When Harry woke up, he could feel light shining at his face through the window. He didn't want to get up yet, so he kept his eyes closed.
It was rare that his sleep wasn't plagued by nightmares and he just wished it could have last longer. It had been so...peaceful, not dreaming or thinking about anything, just sinking into nothingness.
But he knew he had to open his eyes eventually. He didn't want to worry anyone and the light that seemed to surround his whole body indicated that it was high time he got up.
Wait...why was light shining on him if he always slept with his curtains closed and privacy charms in place? And why was the surface of his bed beneath him so hard?
And then it all came back to him... He shot up like a lightning, looking around warily. He hadn't gotten to Gryffindor tower, that he was sure of...so why was he there? He remembered feeling dizzy in the corridor and then it was all a bit unclear in his memory. There was a weird painting and... and a door!! Behind that door, apparently, lay an exact replica of his Gryffindor dorm room with all the stuff of every inhabitant in the exact position it had been when he left...
Well, that was unlikely. But this was a magical school, so this was probably a magical room that turned into whatever he wished for.
He was still feeling a bit dizzy and weak, but he got to his feet to inspect the room anyway. It really looked exactly like their Gryffindor dorm.
Everything was there, even his trunk, just the way he had left it. The familiarity was eery.
He rummaged through his trunk looking for a specific book, which had some of his most important secrets hidden in it. There it was. The book called "How to get better in potions" was actually called "How to become better at chess", which was actually another big trunk filled with secrets. He usually opened it in the bathroom, where no one would bother him.
To make a book into a different book was simple transfiguration which even Harry Potter could do. The first book title practically invited people to become suspicious and they would get what they wanted and all their previous suspicions would dissipate. And even if they didn't, they wouldn't find anything. Only by putting his hand on the book and saying 'Everything's ok' simultaneously did it turn into the trunk. So even if he was forced to put his hand on it, he wouldn't say that (even accidentally) while being forced to do something he didn't want to.
The trunk was filled with books, potion ingredients, potions, other magical artefacts, his diaries and other things that were better kept secret. So, even the content of his secret trunk was exactly as it had been. This room had some powerful magic working for it.
But that was a mystery to solve some other time. By the looks of it, his dormmates would be waking up soon.
He quickly drank the potions he needed, reassessed his glamours and hurried outside, completely forgetting his invisibility cloak and map, which he regretted a few moments later, when he heard one of his most dreaded voices here at Hogwarts.
"Potter!"
Harry stopped running and turned around slowly only to come face to face with Severus Snape, the person who reminded him so much of who he really was.
"Yes sir?" He tried to sound like someone who was trying to suppress his anger while really his fear was overtaking him.
"What are you doing here at such an early hour, Potter?"
"Just taking a walk. Sir."
"Indeed?" Snape said. "How unexpected. The great Harry Potter walking the corridors. Alone. Where are your admirers?"
"It's not against the school rules to take an early-morning walk,"
Snape narrowed his eyes at him suspiciously, approaching him. "You are never anywhere without the intent of causing trouble. Just like your father."
Harry looked up at him in defiance instead of looking at the floor in doubt and embarrassment.
"This has nothing to do with my father."
There was a moment of silence, until Snape spoke up again softly, "Your protectiveness of your father is astounding, especially after the fight you had."
"What fight?"
"Don't take me for a fool, Potter," he sneered. "The whole castle could hear your little outburst."
Harry clenched his fists, trying to supress all the unpleasant emotions that threatened to swallow him by anger again. "What's between me and my dad doesn't concern you."
"On the contrary, Potter," He said maliciously. "The two of you together might be an even larger disaster than separately." He came even closer to him so that he was right in front of him, his black hollow eyes trailing down over his whole body, seeming to dissect every single part of it. His gaze lingered on his forehead when he said, "Your scar is gone. Next time you should take better care of applying the glamour charm."
Harry couldn't help but widen his eyes in fear and let some of the other suppressed emotions change his facial expression. Snape looked at him for a moment, then left swiftly, robes billowing behind him.
Harry quickly conjured a mirror to see himself.
His scar was right there.
UC
"Where were you?" Lily asked. She hadn't seen him since dinner yesterday and he had been pretty upset then. It must have been bad if even Harry couldn't hide it.
Harry had just arrived through the portrait hole in the almost completely empty common room, where Lily had been reading a book by the fire.
"I just went to see Madam Pomfrey because I wasn't feeling too well." Harry seemed calmer, but also more upset in a different way.
Ron had told her about Harry being ill and maybe it was true, but her intuition said otherwise. And a mother always knows, or so she heard.
"So, Harry what-"
She wanted to say more, but a breathless voice cut her off, "Harry, where've you been!" Ron said. "Your bed's empty!"
"I'm sorry Ron, I went to see Madam Pomfrey because of how bad I felt."
"Oh."
"I didn't want to wake you up."
"Well, that's ok." Ron said. "Next time leave a note or something."
Harry nodded, then changed the topic, "Where's Hermione?"
"Library, she rarely leaves that place anymore." Ron huffed.
"We should get going then since you like to take your time with breakfast."
"Shut up."
UC
Lily, Harry, Hermione and even Ron were sitting in the common room, doing their homework after dinner.
The day had been very...interesting. In more ways than one.
Defense was definitely the subject that differed the most from how it had been in the past.
Doing unforgivables in front of the whole class? A bit risky, but Dumbledore had always been a bit eccentric.
Harry had been very uncomfortable under the attention Moody had given him for surviving the killing curse and Lily had felt kind of protective of her friend.
She hadn't said anything though, because she knew Harry wouldn't have appreciated that.
She looked over at him. Harry was quietly working next to her. Whenever she spoke to him, he exhibited the same behaviour he had before that day.
Throughout the day Lily noticed several weird things (some more than others):
1. Harry had been extra careful to avoid a conversation alone with her. He didn't openly say no to it, but managed to evade it some other way by deflecting attention or changing the topic or including his other friends.
2.Harry was barely eating anything. Maybe he had always eaten this little and she just hadn't realised it, because she generally wasn't paying too much attention to food.
But today, Hermione's naggings about him having to eat more seemed justified.
3. What was weirdest of all, however, wasn't Harry. It was Sev. He was quietly and inconspicuously inspecting their table, more specifically Harry. Harry seemed to realise it too and instantly became nervous whenever it happened.
There was something going on between them and Lily was going to find out what.
"Harry, can I talk to you for a second?" She asked, already standing up this time. "Alone?"
Harry seemed to finally reluctantly give in and followed her outside the portrait hole. "What's up?"
"Please, we don't have to do this again." She pleaded. "Just tell me what's wrong,"
"There's noth-"
"What's going on between you and Sev?"
"Ah... I saw him in the corridor on my way back from the Infirmary." Harry explained, rubbing the back of his head. "I was a bit rude to him, so he must be really angry at me."
"Oh no, he wasn't angry." Lily, who knew Severus very well (or at least the 14 year old version) had seen right away that he looked with neither the usual grudgeful hate nor anger at Harry in the Great Hall. It wasn't any particular emotion, it was more like the I'm-gonna-dissect-you-until-I-know-your-secret-look. Which meant that Sev had found himself a new enigma. And it was apparently the same one Lily had chosen for herself.
Like Lily, he had always loved solving mysteries and apparently, even with 20 years age difference, some things never change: They would compete on who gets to the bottom of it faster or solve it together. Which one will it be, Sev?
Obviously, to Lily, Harry meant a lot more than just a mystery. But she was a generally curious person and she would find out why Harry was so much different, but still so much like her. And this seemed to be part of that.
"So, you won't tell me anything?"
"There is nothing to tell."
"Then you won't mind if I go to the Infirmary to ask about which treatment you received from Madam Pomfrey this morning, will you?"
"No, you can go." Harry said calmly. "It will be unnecessary though. She will tell you about the cold she healed."
Lily faltered for a moment, but still hurried off towards the Infirmary, determination burning in her eyes.
UC
Madam Pomfrey was healing a 1st year's broken arm when Lily came in.
She was breathing heavily from running too fast. She didn't have long until curfew.
"Ah, Miss Jackson." Madam Pomfrey said after sending the first year on his way. "What can I do for you?"
"Have you... seen... Harry's watch?" Lily improvised. "He must have left it this morning."
"Watch?" Poppy asked, frowning, all the while using several cleaning charms like she did every night right before curfew. "It is surprising, but I haven't seen Mr. Potter yet this year and I hope it remains that way. He has gone through enough already." She wore a pained expression on her face and Lily knew that there was more to it than she wanted to say.
"What has Harry gone through?" She asked.
Madam Pomfrey shook her head as if to clear some of her nagging thoughts away. "Nothing dear, just what you already know of." Lily knew that she was lying, but she also knew that she wouldn't get anything else out of her.
"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey." She said, turning back towards the exit and running back to Gryffindor Tower.
So, Harry HAD been lying to them. He had never gone to the Infirmary.
Why wasn't Lily surprised?
