.

"Malfoy Manor!" With a flash, he was gone.

Sorry for the shortness. I don't know what I was thinking months ago when I wrote this chapter. Trust me I'm a giant Sirius fan, but this fit in with my little discussion here...kinda...it just popped into my head ok?! The title of this chapter comes from the play I'm in this semester called "The Green Bird." It's a lot of fun and I get to play the evil queen. :) Let's see how that mindset affects my writing, shall we?

Please review!