Disclaimer: See Chapter One.

Disclaimer2: I am not a mental health professional, and Severus Snape most certainly is not either. My portrayal of someone suffering from depression comes from extensive personal experience, that is all. I am trying to handle the subject with sensitivity and understanding, and it is certainly not my aim to make light of an illness that disables tens of thousands of people every year.

A/N: A couple people asked where Maglia came from. It is entirely a product of my twisted little mind, although I'm sure I was partially inspired by some fics I've read with similar ideas. I'm sorry about the delay getting this chapter out, but I have come to realize that I need to find a beta for this. Not for typos or grammar, really, since I am pretty good at catching those types of things, but someone to help keep everyone as IC as possible, and someone to bounce plot ideas off of, etc. Let me know if anyone is interested. --Piton

A/N2: This chapter is dedicated to white-blaze-dragon, who I unfortunately neglected to thank at the end of last chapter. My apologies! --P

Chapter 6 - Relationships

Severus was just beginning to feel a pleasant drunken haze descending when he heard a knock on his door. Quickly sending the bottle and cup to their proper places, he called sullenly, "Enter."

The door eased open soundlessly, and Lupin slunk inside, sinking into a chair near the fire. When several minutes passed without receiving so much as a glance, Severus lost his patience. "I did not ask you here to examine my hearth," he snapped.

"What did you want?" the other man asked, sounding defeated.

Severus hesitated. Truth be told, he wasn't sure what he was trying to accomplish with this t?ete-a-te?te. He had been in Lupin's position many times before, and it had always fallen on Albus to bring him out of it. He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. 'I could just do what he always does,' he mused, snorting internally at the image of him plying Remus with platitudes and lemon drops. His normal tactics of sarcasm and intimidation were clearly not the ideal choice, though, either. Stalling slightly, he ignored the question, querying mildly, "What did Albus want?"

The werewolf shrugged. "A DADA teacher," he said tonelessly, laying his head against the plush green fabric of the chair back. Closing his eyes, he added in tones of self-loathing, "I told him to find a teacher who would not kill his students."

Severus pinched the bridge of his nose, withholding his sigh. The sentiment was alarmingly reminiscent of his habitual mindset, but however much he might recognize the feelings, sympathy and compassion were not within his capabilities. He was reasonably sure that any normal human emotions had been burned out of his psyche the night the Dark Mark had burned into his skin. He could feel Harry's emotions in the back of his mind, the worry seeming to insinuate itself into his every thought. Cautiously, he observed, "Harry will be very glad to hear about your return to teaching."

Lupin nodded absently, eyes still closed. "He's an excellent student," he commented with a hint of his typical warmth. His eyes snapped open to meet Severus's as he added, "He must get it from his father, wouldn't you agree?"

It took all his ability as a former spy not to outwardly cringe. Clearing his throat, he declared, "Albus would not have offered you the job if he believed you to be a danger to the students." He hoped Lupin was unaware of just how inept the Headmaster had proven to be when it came to filling this post.

His guest's eyes slid shut once more, as he murmured, "Even Albus Dumbledore can make mistakes."

Severus lost what little remained of his patience. Deciding it would be prudent to get his former schoolmate out of his office before he completely lost control of his tongue, he stood and moved to a cabinet. Pulling out a large beaker, he handed it to his colleague. "I want you to drink a cup of this every morning."

Remus glanced dubiously at the liquid. "What, exactly, is this that you are giving me?" he asked mildly.

Severus met his eyes. "I think you know." He continued reluctantly. "You have proven to be considerably less useless than those Albus normally chooses to fill this position. However, you are not capable of anything in your current mindset, and I think you know it." He hesitated; he knew what needed to be asked next, but the irony of him being the person to say it was almost too much to be born. 'I did not have nearly enough to drink for this,' he thought resignedly. Clearing his throat, he fixed his steady black gaze on the other man.

"Lupin, since we started this conversation you have shown a total lack of interest in your future as well as a poorly concealed self-hatred. I have to ask you," the silken tones faltered, "Have you had any thoughts of... hurting yourself?"

The werewolf reared back indignantly, almost knocking over his chair. "You'd like that, wouldn't you, Snape," he hissed. "You're probably dancing inside. 'Good old Lupin's gone crazy, finally as loony as some might imagine.' Well, sod off! I don't need your help!" He stood and stormed toward the door, only to realize it was stuck fast. Letting out a growl worthy of the wolf within him, he spun around and glared at the potions master. "Let me out!" he demanded.

Severus stood, maintaining eye-contact. "We are not finished talking. Sit. Down." There was a long silence as both waited for the other to break. Finally Lupin grudgingly thre himself back into his chair. Severus gave a mental sigh of relief. He did not have the patience to deal with someone in this mood. Lupin was acting like... him! It was a remarkably unhelpful thought. Severus sighed. 'Physician, heal thyself,' he thought bitterly.

Remus broke the silence. "So? What else did you want to say so desperately?" he sneered.

The black-haired man rubbed a hand over his face. "Will you take the potion?" he asked wearily.

"Sure," Lupin snarled sullenly.

"Forgive me if I'm not reassured," Severus snarled right back. With a growl, he stated, "Lupin, you are obviously depressed. Anyone that spends more than thirty seconds with you can see it. We need you to take that potion; I need you to take that potion, because if you end up offing yourself Harry is going to feel responsible, and he carries plenty of guilt without your selfishness adding to it."

Lupin's eyebrows shot up. "Selfishness? How dare you, Severus--"

"I dare," he cut him off, "because that is what it is." Gritting his teeth, he said almost inaudibly, "I know how you feel. Your life is dark, and all you want to do is go to sleep and never wake up, but that is not an option. The Order needs you. Apparently, to my dismay, Hogwarts needs you. Eventually, this will pass and you will see that, but until then, you have to trust me."

There was a long moment of perfect silence while Lupin stared blankly at the potions master, before breaking into peals of harsh, false laughter. It was Snape's turn to stare as Lupin snickered, choking out, "I cannot believe you just said all that! Are you sure this is really Severus Snape?"

Frowning stiffly, Severus stood, waving a hand to open the door. "I think we are done here. Drink the bloody potion or not, it matters little to me." As Lupin's laughter faded away, he stormed out the door and, lacking anywhere better to go, stalked into his classroom. Deciding he needed some thoughtless work to calm himself, he opened the student cupboard and began taking inventory. The work was soothing, and he was scarcely aware of the time passing. As he set the last bottle back on the shelf, he heard the door creak open. Lupin's voice rang through the still room.

"I'm sorry I laughed. I... I don't know why I'm acting like this."

Severus gripped the countertop firmly with both hands, breathing deeply to collect himself. "It's an act I'm quite familiar with," he said finally, turning to face the door.

Encouraged, Remus stepped into the room, perching on a stool. "I took the potion," he offered. "I know it's not quite morning, but it takes a while to really work anyway, doesn't it?"

Severus nodded. "Was there anything else you came to say?" he asked impatiently.

"Sit down, Severus," the other man said softly. "We've discussed what you needed to say, but not what you need to hear."

The potions master narrowed his eyes. "And that is?"

Remus began an intense scrutiny of his hands. "I know about you and Harry," he murmured.

Like a marionette whose strings had been abruptly severed, Severus collapsed onto the closest stool. "How?" he whispered in shock.

Still keeping his eyes fixed on his lap, Remus admitted reluctantly, "I helped Lily find the best spell to alter his appearance." Glancing up, he added accusingly, "She loved you, you know."

The words hit Severus like a hurricane: unwelcome, unexpected, and devastating. "She loved James," he snapped. "She barely knew me."

Remus shook his head, standing. "Are you truly that blind?" he asked incredulously. Holding up a hand, he forestalled Severus's retort. "Just think about it, that's all I ask. And, Severus, I'm happy for you and Harry. He has a lot of love to give, if you allow him half a chance." He headed for the door. "If you ever want to talk, you know where my office is," he called over his shoulder. Pushing open the door, he turned slightly and added mischievously, "I promise I'll try not to laugh at you the next time."

----------

As the two men were finishing their conversation, Harry was kneeling in the Charms hallway, overwhelmed by the sudden flood of emotions coming from Severus. 'Come on, Snape,' he thought, irritated, 'Clear your mind! Where are those Occlumency skills now, huh?' Beneath the annoyance was something that felt curiously like worry; he may not know Severus Snape that well but the man fairly oozed stoicism. Harry was not sure he wanted to know what had caused the man this level of confusion, guilt, frustration, anger, and pain.

Slowly, slowly, the emotions tapered off, leaving only a low-level dissatisfaction. In spite of himself, Harry let out a sigh of relief. Still kneeling, he made his way to the wall, leaning against its reassuringly solid surface. He folded his arms across his chest, scowling at nothing in particular. This Maglia thing was hardly something he had asked for. He did not much like the feeling of being this transparent to someone else, and he certainly did not like this bizarre concern for Snape that had suddenly appeared in his psyche. Intellectually, he knew this wasn't the man's fault, but it was a hard fact to accept. He had known about their relationship for years, and then the second the professor finds out, bang! he's hit with all these weird emotions and his visions are no longer his alone.

Harry scowled. It was difficult to tell how much of this anger originated with his weird new connection, and how much was a result of five years mistreatment at the hands of his alleged father. Mistreatment that he had never even apologized for, by the way. He shook his head, casting aside the pointless thoughts. What he really needed was someone to talk to about this, but where would he find anyone here? Dumbledore? Not bloody likely. Lupin, ordinarily, would be a great choice, but the man had definite issues of his own to work through at the moment. He jumped to his feet, remembering another person who knew much of the situation. 'Perfect!' Harry crowed internally. 'After all, Hermione likes nothing better than to tell everyone what to do.' With that thought in mind, he headed for the Owlery.

----------

Dear Hermione,

I don't really know how to start this letter. Well, I'm at Hogwarts; you've probably heard about the Dursleys by now. The worst part is that I had been having visions about this and they just would not listen to me! If I had just done something, they would not have died.

The next important bit of news is that Snape has figured out our secret. Not on his own, Dumbledore passed on a letter. There's really no point in beating around the bush; even Voldemort knows now.

He's my bloody father. Does it surprise you that even knowing that doesn't change his opinion of me? That may be overstating a bit--our views of each other have changed slightly... This is something that should wait until I see you, I think.

The Point Me spell no longer works for "Harry Potter". Do you know why? That's still my name, shouldn't that be enough for the spell?

I can hear you now. "You're the one in the castle with the huge library, look it up!" I would never do that, and take away your fun. Admit it; you would be a bit let down if I did everything on my own.

They've taken off the charms. I like my new look, despite my frightening resemblance to a certain greasy git. I suppose that is a bit strange, but even though I look like him, I feel more like me, if that makes any sense.

I saw Lupin today. He looks bad, Herm, I'm worried about him. I think Snuffles's death hit him hard, and it bothers me that there's nothing I can do help him. A little late to try to help, isn't it. Not leading Snuffles to his death would have "helped".

I think I should end this letter before it gets too depressing. I'm going to ask Dumbledore (or maybe Snape, since he's technically in charge of me now) if you can come here for a visit on my birthday. It would be really great to talk to you. Ron too, but I think we need to have a plan to deal with him, first. He will not take this well.

I hope you are enjoying your summer break, and try not to study too much! Get out and have some fun!

Sincerely,

Harry

Harry had just tied the letter to Hedwig's leg, and was watching his owl fly away when there was a familiar tongue of flame and another letter abruptly appeared in front of him. He snatched the floating red feather out of the air with a little smile. "I'm in the castle with you, was it really necessary to send Fawkes?" he asked aloud. Picking up the yellowed envelope, his smile faded abruptly. Although he had never seen this writing before, he knew this was his letter from his mother.

A/N: I recently asked the readers of my other fic (which you should read if you like SS/HG Time-Turner pairings) this question, and now I'm asking you guys. I can keep responding to every review that I get, but it will hold back updates by about a day. If you'd rather not wait for updates, I can just answer any specific questions or CC anyone gives. And of course you can always email me if you want a response, too. So, would you rather have quick updates and a couple responses, or responses for all reviewers and a slight delay? Let me know--your wish is my command! :) --Piton