Here is the next chapter. I made it long to make up for the long wait. Hopefully, I can finish up the first book in the next few chapters. I'm not trying to rush, but I can fit a lot into one chapter if I really try.
The names of the Quidditch players was taken from Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup. It's a great game for the PS2. I recommend it for all you Quidditch junkies out there.
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"Harry, there was an elf here a second ago, looking for you. He said you should go to Professor Snape's office." Harry sighed and dropped his bag on the ground.
"Well, I guess my homework will have to wait. Later guys," he waved and exited again, much to the annoyance of the knight.
"I wish you kids would make up your minds!" he yelled after Harry, who ignored him and continued on down the hall.
Though curfew had not come yet, Harry was still quiet on his way to the dungeons. Filch would gladly take any excuse to give him detention. He made it to his uncle's office undisturbed, and he carefully knocked on the door.
"Come in," he heard the silky voice call, and Harry opened the door slowly. It creaked on its hinges, and Harry suspected he kept it that way for a reason. It was rather hard to sneak up on someone when the door announced your arrival.
"Ah, Harry, come sit down. Would you like something to drink?" Harry shook his head, now thoroughly confused. His uncle was acting more like the Headmaster than himself. "I came to tell you that your new broom has arrived, and I will give it to you the morning of your first game. Which is only a week away, so you'd best prepare yourself. Mr. Diggory is quite skilled as a Seeker."
"I'll try my best," Harry said, knowing that answer would please his uncle; it always did. As expected, the man nodded approvingly and sat back, diving into his ungraded papers once more.
"Um, Uncle Severus?" Harry ventured, wincing as his voice came out like a five-year old's.
"Hmm?" the man acknowledged without looking up.
"Er, how's your leg?" Great start, Harry.
"Fine, Poppy healed it right up." Harry sighed dejectedly, racking his brain for more questions.
"It looked pretty bad. What happened?" Harry tried to put as much concern in his voice as he could muster to drown out his curiosity. This time, the man put down his quill and looked up at the boy, leaning on his desk as he spoke.
"Harry, there are some things going on of which you not need be aware. You must trust me in this; I do not want you hurt." Harry nodded and stood, checking the time. "Here," his uncle held out a slip of paper. "This will keep you from trouble in the next five minutes. Any longer, and that slip will disappear, you understand?"
"Yes, sir, no side trips."
"Good boy. Run along, now." Harry bid goodnight to his uncle and left, nearly racing to the common room. He gave the password to a very disgruntled knight and nearly toppled over an exiting Hermione.
"Harry! Why the rush?"
"He wouldn't tell me!" Harry blurted out, pulling both Hermione and Colt to the side.
"Harry, I have to get back to my common room now! Filch will kill me if I'm out after curfew." Harry sighed; he didn't want to get her in trouble.
"Fine, but meet us in the library tomorrow after classes."
"Alright, goodnight!" They responded in kind and Harry grabbed his bag from its previous place on the floor.
"So what's going on, Harry?" Colt asked.
"You know, let me sleep on it, and I'll tell you both tomorrow. I'm probably making a big deal over nothing." Colt nodded and returned to his book, which was nearly halfway complete. Harry trudged up the stairs and collapsed into his bed, Archimedes curled up at his feet.
"And then he says, in his own way, that I don't need to worry. Now, how am I supposed to do that when he specifically tells me not to!"
"Calm down, Harry. He probably just ran into the troll." Hermione put the finishing touches on her Potions essay as she answered him.
"Then why didn't he tell me? Besides, the teachers didn't know where the troll was, so how would he have gotten to it so quickly."
"They are his dungeons mate. He knows em better than anyone alive!" Colt offered.
"Maybe," Harry said thoughtfully, "Maybe not. I remember the Headmaster saying something about Hagrid. That's the groundskeeper."
"He was in the boat with me," Hermione said, "he's rather odd, but friendly enough."
"You think he'd mind a visit from you?" Harry ventured. Perhaps he could pry more out of Hagrid. Puzzles intrigued Harry to no end, and this Hogwarts mystery was beginning to gnaw at his brain. He simply had to find the answer, even if he didn't like it.
"I don't know, won't that seem a bit silly? 'Hello Hagrid! We rode on the boat together, but I haven't talked to you since then. How are things going?' No, he won't see through that one at all." Harry rolled his eyes.
"Well, if you're going to be so negative about it," he let his statement hang, but she caught the full implication.
"Harry, no! Look, the teachers can handle themselves. I'm sure they don't need our help."
"She's right, mate," Colt added. "We're just first years; they're fully trained. What help could we be?" Harry sighed, knowing his friends were right, but unable to let this go.
"Look, he and my uncle work together, and I'm sure Hagrid knows something about my parents. I can come up with something convincing that will get us there. All we need to do is get a few more clues." Hermione packed her books away and tied up her bag.
"Lead on Fred," she sighed, slinging her bag over her shoulder.
"What?" the boys both eyed her strangely.
"Pure bloods," she teased, "Don't you watch the telly?"
"Uh, no," Colt stated, "Harry and I come from the wizarding world. We don't watch the telly." Harry laughed, pretty sure Colt had no idea what "watching the telly" meant. As they continued their discussion, Harry discreetly steered them to the grounds, and out toward the small hut by the lake. They didn't even realize where they were until Harry knocked on the large wooden door.
"You should have been in Slytherin," Hermione glared at him disapprovingly, but sighed as the door opened to reveal a rather large dog and an even larger man.
"Who's there?"
"Harry Potter, and this is Hermione Granger, and Colt Boot. We're first years here." Harry politely introduced himself and his friends, knowing politeness got him much further than directness.
"Arry? That really you? Blimey, come in!" Harry grinned cheekily at his companions and followed the large man into his hut.
"Will he bite?" Hermione said, eyeing the large dog from behind Harry.
"Fang? Nah, he's a bloody coward. Would you like some tea?" Hagrid gestured to a black pot sitting on the fire, but the students shook their heads.
"We have dinner in a few moments," Harry explained. "I just…I just wanted to know about my parents, seeing as how you knew them and all. I was hoping you might be able to tell me about them."
"What about your uncle?" Hagrid said quickly. Harry thought he detected a hint of hostility in the voice, but dismissed it.
"Oh, you know Uncle Severus. A Slytherin through and through. He told me all about how my mum was an excellent charms student, and how dad was a ringer for Transfiguration. But he won't talk about them much." Hagrid nodded knowingly, and sighed a heavy sigh.
"Well, James was a walloping good Quidditch player, I'm sure you've heard. Chaser for Gryffindor, but he could have played anywhere just as good. Lily was a sweet girl, and sharp as a tack. By her second year, we were sure the hat had made a mistake. She should have been a Ravenclaw, but I suppose Gryffindor was best in the end. That's where she met your dad and all. I think they started dating in their fourth year, or was it their fifth? Anyway, he proposed after graduation, and you were born shortly after that. Most here didn't think Professor Snape was fit to look after ya, but I s'pose ya turned out alright in the end." He seemed to stop abruptly, as if remembering why Harry was living with his uncle in the first place. Harry looked deep into the man's beady eyes, catching a glimmer of uncertainty, and he decided to play a card.
"You know, Uncle Severus says that the goblins at Gringotts' should all be fired. I mean, to think if Vault 713 had been broken into before you retrieved it." Harry shot a pointed look at the man, who seemed to sweat under his thick beard. He hoped the man hadn't become too suspicious at the sudden change in topic, but Harry suspected the man was too worried about other things to concentrate on it.
"Don't you worry, now, Harry. It's safe here at Hogwarts."
"I'll bet it is. I mean, did you see Uncle's leg?" Harry crossed his fingers behind his back, hoping he'd hit the right button.
"Now, Fluffy didn't mean any harm! He just gets excited when he gets visitors. O'course, with a three-headed dog, you have to be careful no matter what." Harry's eyes widened, but he checked his features and shot a glare at his friends. Bingo!
Hagrid seemed to realize his error, for he stood and ushered the three out of the hut. "Shouldn'ta said that. Now off with you. Go play. And keep yourselves out of trouble!" Harry nodded sincerely, dragging his two dumbfounded friends off into the castle. No one said a word until they were safely inside the Ravenclaw common room, in their own nook.
"A three-headed dog? Reckon we could take a peek?" Colt raved, and Harry smiled sweetly at the seventh years glaring at them from the other corner.
"Keep your voice down, Colt! That was it; that was what I needed. So Fluffy, the three-headed dog, is guarding whatever was taken out of Vault 713."
"I swear, mate, sometimes you scare me. How did you do that?"
"Well, you live with a Slytherin for long enough, you tend to get good at manipulating and bluffing."
"Uh huh. You still scare me." Harry was about to respond when a voice called his name from the other side of the common room. He turned to see Roger Davies, the Quidditch captain, beckoning him over.
"Come on, Gryffindor's playing Slytherin tonight. I want you to see a real game before you're actually out there. And remember, no one is to know about it." Harry nodded and pulled his friends out of the entrance.
"Come on, Hermione. You need to cheer on your team!" They raced out to the Quidditch pitch laughing together. Hermione spotted Ron and Seamus in the front row of the Gryffindor stands and steered the boys away.
"Let's go sit in the Ravenclaw section. It won't be as crowded." Harry narrowed his eyes at the two Gryffindor boys, but followed her all the same. He tried to concentrate on the game, but his mind was occupied, trying to figure out what Fluffy could be guarding, and why his uncle was acting strangely lately.
"And Angelina Johnson scores! Ten points to Gryffindor!" The red and gold stands erupted with cheers, while Slytherins booed from their place opposite the field. Harry looked up in time to see one of the Weasley twins soar over his head after a Bludger. He watched as the small black ball whizzed through the air and connected with Pucey's broom, knocking him backwards and making him drop the Quaffle. A Gryffindor Chaser grabbed it and passed it up field, where another Chaser score.
"Another ten points to Gryffindor!" Lee Jordan announced from the stands. Harry watched as the Slytherin Captain beat a Bludger into Wood, knocking the Keeper to the ground, then the other Chasers steering Spinnet into the stands. Slytherin scored three times before the Snitch made its appearance.
Harry saw it before the other Seekers did, but the race was soon on, and Harry watched as red battled green in a death-defying dive. With one last shove, the Slytherin Seeker knocked Gryffindor's off course and grabbed the Snitch, holding it high for all to see.
"Slytherin wins, 180 to 20! I can't believe Madam Hoo–" Harry heard the audible click that signaled McGonagall had taken control. Harry clapped half-heartedly as he caught his uncle's glum smirk from the teacher stands. Davies walked up behind him and clapped him on the back.
"Well, Harry, that's how it's done. Just relax, think about what you want to do, and do it." Harry nodded dumbly, but his mind was racing through different scenarios. As they made their way out of the November chill, Hermione huddled between them, Harry steered them toward the teacher stands, where the Headmaster and McGonagall were in a discussion about the match.
"You cannot deny some of those moves were highly illegal, Albus!" Harry's eyes widened as he saw his uncle approach them, and he quickly shoved his friends toward the castle, his intention of talking to the man all but gone.
"What is wrong with you?" Colt asked.
"I'll explain later," he said, throwing a glance back in time to see his uncle's face twisted in fury.
Harry stepped up to his uncle's office door, but heard nothing. Quietly, he opened it, but the room was dark and empty. Steeling his mind, he made his way deeper into the dungeons, to his uncle's quarters.
"Well, well, if it isn't Saint Potter down from his throne!" Harry stopped in his tracks and turned to face Malfoy, who had just emerged from the Slytherin dorms with his two cronies.
"Hi Draco," Harry greeted, noticing the look of indignation that flitted across the Slytherin's face.
"Don't presume to know me, Potter," he spat disdainfully. "What are you doing down here?"
"I'm just here to see Professor Snape. Perhaps you've heard of him?" Harry said in the same tone the blonde boy had used on the train months ago. Harry mind raced around, looking for possible escapes should this meeting turn serious. He could always barricade himself in the office until his uncle came around. No, I'm not a coward, he told himself. Just as his uncle had taught him, he shifted his arm so his wand extricated himself from its holster and into his palm. He kept it hidden from the boys, but began thinking of different spells to get him out of this situation.
"Careful, Potter. You're outnumbered, and on Slytherin ground." Malfoy took a menacing step forward, reaching into his pocket for his wand. Harry pulled his wand completely, holding it lightly in his grasp, and had it pointed at the three before Malfoy had his out. But Harry still looked at the boy down an 9 inch yew wand.
Harry gripped his 10 inch holly wand tighter, but before either boy could fire a spell, their wands whizzed out of their hands down the hallway. Harry shut his eyes and groaned softly, knowing full well what that meant.
"What, exactly, are the two of you doing down here in the dungeons, holding each other at wand point?" came a silky voice from the shadows. For a moment, Draco smirked triumphantly, then he seemed to remember why Harry was down in the dungeons to begin with.
"Professor Snape," Draco began in his aristocratic tone, "Potter was looking for trouble, and nearly cursed Gregory from behind. Luckily, my superior senses kicked in and–"
"Quiet, boy," Snape bit out before turning to his nephew. "Mr. Potter, what are you doing in the dungeons?"
"I came to see you, sir. I wished to discuss private matters." Draco almost told the boy to go see his Head of House for private matters, but bit his tongue.
"And of Mr. Malfoy's accusation?"
"It's not true. I had just come from your office and was heading to your rooms. They came from the dorms and confronted me." Harry managed to keep a calm face, but his insides were twisting and turning. Would his uncle believe him, or favor his Slytherins again?
"He's lying, Professor!" Malfoy spat smugly, hoping to see Potter punished, but instead Snape rounded on him.
"No, Mr. Malfoy. He was taught from an early age not to lie to his elders just to get out of trouble."
"But, sir!"
"No, Mr. Malfoy. Return to the dormitories, now." He handed the Slytherin his wand before the three turned and whispered the password. Harry watched out of the corner of his eye as the wall slid open and the boys disappeared. He let out a sigh as he followed his uncle to his private quarters. Once safely inside, Snape handed the boy his wand and leveled him with a piercing glare.
"What are you doing out of your dormitories? I will not always write curfew passes for you because you feel the sudden need to chat with me." Harry re-holstered his wand and took a tentative seat on the forest green couch.
"I know sir, I just wanted to know how the argu – er, discussion with Professor McGonagall and the Headmaster went. They're not going to make Slytherin replay the match, are they?" Harry managed to put the right amount of concern in his voice, and his uncle relaxed a little.
"No, thankfully. The Headmaster agreed that, while Slytherin's style of play is a little rougher than most, it is certainly not illegal. Madam Hooch is more than capable of refereeing a match, and frankly, if I were her, I would have found Minerva's accusations insulting." Harry nodded, sighing in relief.
"That was some match though, right? I mean, Gryffindor has great Chasers and all, but without a proper Seeker, I don't see them winning this year."
"Too true. Did you just come down to 'shoot the breeze,' or was there something of importance you wish to discuss?" Harry found himself faltering under his uncle's scrutinizing gaze, and quickly glanced down at the man's leg, then back up.
"Where's the broom?" he asked, almost excitedly. "Can I take it out for a test ride? Please Uncle Severus?" He almost sounded eight years old again, and Severus had to resist the urge to roll his eyes.
"You may look at it, but you may not ride it. You can fly a broom well enough, I suppose you do not need much time to adjust yourself to this one." He strode into his study, where Harry was not permitted, and came out again holding the most beautiful broomstick Harry had ever seen.
"Wicked!" he gasped as he jumped up, reaching out to take it from his uncle's grasp. Reluctantly, Severus let the boy hold it. Harry used his fingers to memorize every inch of the broom, marveling at its weightlessness and streamline design. "Are you sure I can't ride it till next week? We have practice tomorrow!" His uncle's glare silenced any more pleas, and he hesitantly handed his new treasure back to him.
"Now, off with you. You still have ten minutes left till curfew, and I do not want to hear of any side trips." Harry nodded, his eyes still on the broom. He sighed and turned to go, but paused just at the portrait.
"Uncle Severus?"
"Hmm?"
"We were talking with some of the older years. They were talking about Magical Creatures class, saying they've seen really rare and interesting animals that we've only dreamed of. They say that there are monsters in the school. Is it true?" He made his voice quiver, as if he were truly frightened one of these "monsters" would break out and eat the children.
"Harry, there are many creatures in this world that you would deem 'monsters.' Take dragons for instance. But the Headmaster would not keep potentially dangerous creatures in this school." Harry watched the man closely, but nothing in his posture or demeanor suggested the man was fibbing.
"Okay, goodnight!" He waited for his uncle to respond in kind before bounding off, careful not to get caught running in the halls. Only when he reached his dormitories did he remember his uncle was a Slytherin, and a former spy at that. Harry sighed to himself as he changed for bed, knowing he was not going to get anything further from the Head of Slytherin House.
Harry woke the next morning to find an odd shaped package sitting at the foot of his bed, along with a note. Scrambling out from under his covers, he ripped the letter open.
Harry
You may use your broom in practice today, but it is to be returned to me by lunchtime. Any later, and you will no longer be on the team. Be careful, and good luck.
Severus Snape
Harry smiled as he unwrapped the Nimbus 2000. Roger Davies burst in fully dressed for practice, but stopped dead at the sight of the broomstick. Harry grinned and caught the Quidditch cloak the boy threw at him, quickly changing behind his curtains.
"I'll have to thank Professor Snape," Roger joked as they made their way out to the pitch. "Now, we've got the pitch until lunch, so we'll get you trained up right for Seeker." Harry nodded as they approached the rest of the team. They all gawked at Harry's broom, but Roger's voice broke their stares.
"Right then! Next week is our first game, and we've been allowed to use the pitch half the day to train our new Seeker, Harry Potter." Light clapping followed the speech, and Harry's face flushed. "Okay Harry, this is the rest of the team. I'm a Chaser, along with Jeremy Streton and Randolph Beaux. These are our Beaters, Duncan Ingleby and Jason Samuels. Grant Page is our Keeper. Now, you watched the Gryffindor/Slytherin match last week, so you know how it's done. First, we'll do some warm-ups, then get into the training." The team took off, and Harry followed, immediately feeling the difference in his broom. If Harry had loved his Comet last year, the Nimbus was pure heaven. It responded to his every miniscule movement, and he watched his teammates perform tricks; he even tried some himself.
Severus Snape watched his nephew flying around, practicing catching golf balls, hit by the Beaters. After several minutes of not missing one, the Chasers stopped their practice with the Keeper to watch the young prodigy. Harry was indeed an excellent flyer, and an even better Seeker.
Snape had to stop himself many times from pulling his wand to stop a dive, but Harry expertly pulled out of each with golf ball in hand. As he made his way back to the dungeons unseen, he smiled to himself, a feeling of pride hidden deep within.
"Welcome to the second week of Quidditch! This week is Ravenclaw versus Hufflepuff! The studious house has been closely guarding the identity of their new Seeker, but rumor has it that Cho Chang has been given the position. And here they come!" The Hufflepuff team flew out smiling, and Harry waited behind his captain, gripping his new broom tightly.
"Are you scared, Harry?" Roger asked, laying a hand on the boy's shoulder. Not trusting himself to speak, Harry nodded vigorously. "Don't worry about anything but catching that little golden ball, you hear me?" Again, the boy nodded as the door slammed open, and the Beaters and Keeper zoomed out.
"And here's the Ravenclaw team!" Harry heard Lee announce. "And leading the Chasers is Captain Roger Davies and – holy cricket! It's Harry Potter! And he's got a Nimbus 2000!" Gasps and cheers erupted from the crowd, and Hermione squealed as she jumped up and down clapping next to Colt.
Harry took several deep breaths as he looked out at the swelling crowd. It seemed as if every house had come; even the Slytherins were interested in Ravenclaw's mystery Seeker. As the Chasers and Beaters battled it out below, Harry swirled around above them, performing minor barrel rolls and flips to exhaust his giddiness.
Diggory waved at him from opposite the pitch, but Harry had taken to searching for the little golden Snitch. He joined his teammates in celebration as Davies put in the Quaffle.
Harry purposefully soared over the teacher's stands, noting his uncle's impassive face watching him fly. He waved a little before resuming his search for his prize. As such, he missed his uncle's nod and proud smile. Diggory dove, but Harry squinted closely, noting nothing in front of the boy. He was trying to throw the new Seeker off course. Harry smiled and quickly turned, diving the other way. Diggory, thinking the younger boy had seen something, pulled out of his dive and followed. Harry continued toward the ground, but steered away, twirling around one of the stands and shooting a grin back at the boy. Cedric shook his head and flew higher, getting a better view of the Quidditch game.
Harry flew around, avoiding Bludgers and yelling to his team. "Look left, Roger!" he called, and the Captain ducked as one of the Hufflepuff Chasers, MacAvoy, zoomed over him. Throwing Harry a small wave in thanks, he volleyed the Quaffle up to Streton, who caught it, rolled over, and threw it past the Keeper.
"Ravenclaw scores again, leading Hufflepuff 20-0! The seekers are still searching, but Diggory's Cleansweep won't match the speed of the Nimbus." Severus, who had been appointed to monitor Lee during the match, glared at the boy, who gulped and turned his attention back to the game. "Ravenclaw scores again, increasing their lead to 30." Harry whooped and cheered, but immediately grabbed his broom as it began bucking and swaying, attempting to throw him off.
"What's going on with Harry?" Colt asked, peering through is binoculars. Hermione wrenched them from his grip and looked, her face paling as Harry barely managed to save himself from falling fifty feet to the ground. Looking around frantically, she stopped as her eyes fell on the teacher's stands.
"Look at Snape!" she called, thrusting the binoculars into the boy's hands. Colt put them to his eyes and did as she said, focusing in on the potions master. His face was frozen, eyes locked on Harry, and his mouth chanting a spell.
"What's he doing!" he yelled, glancing at Harry again to insure his friend was still in the air.
"It's a jinx!" Hermione answered, pulling her wand from her pocket.
"You dolt! Harry's his nephew! Why would he jinx him?" But Hermione was listening; in fact, she wasn't in sight. Colt returned the binoculars to the teachers, and noticed a small figure moving below them.
Hermione crept under the Slytherin teacher, muttering a spell that ignited the man's cloak. He jumped, knocking most of the other faculty over, and causing Lee to almost miss Davies putting the Quaffle through again. Hermione watched Harry as his broom steadied and he clambered back on, catching his breath.
Severus extinguished the flames before looking frantically back up; but Harry was safely atop his broom and searching for the Snitch again. Letting out a huge sigh of relief, he looked around, glancing at the teachers out of the corner of his eye. Flitwick was reclaiming his seat from his tumble, as was Vector and Sinistra. Quirrell, who Severus knew hated Quidditch, was watching the game intently, as if he had just missed something important.
Pressing his lips together firmly, he turned back to the game in time to see Harry dive, circling a stand before snatching something from the air. Madam Hooch blew her whistle as Harry pulled out, hand in the air, waving the small golden ball triumphantly. Severus clapped politely, silently cheering for his nephew.
"Ravenclaw pulls a victory over Hufflepuff, 190-0! That puts them in first over Slytherin, with Gryffindor in third place." The microphone was promptly shut off and Lee scrambled down from the stands, seeking out his friends.
Harry was accosted by no less than 10 people when he walked into the Ravenclaw common room with the rest of the team. Colt slapped him on the back and Hermione hugged him briefly, grinning from ear to ear.
"See, you didn't make a fool of yourself," she noted as several people pulled out butterbeer and candies.
"Where did you get these?" Harry asked an older Asian girl.
"Oh, third years and above are allowed to go to Hogsmeade on certain weekends. We grabbed extra for this party."
"But how did you know we were going to win?" Harry asked, taking a sip of the butterbeer.
"Well, we didn't, but we always have a party after the Quidditch games, either to celebrate or raise spirits." She shrugged as she was pulled away by her year-mates, giggling uncontrollably. Harry shook his head as they kept shooting him glances conspiratorially.
"What are they doing?" Harry whispered to Hermione, who looked up from her book to shrug.
"Girl talk, probably. Who knows?" Harry chuckled as Colt handed him a pasty, clapping him on the back again. Hermione turned to say something about the Quidditch match and his uncle when Colt suddenly spoke up.
"They think you're cute, mate. Go talk to them!" He shoved Harry in their direction, but Harry quickly veered and headed for the door.
"I think I'll go see my uncle. I have to return my broom anyway." He quickly waved goodbye before Colt could protest or Hermione could stop him and left, making his way to the dungeons with his Nimbus in hand.
"I was wondering when you were going to return that," came a voice from the shadows of the Entrance Hall. Harry jumped in the air and pulled his wand, his Nimbus forgotten on the floor. "Good reflexes, Harry. Perhaps living with me all these years has indeed paid off." Harry pocketed his wand and retrieved his broom from the floor as his uncle emerged from the shadows.
"You scared me to death, Uncle!" he hissed, catching his breath.
"Well then, perhaps you should work more on tuning your senses to your surroundings. Come with me." Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes and did as he was told, following his uncle to his quarters. Severus took the broom from the boy and stowed it away in his study before returning to his chair in front of the fire.
"Uncle, what are we doing for Christmas?" Harry asked, sitting down on the rug in front of the man. Archimedes, upon hearing his master's voice, padded out from the bedroom and purred loudly as he crawled into Harry's lap.
"We are staying here this year, Harry. I have not had break duty in the years I've taught here, so I could be at the manor with you. However, now that you are here, we will be spending the holidays at Hogwarts." After summoning a book for himself and his nephew, Severus elapsed into silence. Harry sighed and opened it and began reading about great discoveries of the past centuries.
An hour passed in a comfortable silence. The only sounds in the room were the crackling of the fire and the soft purring of the white cat in Harry's lap. Sighing, the boy shut his book and stood.
"Could I stay here, tonight? Please? I don't feel like trudging all the way up to the dormitories." Harry was careful not to let his childish whine sneak through, and leveled his best pleading stare on his uncle.
"Absolutely not. You will not be given special permission just because you are a relative of a staff member. I will allow you to stay here for the holidays, but not before." Harry's shoulders slumped as he shelved his book. "However, I will walk you back to your dormitory, so you will not run into trouble." Severus fixed the boy with a knowing glare, and Harry smiled sheepishly. Archimedes, not quite ready to leave his master, followed the pair silently, trotting to keep up with the two humans.
"Goodnight Uncle," Harry said after he'd given the password. Hermione smiled at him on her way out, but stopped short at the sight of the potions master. Harry turned back to his uncle.
"Could you walk Hermione to the Gryffindor dorms? I don't want her to get into trouble with Filch." Hermione's eyes widened as she turned to Harry, gaping as if Malfoy had just apologized to her; and Harry let out a laugh when Hermione nearly fainted at the man's answer.
"Of course. If you please, Miss Granger?" Archimedes mewed to announce his presence, and Harry stooped to pick up the cat, watching the retreating forms of his friend and uncle.