Now as Harry, and yes I do mean Harry, slid down into one of the chairs of
the Knight Bus he watched the potions master with loathing. In his mind he
could think of only one thing, and that was how in the hell did Snape know
it was him, but as curious as he was he did not want to talk to the mighty
git. Snape didn't seem interested in talking at the moment either, he
examined Harry several times over, but his expression was as unreadable as
always. The-Boy-Who-Lived currently didn't give a damn about what the
potions master was thinking, and though he had gotten used to thinking of
himself as Nikolas, he would not act as if he had any relation to the man
in front of him now that the git had spoiled his first chance to be free to
do what he liked. The only thing that could happen now to totally destroy
his once good mood would be if –
"Nikolas! Yer back! An yer uncle too! Sir. I saw met your nephew 'ere not long ago." Stan smiled a toothy grin before heading back up front after collecting their fare.
"I'm not even going to ask how the idiot got it into his head that I'm your uncle." Snape scowled and leaned back into his chair. "Now tell me Potter. What in Merlin's name do you think you were doing? Bloody running away when every death eater is looking for you. After all the work we do to keep you safe, and you run away! Making the Order and Dumbledore loose valuable time looking for you, setting your idiot friends into a worry to the point that they don't shut up, and worrying your family to death." Snape looked ready to strangle Harry at this point, but the teen was just as angry.
"You'd run away too if you were in my situation! You have no idea what it is like to be in my shoes, so don't patronize me! Also, where the hell have you been the past 16 years? I have no family you twat! They are all dead!" Harry growled, furious at the man. Luckily Stan and Ernie were too busy to listen to their conversation, or it would have been a very odd scene.
"I see. I'll be sure to tell Molly that, I'm sure she will be pleased to know that she argued with Dumbledore for no good reason." Snape drawled. Harry's eyebrows knitted together in confusion for a moment.
"What do you mean?" He asked softly.
"Only that Mrs. Weasley argued with the Headmaster that he wasn't doing enough to find you, and that she'd go out and search for herself if he didn't do more. When Dumbledore tried to reason with her she refused to listen and said that you were as much a son to her as young Mr. Weasley is, and as a worried mother she would go out and search for you by herself if she had too." Snape spoke as if this were nothing and pulled his wand out. With a soft murmur from Snape, a small silver ghost like bird emerged from the tip of his wand and flew off.
Harry stood up, not wanting to hear anymore, and walked to the far end of the bus, as far away from Snape as he could manage without going up the stairs. He shakily pulled off his glasses, staring down at the new frames. He had gone to the eye doctor as well and exchanged his frames. His glasses were now two thin, silver, rounded rectangles. He set them down on his lap and laid back, exhausted to the point that he hardly noticed when the chair transfigured into a bed, and was sound asleep when he was charmed to move off the bus.
The next morning he woke up with bright rays of sunlight shining down on him. He groaned and pulled a pillow over his head in annoyance. 'Why does the sun have to be so bright?' he asked himself silently before sliding out of the bed. 'Where am I?' Yet another silent question left unanswered at the moment. Harry glanced around, finding himself in a rather cozy room. The walls were a dark blue color, as was everything else, save the redwood furniture and a few odds and ends that were black. He then noticed the familiar trunk at the foot of the bed with Hedwig sitting atop it patiently. Harry smiled and patted his faithful owl on the head before opening a window for her.
~
Albus Dumbledore was a very busy old man. Evidence of this was shown on his very face; the tired expression, the bags under his eyes, the slight sigh that pass his lips. The headmaster had looked worse though. He now sat relaxed in a large plush chair beside the younger potions master. Both were content in the peaceful silence, as much of the night had been spent with a tiring discussion about a boy who had just entered the room.
Harry peered curiously into the small parlor where the two older men sat, then entered and took a seat across from them. He wore his pure black robes today, and let his ink colored hair fall freely to brush just past his shoulder blades.
"Hello Harry." Dumbledore greeted, and Harry quickly noticed the lack of cheerfulness he had gotten used to hearing in the elder's voice, and the fact that the ever-present twinkle in the man's eyes seemed to have dulled.
"Good Morning Professor Dumbledore." Harry said softly in return, not bothering to acknowledge Snape's presence.
"Now, I have heard Professor Snape's account of how he found you. I would like to know why you ran away in the first place and what has happened up until this morning. Then we can go from there." Albus stated quietly, staring through his half moon spectacles at the boy in front of him. He couldn't shake the thought of how much the teen resembled the bitter potions master, but pushed it aside nonetheless.
"I hate it at the Dursley's." Harry started, his voice laced with hatred at the mere thought of his relatives. "And yes, I know that I am safe there, but I was safe when I left to. I walked down the rows of Diagon Ally and no one stopped me, no one looked at me like I was a freak, I wasn't just the result of some bad luck there like I am at the Dursley's." Harry thought back to when he was five, memories so far back that most people couldn't remember them, but his were burned into his mind like a permanent scar.
He had just begun kindergarten. He was smaller then any of the other children, and because of his oversized clothes he would trip constantly. None of the other children spoke to him so he sat alone all throughout the day. He was content though, smiling to himself as he colored in pictures of the letters and numbers. This temporary happiness was what he lived for. Unlike so many other children he longed to go to school everyday because when he got home he was thrown into the small cupboard under the stairs with a small bit of food and then forgotten. Then unbidden, the memory of Vernon tossing him against the wall surfaced, and he was filled with anger.
"I will not go back there." Harry stated firmly. Dumbledore sighed and shook his head.
"Harry, you have –"
"I will NOT go back! If you send me back I swear to you that I'll be gone again before the next day." Harry stared at the headmaster with a determined glint in his eyes. He would sooner visit Voldemort for a friendly chat before he would stay in the horrid home any longer. At least Voldemort would kill him and be done with it unlike the Dursley's who were sadists when it came to Harry's well being, always working him as hard as they dared with the threat of Mad-eye coming to visit looming over them.
"Hold your tongue." Snape growled, but Harry paid him no mind.
"Very well, Harry, if you insist. You'll need to stay somewhere though. The Leaky Cauldron is hardly safe enough, and please don't argue with me on this. You can't stay with the Grangers or Weasleys, Hogwarts is out of the question seeing as the Aurors are updating the protection spells around there, and I doubt you would want to stay at Grimmauld Place." Albus thought to himself aloud. Harry shook his head; the only place he would be willing to go to would be Hogwarts, he didn't want to put his friends in danger by staying with them, and Grimmauld Place reminded him too much of Sirius. Snape looked about ready to say something when the headmaster cut him off.
"Severus, I believe the only option is for Harry to stay with you." The old man said thoughtfully.
"What?" Harry and Snape both nearly yelled in unison.
"Obviously we would have to come up with a story to explain who you are because it would be to dangerous to have anyone find out that Harry is staying alone with you Severus. Though I dare say that will be easy enough." Dumbledore smiled slightly at him with a mischievous twinkle in his eye that Harry didn't like in the least. Again Harry and Snape tried to intervene and change the headmaster's mind, but each time they failed. By the end of the day Dumbledore left grinning to himself.
"This will be a very interesting year." The bearded wizard said to no one in particular as he vanished with a 'pop.'
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Muhaha! Not only do you STILL not know how Snape knew it was him, but also now there is a plot afoot and I haven't told you what it is! I feel so accomplished! Sorry I am so slow with the updating though. ^^;;
Thank you all for the reviews! I Love you all!
I don't much like my writings, but if you all do I suppose it is motivation enough to keep going!
Whoo! I'm off! Ja!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. (As if you didn't already know that.)
"Nikolas! Yer back! An yer uncle too! Sir. I saw met your nephew 'ere not long ago." Stan smiled a toothy grin before heading back up front after collecting their fare.
"I'm not even going to ask how the idiot got it into his head that I'm your uncle." Snape scowled and leaned back into his chair. "Now tell me Potter. What in Merlin's name do you think you were doing? Bloody running away when every death eater is looking for you. After all the work we do to keep you safe, and you run away! Making the Order and Dumbledore loose valuable time looking for you, setting your idiot friends into a worry to the point that they don't shut up, and worrying your family to death." Snape looked ready to strangle Harry at this point, but the teen was just as angry.
"You'd run away too if you were in my situation! You have no idea what it is like to be in my shoes, so don't patronize me! Also, where the hell have you been the past 16 years? I have no family you twat! They are all dead!" Harry growled, furious at the man. Luckily Stan and Ernie were too busy to listen to their conversation, or it would have been a very odd scene.
"I see. I'll be sure to tell Molly that, I'm sure she will be pleased to know that she argued with Dumbledore for no good reason." Snape drawled. Harry's eyebrows knitted together in confusion for a moment.
"What do you mean?" He asked softly.
"Only that Mrs. Weasley argued with the Headmaster that he wasn't doing enough to find you, and that she'd go out and search for herself if he didn't do more. When Dumbledore tried to reason with her she refused to listen and said that you were as much a son to her as young Mr. Weasley is, and as a worried mother she would go out and search for you by herself if she had too." Snape spoke as if this were nothing and pulled his wand out. With a soft murmur from Snape, a small silver ghost like bird emerged from the tip of his wand and flew off.
Harry stood up, not wanting to hear anymore, and walked to the far end of the bus, as far away from Snape as he could manage without going up the stairs. He shakily pulled off his glasses, staring down at the new frames. He had gone to the eye doctor as well and exchanged his frames. His glasses were now two thin, silver, rounded rectangles. He set them down on his lap and laid back, exhausted to the point that he hardly noticed when the chair transfigured into a bed, and was sound asleep when he was charmed to move off the bus.
The next morning he woke up with bright rays of sunlight shining down on him. He groaned and pulled a pillow over his head in annoyance. 'Why does the sun have to be so bright?' he asked himself silently before sliding out of the bed. 'Where am I?' Yet another silent question left unanswered at the moment. Harry glanced around, finding himself in a rather cozy room. The walls were a dark blue color, as was everything else, save the redwood furniture and a few odds and ends that were black. He then noticed the familiar trunk at the foot of the bed with Hedwig sitting atop it patiently. Harry smiled and patted his faithful owl on the head before opening a window for her.
~
Albus Dumbledore was a very busy old man. Evidence of this was shown on his very face; the tired expression, the bags under his eyes, the slight sigh that pass his lips. The headmaster had looked worse though. He now sat relaxed in a large plush chair beside the younger potions master. Both were content in the peaceful silence, as much of the night had been spent with a tiring discussion about a boy who had just entered the room.
Harry peered curiously into the small parlor where the two older men sat, then entered and took a seat across from them. He wore his pure black robes today, and let his ink colored hair fall freely to brush just past his shoulder blades.
"Hello Harry." Dumbledore greeted, and Harry quickly noticed the lack of cheerfulness he had gotten used to hearing in the elder's voice, and the fact that the ever-present twinkle in the man's eyes seemed to have dulled.
"Good Morning Professor Dumbledore." Harry said softly in return, not bothering to acknowledge Snape's presence.
"Now, I have heard Professor Snape's account of how he found you. I would like to know why you ran away in the first place and what has happened up until this morning. Then we can go from there." Albus stated quietly, staring through his half moon spectacles at the boy in front of him. He couldn't shake the thought of how much the teen resembled the bitter potions master, but pushed it aside nonetheless.
"I hate it at the Dursley's." Harry started, his voice laced with hatred at the mere thought of his relatives. "And yes, I know that I am safe there, but I was safe when I left to. I walked down the rows of Diagon Ally and no one stopped me, no one looked at me like I was a freak, I wasn't just the result of some bad luck there like I am at the Dursley's." Harry thought back to when he was five, memories so far back that most people couldn't remember them, but his were burned into his mind like a permanent scar.
He had just begun kindergarten. He was smaller then any of the other children, and because of his oversized clothes he would trip constantly. None of the other children spoke to him so he sat alone all throughout the day. He was content though, smiling to himself as he colored in pictures of the letters and numbers. This temporary happiness was what he lived for. Unlike so many other children he longed to go to school everyday because when he got home he was thrown into the small cupboard under the stairs with a small bit of food and then forgotten. Then unbidden, the memory of Vernon tossing him against the wall surfaced, and he was filled with anger.
"I will not go back there." Harry stated firmly. Dumbledore sighed and shook his head.
"Harry, you have –"
"I will NOT go back! If you send me back I swear to you that I'll be gone again before the next day." Harry stared at the headmaster with a determined glint in his eyes. He would sooner visit Voldemort for a friendly chat before he would stay in the horrid home any longer. At least Voldemort would kill him and be done with it unlike the Dursley's who were sadists when it came to Harry's well being, always working him as hard as they dared with the threat of Mad-eye coming to visit looming over them.
"Hold your tongue." Snape growled, but Harry paid him no mind.
"Very well, Harry, if you insist. You'll need to stay somewhere though. The Leaky Cauldron is hardly safe enough, and please don't argue with me on this. You can't stay with the Grangers or Weasleys, Hogwarts is out of the question seeing as the Aurors are updating the protection spells around there, and I doubt you would want to stay at Grimmauld Place." Albus thought to himself aloud. Harry shook his head; the only place he would be willing to go to would be Hogwarts, he didn't want to put his friends in danger by staying with them, and Grimmauld Place reminded him too much of Sirius. Snape looked about ready to say something when the headmaster cut him off.
"Severus, I believe the only option is for Harry to stay with you." The old man said thoughtfully.
"What?" Harry and Snape both nearly yelled in unison.
"Obviously we would have to come up with a story to explain who you are because it would be to dangerous to have anyone find out that Harry is staying alone with you Severus. Though I dare say that will be easy enough." Dumbledore smiled slightly at him with a mischievous twinkle in his eye that Harry didn't like in the least. Again Harry and Snape tried to intervene and change the headmaster's mind, but each time they failed. By the end of the day Dumbledore left grinning to himself.
"This will be a very interesting year." The bearded wizard said to no one in particular as he vanished with a 'pop.'
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Muhaha! Not only do you STILL not know how Snape knew it was him, but also now there is a plot afoot and I haven't told you what it is! I feel so accomplished! Sorry I am so slow with the updating though. ^^;;
Thank you all for the reviews! I Love you all!
I don't much like my writings, but if you all do I suppose it is motivation enough to keep going!
Whoo! I'm off! Ja!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. (As if you didn't already know that.)