How did the date go, you ask? (I know you're not a girl, but humor me for a while.) Well, it was really nice. Roger was great: handsome, nice, blah blah blah, but to tell you the truth, I couldn't concentrate the whole night. I felt bad, but my mind just kept wandering. I couldn't stop thinking that something wasn't right about everything. I've always dreamed of Roger being this sweet, clumsy, loveable bloke who in the future, would always do these goofy things where I would just laugh and joke with him that I loved him no matter how many things he goofed up. And he would smile this crooked, playful, shy smile and would blush whenever I would plant a quick kiss on his cheek. And I imagined him doing these sweet things for me that would sometimes work out, sometimes not, but we could always laugh about it if it didn't. I imagined he and I burning dinner or getting caught in a rainstorm unprepared or him being late meeting me at a restaurant and feeling so guilty about making us lose our reservations, but we'd order take out and go home and have a great time anyways. But I was sitting there and I realized that Roger wasn't that person. He would never mess up. He's far too perfect to do something like that. He'd never be late; he'd never burn dinner; everything he'd do for me would turn out exactly as planned and if it ever rained, he's the type of person that would always have an umbrella. He doesn't have a crooked smile, his is very symmetrical and white and not shy at all. He's not the type to blush at compliments or stolen kisses. If things ever went wrong, I don't think he'd be able to laugh it out because he needs things to be as perfect as he is. Everyone thinks I set my sights so high when I told them I wanted Roger, but really, I hadn't set my sights high enough. I went after Roger, a mere shadow of the person I modeled my fantasy after. It was never Roger I was in love with all along, but you helped me figure out who it was that I really wanted.
I always thought fate would show me the path, and it did, but it didn't make it all that obvious. I guess you sometimes have to put in some effort into figuring stuff out for yourself as well, along with getting what you want. That's why, I've just gotten back from Neville's house, where, in an act of extreme bravery on my part, if I do say so myself, I walked right up to him, said, "Neville, I think I love you," and snogged him senseless. It was so wonderful and after I pulled away, he smiled at me with a crooked smile and he blushed and I knew he was the one, and had been the one all along. So, we're officially a couple now. I've set my sights higher, and I definitely got what I wanted. Fate works in strange ways, but as I always tell you, love will prevail in the end. Now it's time for you and Ginny to get together! Talk to you soon!
Eloise
Harry laughed with delight, even though he wasn't sure he had needed all the gory details of Eloise's girly thoughts, and opened the second letter.
Harry-Merlin's beard, you'll never guess what happened. Eloise kissed me! She chose me over Roger! Thought you ought to know! Talk to you soon!
-Neville
Harry shook his head with a grin, quickly pulling out some parchment to send congratulations out to both of them. He ended Eloise's letter with, "It looks to me like you chose your own fate."
IiIiIiIiI
The next day, Harry showed up at Snape Manor since Snape was forcing Draco and him to make some of the potions they'd be brewing next year. He wanted to make sure Harry especially didn't fall behind, since he had never been a great Potions student except for that one fluky year.
But Snape quickly informed him that Laura had taken Draco and Anna to a play that Snape had no desire to see.
"Oh, okay, so I'll come back some other time," Harry said, but Snape stopped him.
"Draco's already made the potion. It was the conditions he had to meet in order to go out today. You still have to make it. Now, let's go to my lab," he said firmly.
Harry followed him somewhat reluctantly. It was weird to be with the Potions master for so long without Draco there and Harry was slightly afraid he would resort to picking on Harry again.
Surprisingly, however, he didn't. Snape was, in fact, very patient with Harry and as they waited for different ingredients to simmer, they somehow got around to talking about random things, including Snape's new relationship with Laura.
"Well, it seems to be going great so far, even if Anna thinks you look like a vampire," Harry laughed. Snape glared at him.
"Sure it's going well now, but that's precisely when these things are bound to fail," Snape said bitterly.
"You do realize that life's sole goal is not to screw you over, right?" Harry asked. "Things are going great now and they'll keep going that way," he assured him.
"How do you know?" Snape asked skeptically.
"Because that's just the way these things go. You deserve it, so why not?" Harry said with a shrug.
"I don't understand you. How can you be so optimistic about life when it just keeps dealing you bad hands?" Snape commented.
Harry shrugged with a smile. "Well, look where I've ended up. My life's perfect now."
"Perfect? Life's never perfect, especially not yours," Snape said with a snort.
Harry thought about it momentarily. "You're right. Life's never perfect, but that's what makes it life. I guess it's more of a flawed perfection, but really, it's better that way."
Snape looked at him skeptically. "Oh really? Well I'd love to hear how you're going to argue that point."
"Well, the way I see it, I have money and fame at my fingertips. I had the most popular girl in school after me. What do most people think of as the perfect life? Fame and fortune. I could indulge in both and lead the so-called 'perfect' life, but it would be so boring and would be the furthest thing from what I want in life. I think the perfect life is one where you have people who you love and who love you in return, but you then have to deal with all the complications that come with that. You have their problems as well as your own, you can't just pay them off when you get into fights, and you risk getting hurt. So, if you want a real life, you have to deal with the bad, but with the bad you get the good."
"Well, that may work in you little optimistic view of the world, but that doesn't work with everyone. Some people just keep getting the bad without the good," Snape said bitterly. Harry could tell he was speaking about his own life.
"I think it's just that sometimes the flaws can seem so overwhelming that you forget how to see the good, and then you get so scared that everything that comes along might be bad, because you just don't think you can take one more bad thing, so you push it away whether it's good or not because you just can't tell."
Snape looked at him with a sideways glance.
"So then what happens? You just get stuck like that?" he asked.
"Some people do. I think at that point you're stuck unless somebody, either intentionally or not, helps you out of it. It's just a question of whether or not they get to you before you completely give up."
Snape considered this idea. "When did you become the philosopher?"
"Your class. I have to keep my mind entertained with something," Harry said with a shrug.
Snape's glare was met with a cheeky grin.
IiIiIiIiI
It was another lazy day around the Lighthouse. Harry and Hermione lay sideways on Harry's bed with their bare feet propped up on the windowsill as Ron wandered around Harry's room.
"Okay, see that one there?" Hermione said pointing to a cloud passing by. "I'm seeing a rabbit. There's the head and the ears and the fluffy tail at the end."
"I see it," Harry said in agreement. "Though it is a deformed rabbit. I'm seeing five feet."
"Oh poor thing, it must have had such a hard life," Hermione said with a giggle.
"It probably got made fun of by all the other cloud bunnies," Harry said in mock sympathy.
"And now he just floats around the sky, searching for acceptance," Hermione said with a sigh. The two looked at each other and burst out laughing.
"Okay, that one looks like a cake with some candles on top," Harry said pointing to a new one.
"Alright, give me a second to try to see that one," said Hermione, cocking her head to the side.
"Harry what's this?" Ron asked curiously.
Harry tilted his head back so he was looking at Ron upside down. He was holding up a folded piece of paper.
"I dunno," he said nonchalantly, looking back out the window.
"Can I look at it?" he asked.
"Sure," Harry said dismissively.
"Okay, I see it now. You're right. Definite cake with candles," Hermione said.
"Hmm…Eloise's Plan for Harry's Future," Ron read aloud as he continued to unfold it. Harry's eyebrows knitted momentarily before he remembered what was on the paper. The blood instantly drained from his face.
"Ron, don't read that!" he yelled suddenly, flipping over on the bed and standing up on top of it.
"Why not? I want to know what it is now. I want to see what your future's like," he said and unfolded it completely.
Harry jumped off the bed and raced toward Ron who darted to the side, attempting to read the paper as he ran around Harry's room.
"Ron! Give it back!" he yelled, tackling the redhead to the ground, but Ron was already reading it in surprise.
Eloise's Wonderful Plan for Harry's Future
Harry and Ginny Potter
Marriage Proposal: to be written when Harry comes out of denial
Marriage
o. Age: 22 and 21
o. Location: a deserted tropical beach that reporters and rabid fans can't get to
o. Small wedding, only close friends
o. Best man: Ron
o. Maid of honor: Hermione
o. Groomsmen: Neville, (maybe Ron's brothers? The twins?)
o. Bridesmaids: Eloise (others to be added)
Honeymoon: travel around world
Residence: England (must stay close to friends of course)
Kids: Five. Four close in age, one younger, but age will match with friends' kids so they can play
1. Boy: Alexander
2. Boy: Brian
3. Girl: Kenzie
4. Boy: James
5. Girl: Eloise (the cute one)
Ron looked up at him in surprise and Harry cringed. Ron handed the paper to a very curious Hermione.
Harry backed away from Ron warily.
"Er…Eloise has a bit of an overactive imagination."
"I thought you were still in denial," Ron said with a grin. "Five kids, eh? Have you run that idea by Ginny yet?" he asked mischievously. Harry glared at him.
"Don't you even start," he said warningly.
"Oh Harry, will I really get to be the maid of honor?" Hermione asked excitedly.
"Of course," Harry said with a sigh.
"How did you come up with the names?" she asked curiously.
"I didn't, Eloise did."
"Well, do you think you really will name your kids some of these?"
Harry blushed. "Hermione, I'm not even sixteen yet. I haven't even had a girlfriend yet. I think it's a little early to be talking of kids," he said in exasperation. Ron laughed at him, so Harry smirked at him evilly. "Of course, you two are a couple. Maybe you should be discussing your future. Let's see, you'll have to have a bigger wedding to fit all the relatives, and you'll have to keep the big family Weasley tradition alive, so I'd say you can have five or six kids yourselves."
Ron looked at him in mortification and Hermione blushed violently, but Harry continued.
"Let's see, what shall we name the kids?" Harry said in mock thoughtfulness. Ron made to hit him on the head with a rolled up Quidditch magazine, but Harry dodged with a grin. "Oh you want one named after a Quidditch player, Ron? How about Viktor? Then, if it's a girl, you could name her Vicky!"
His two friends nodded at each other and tackled him to the ground. Harry laughed helplessly as Hermione began poking his sides.
"And you…ahahah…have to…ahhh!…name one after their dear…hahaha stop…uncle Harry!" he gasped, finally wriggling out of their gasp.
He raced out of his room and used the banister to make the sharp turn down the staircase.
His friends chased right after him, yelling that he was going down.
"Have you decided how you're going to propose, Ron?" Harry yelled over his shoulder, causing Ron's face to go bright red as he put on an extra burst of speed.
Harry laughed and raced out the front door. Hermione and Ron raced behind him as he ran through the tall grass, into the thick trees. He followed the dirt trail that they had, by now, been down several times.
The laughter of the three echoed through the small forest as they trailed after Harry to the pond they had discovered earlier that summer.
Harry ran to the very edge, shoving his glasses into his pocket at the last second and jumped. He landed in the deep part in all his clothes. The water felt nice and cool around him as he furiously dog paddled to the surface.
Just as his head broke the surface, Ron cannonballed in next to him, causing a wave of water to splash over Harry's head.
The two had a brief splash fight, when they realized that Hermione was simply sitting at the edge with her feet dipped in.
"Come in, 'Mione!" Ron called.
"Ha! I don't think so. It's too cold," she said firmly.
"You get used to it quickly," Harry assured her. "Besides, it's so hot out there that it feels good."
Hermione shook her head adamantly. Harry and Ron looked at each other and nodded. They both took deep breaths and slid under the water.
Hermione immediately pulled her feet out of the water and tried to look through the murky surface for them but couldn't even see their shadows. She backed away from the edge a bit, but felt compelled to stay. She knew that Harry wasn't a great swimmer and wanted to make sure he came up okay.
Suddenly, the two boys emerged from the water at the edge and quickly climbed out. Hermione turned to run with a squeak, but Ron caught her, hugging her from behind and getting her all wet.
"Ahh! Ron!" she cried indignantly as the cold water dripped down her neck. He nuzzled his hair all over the side of her face with a laugh. He stuck his arms under hers as Harry lifted her feet into the air with an evil grin.
"Don't you dare! Put me down or you two will be in so much trouble!" she shrieked as they carried her to the edge.
"All right Har," Ron said. The two swung her back and tossed her far out into the pond as she screamed.
She came up looking at them murderously. They both cannonballed in on either side of her, drenching her once again.
They splashed around until Hermione shrieked and looked down into the murky water.
"I think I just stepped on a fish. A big fish!" she screamed in disgust.
"There aren't any fish in here, 'Mione, Sirius dug this himself a while ago," Harry assured her, but just then, something large and slimy brushed against his leg. "Gahhh!" he sputtered. "Okay, so I think he put one in."
"I just felt it again!" Hermione screamed. Ron was next to feel it.
The three instantly scrambled out of the pond and raced back through the forest.
When they broke through the trees into the field, the three collapsed into the grass in laughter. They scooted so their heads were together, looking up at the sky.
"Hey, look. That one looks like Buckbeak!" Ron said pointing up at a cloud.
IiIiIiIiI
"Why is it so dark up here?" Harry asked as he stepped onto the second story landing and the lights suddenly shut off downstairs. The adults were at another Order meeting and Harry was, as usual, at the Burrow. He had been walking upstairs with Ron, but had never remembered the house being so dark. He couldn't see anything. "Ron?" he prompted, but was only answered with silence. He turned around and though he couldn't see, he could sense the absence behind him. "Ron?"
He turned all around, squinting through the darkness. He felt his way to the wall and began groping for a light switch of some sort. For the first time he wondered if the Burrow even had light switches since they didn't have conventional light bulbs. He had always taken it for granted that the light in a room or hall always seemed to be just as bright as he needed it, except for now of course.
"Oh very funny Ron," he snapped. Images of the scary movie he had seen with Ginny were flashing through his mind. The more he tried not to think about the movie, the more he remembered it. "Bloody hilarious," he muttered. Silence bore down upon him. "Ron, come out, this isn't…"
"Harry?" a voice called out in relief from over where he believed the stairs to be.
"Ginny?" he called back. "Where are you?" he asked quietly, not quite sure why he was lowering his voice. He edged his way forward and smacked into someone, nearly causing him to jump out of his skin.
"Right here," came a hushed voice right in front of him. "You realize they're trying to scare us because of that movie, right?" she asked timidly.
"Yeah," he said softly. He called out into the darkness, "And it's not working!"
"It's not?" Ginny whispered.
"It so is," Harry whispered back.
"Er, let's try to make it to my room. If they're already controlling the lights in there, at least I have some candles we could use," she said quietly. Harry felt her hand hit his forearm and feel its way down to his hand, taking it in hers. She slowly led the way to the stairs.
"Oh Merlin, I just remembered the scene where the power goes out and the guy gets pulled into the closet and brutally murdered," Ginny said quietly.
"Oh thanks, I was trying to get myself not remembering scenes from the movie," Harry said sarcastically. "Ron, when I find you, you're a dead man," he called.
He suddenly felt Ginny's hand jerk in his as she stumbled. She screamed and backed up into him, desperately grabbing at his shirt.
"She grabbed my ankle," she shrieked.
"I think you just tripped on something," Harry said, trying to sound fearless and failing miserably.
"Let's just get out of here," Ginny said, frightened. She pulled him along at a quicker pace. She smacked into a wall before finally finding the staircase. The two practically raced up the stairs.
They were halfway down the hall toward Ginny's room when Ginny froze, causing Harry to run into her from behind, nearly sending them both crashing to the ground.
"What?" Harry asked breathlessly, but Ginny clamped a hand over his mouth.
"Did you hear that?" she hissed.
The two stood there for several moments, straining to hear anything, but there wasn't another sound to be heard. Ginny took Harry's hand again and the two ran to Ginny's room, shutting the door behind them.
"Damn, they've messed with the lights in here too," she groaned. "Okay, wait, just let me find my candles," she said. Harry heard a small bang and Ginny cursed. "Ow, that was my nightstand."
"I'm going to kill Ron," Harry muttered.
"And Fred and George," Ginny added. "They're not innocent in this, I can assure you."
Both gasped as they heard a slow scratching sound.
"What's that?" Harry asked nervously.
"Oh Merlin. Oh Merlin," Ginny chanted in terror.
Suddenly, the closet door burst open and three figures jumped out screaming.
Ginny and Harry started screaming as well.
There was a smacking sound and a loud curse.
Finally the lights turned back on to reveal the three Weasley boys laughing hysterically. George was holding a hand to his head.
"You threw something at me!" he said indignantly to his sister.
"You bet your arse I did," Ginny shrieked angrily.
"That was not funny!" Harry said with a glare.
"That's because…that's because," Ron gasped, barely able to breathe from laughing so hard, which only made the twins laugh harder. "That's because you didn't see your face."
"Oh, you guys are going down," Harry said. "We're going to get you back so bad."
The Weasley boys only laughed harder.
"Come on, Ginny. Let's go plot our revenge," he said. Ginny shot another glare at her brothers before following Harry out into the now-lighted hall.
IiIiIiIiI
Snape was in a foul mood, there was no way around it. He had always had a bad temper and it was flaring up. He had just spoken with Dumbledore who had told him that he had reason to believe that the Death Eaters were becoming more organized and that several key Death Eater prisoners in Azkaban had disappeared. As soon as the Ministry had discovered the disappearance, they quickly moved the remaining Death Eaters to another prison with guards whose loyalty wasn't in question, but if the Ministry had only listened to Dumbledore earlier, they wouldn't even be missing the ones they were. With all their recent efforts, they weren't any closer to finding the Death Eater's headquarters. Even the Death Eaters they had captured didn't know where they were located. Snape was very well aware of why. Whenever Voldemort had summoned his Death Eaters, they simply touched their scars and Apparated and were automatically brought to their master. The most Snape ever knew about the locations was that they were always surrounded by dense trees, most likely far away from all civilization and near impossible to find.
Draco had been occasionally asking him to go to Malfoy Manor to get his things, but Snape kept having to deny him. Snape couldn't bring himself to tell Draco the reasons behind it. It was simple really. The Order was sure that Lucius Malfoy would kill his son if he had the chance and there was no telling what traps could be laid out for Draco. His things could have been cursed for all they knew. Yet how do you tell a teenager that their father wants to kill them? In time, the Order would be able to clear out Draco's things and check them over for contamination curses, but they didn't yet want to touch anything in the house, having set alarms that would inform them the instant Lucius stepped into the house. They were sure the man would be back for some of his things, unless, of course, he heard that the Order or the Ministry had been poking around the place too much. Each time Draco asked him, it just stressed him out a little more.
All he wanted to do at that moment was be alone, but not only was Draco there, but Harry as well. He had tried to convince the two to go over to the Lighthouse, but Draco flat-out refused, since the two were in the middle of a game of chess, and Harry just rolled his eyes at Snape's sarcastic comments about annoying teenagers. Lately, he had actually thought he liked Harry's confidence around him, but today, it was just incredibly annoying and struck him as arrogance.
He could have just left the living room, but he had been there first and this was his house! Each time a chess piece smashed another to pieces, the loud noise associated with it made Snape's head throb.
One of Draco's castles smashed one of Harry's pawns and Harry laughed loudly as the other pawns were cursing Draco out.
"Ooh Dray, those are fighting words," Harry chuckled. "I think my pawns want to exact revenge for their friend."
"Why don't you two go somewhere where annoying noises are the norm. The Lighthouse should be perfect," Snape growled.
Draco laughed while Harry looked over at the professor and rolled his eyes before the two went back to their game. Snape sneered at him when he wasn't looking. He remembered how James Potter, back in school, used to roll his eyes every time Snape had spoken in class. Popular, perfect Potter. Sometimes Harry just looked too much like his father for Snape to stand.
He looked over at that messy raven-hair, and those stupid glasses. He began to forget what the differences were supposed to be between James and Harry. Snape scowled as he watched Harry make sarcastic comments to Draco, ignoring the fact that his godson was joking back, not taking any offense at all. He tried to tell himself that Harry was different, but all he could think of was Harry's look-alike father sneering over at him. He could only remember the jeering laughter from the crowds of his peers inspired by sarcastic comments coming from a sixteen-year-old James's mouth.
Finally, he couldn't take it anymore.
He stood up sharply.
"Potter," he snapped.
Harry looked up in surprise. He hadn't heard Snape call him by his surname or use that hateful tone with him for a long time.
"Yeah?" he asked, hoping he had just been imagining the annoyance in the man's voice.
"That's sir, to you. I am sick and tired of you talking back to me in that disrespectful tone. I am your professor and you shall treat me with respect, understood?" he sneered. The two boys looked up at him in surprise. Harry's eyes shined with hurt.
"Yes sir," he muttered, feeling humiliated for ever thinking that Snape thought of him as anything more than his most-hated student.
"Sev, what the hell?" Draco asked, utterly bewildered by the sudden alteration his godfather's attitude toward Harry. Snape, however, deftly ignored him and looked tersely at Harry.
"I believe you have overstayed your welcome," he said coldly.
"Have I done something wrong?" Harry asked in confusion. "I didn't mean to…"
Snape strode over and loomed menacingly over him as Harry sat nervously on the floor.
"You are playing on my last nerve, Potter. Can't you tell you aren't wanted here, or are you able to get that through your thick skull? Or perhaps you fancy that no one could ever get tired of having the famous Harry Potter showing up at their house at all hours, and staying as long as he pleases," he said bitterly. "I knew you had absolutely horrid, low-class manners, as you show at the dinner table, but I hadn't realized they were coupled with an arrogance not even your father could have achieved."
Draco gaped at him in disbelief. It was as if they had suddenly gone back a year in time.
Harry nodded, looking miserably down at his lap.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly after a moment. "I didn't realize I was such an inconvenience."
"I am glad to enlighten you, Potter."
Harry climbed to his feet and said a sad goodbye to Draco. He walked over to the fireplace, Snape's hateful gaze on him the entire time, and took a pinch of Floo powder.
Just before Flooing away, Harry's emerald eyes flicked up and met Snape's. They were filled with such sadness and hurt, that they snapped Snape back to reality. Snape suddenly realized what he had just done, but Harry had already disappeared.
"Sev, what the bloody hell was that?!" Draco yelled, jumping to his feet.
Snape put on an indifferent expression and sat back down in his chair, picking up his book.
"No, Sev, put the book down and answer me! What the hell? Why did you yell at him like that?" Draco shouted angrily.
"I just lost my temper. He'll get over it," Snape said dismissively.
"You were thinking about his father again, weren't you?" Draco said accusingly.
Snape glared at him in response.
"Merlin's beard, Sev! Harry isn't his dad! Just like I'm not my dad and you're not your dad, otherwise we'd be Death Eaters and Harry would be an arrogant bully, but we're not and he's not. And how can you just say he'll get over it? He's not a moron, Sev. He's not just going to forget this!" Draco raved.
"Draco, don't worry about it," Snape said warningly. "I've been acting like that to him in Potions classes for years and he's yet to have a mental breakdown because of it," he said in a sarcastic tone that only seemed to fuel his godson's anger.
"You know, you're just like everyone else. You just think he's some idol that doesn't let anything bother him. You think that just because he's famous means that he's not allowed to be hurt by things people say and do, like he's not allowed to just be a person but he always has to be some strong hero," Draco yelled heatedly.
"Draco, that is enough. I do not think that and you know it," Snape said sharply.
"Yes you do! Yes you do! But you're even worse because you think that you have some right to act any way you please toward him just because his dad was mean to you! Merlin, if you're mad at anyone you should be mad at me! I'm the one who bullied him and his stupid friends for five years! I'm this generation's James Potter!" Draco bellowed.
"No you're not! Don't be stupid, Draco," Snape snapped.
"Oh I'm the one being stupid. You know what, I'm right. I really am like James Potter, and you know what that makes Harry? The one that I bullied? That would make him this generation's you. So really, maybe it's me you want to be kicking out of your house."
"Draco, I would never kick you out of this house and you know it! Now stop being ridiculous. You are nothing like James Potter and Potter is nothing like me. Potter will get over it like he has a thousand times before, and when he comes tomorrow to go to the Quidditch game, you'll see that back to his energetic, carefree little self," Snape said with a slight sneer. Draco glared at him.
"Don't you dare go back to calling him Potter. I hope you realize that you've turned into James Potter yourself, picking on people who don't deserve it," he said coldly. Before Snape could get past his shock at Draco's words, the young blonde strode angrily from the room, shouting back over his shoulder, "If you've chased away my one real friend, I'll never forgive you!"
There was loud stomping and the sound of a door slamming overhead.
Snape sat in silent shock at his godson's accusations. They were ridiculous really; he was nothing like James Potter. Harry wasn't really hurt. Snape would just act like nothing happened when Harry came over the next day for the Quidditch match they were going to and they could both just forget it ever happened. Harry had put aside all the cruel things Draco had said to him in the past, and he had done the same with Snape. He could do it again. That was Harry.
IiIiIiIiI
But Harry didn't show up the next day. When it was time to go, Draco came down the stairs with a cold expression.
"I just talked to Harry. He's not coming. He said you're right, that he's been really inconsiderate about butting into everything. Doesn't want to bother you. He told me to tell you he forgot he had promised to help Sirius with something," Draco said coldly to his godfather before picking up Anna who was tugging at his robes.
"Don't be sad Draco, we get to see the Seekers and Harry's going to meet us there," she said confidently, stroking his hair lovingly as if she were petting a cat.
"Harry's not coming, Anna," Draco informed her, striding past Snape and Laura.
"Yes he is. He wouldn't miss the Seekers. Harry loves the Seekers," she said firmly.
"Yes he does," Draco said with a pointed look at his godfather. Snape was looking slightly guilty and a little angry. Laura put a comforting hand on his arm.
"He could've at least shown up. Now he's gone and ruined everybody's mood," Snape said quietly to Laura who had heard about the incident from both points of view.
"It probably would have been worse if he had come, Sev. It would be far more tense," she said quietly. "I think we should call off the game for today. Nobody's in the mood for it. Let's just go out to lunch instead and go to the next match when this little problem has been solved, alright?"
Draco and Snape sighed and nodded in agreement. Anna looked around in confusion.
"We're not going?" she asked, looking as if she was trying to figure out how to feel about this. "Do you want to go, Sev?"
"Not today, Anna," Snape said tiredly.
"Then I don't want to go either," she announced proudly. "Is Harry still coming though?"
"Not today, darling," Laura said.
"Why not?" she asked disappointedly.
"Because somebody made him feel like he wasn't wanted," Draco said with a meaningful glare at his godfather.
"Why?" Anna asked.
"Because this person doesn't see Harry as a human being. He thinks Harry can be used as an outlet for his anger without there being any repercussions, and a part of him believes Harry deserves it, even when he doesn't," Draco said stiffly. Snape looked at him with an unreadable expression.
Anna just looked at Draco in confusion, not understanding what he had just said.
Laura looked between the two males and walked over to Draco, gently taking Anna from his arms.
"You know, I think Anna and I are going to have a girls' day out," she said.
"No, you don't…" Snape started but Laura cut him off.
"I think you two need to work some things out with a nice long talk. We'll reschedule Quidditch for another day," she said, giving Draco a one-armed hug before bidding them farewell and Flooing away.
Snape and Draco stood there in silence for a few minutes.
"Draco, look, I apologize for what I did yesterday," Snape said with a sigh.
"Why are you apologizing to me? Don't say you're sorry unless you're really sorry. And I don't think you can be really sorry until you do something about it," Draco said sternly.
"You don't understand, Draco. I can't just apologize to Harry," Snape said.
"And why the hell not?" Draco asked in annoyance.
"It's complicated. My relationship with him is not as informal as it is with you. I still need to maintain my authority in order to have his respect."
"Sev, Harry already respects you. Respect isn't something you can get by intimidating people or scaring them or being cruel to them. Respect is something you have to earn, and in my book and in Harry's book, the only way to do that in a situation like this is to admit when you're wrong, and work to make things right. That's why Harry and I respect each other, because we both have admitted that we've been wrong in the past and have worked to make up for it. It's called taking responsibility for your actions. If you think that you can just do these things and not try to fix them, then you'll never get Harry's respect and you'll lose mine."
"Draco, it isn't that simple…"
"If you put aside your pride for five seconds, and quit acting like a coward, then it becomes a lot easier than you think," said Draco.
"It's too late for apologies now. It's best to just let things blow over at this point, but next time, I'll apologize, okay?" Snape compromised.
"Next time? There's going to be a next time?" Draco asked incredulously.
"People make mistakes, Draco."
Draco shook his head disappointedly.
"You're not going to even attempt to make things right, are you?"
"Of course I am," Snape protested.
"How?"
"I'll make sure he knows I didn't mean it."
"How?" Draco insisted.
"You said actions speak louder than words, so I'll just show him through the way I act toward him that I didn't mean it."
"Sometimes, people need both, Sev: the actions and the words."
"Harry and I aren't on that level," Snape said.
"You aren't on the level where you treat him like a human being?" Draco asked in annoyance. "You're one of many, then."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"People either treat him like dirt or like some indestructible hero. I can't tell which group you fall into yet," Draco said bitterly. "You know, he mentioned that his godfather never talks to him about anything serious. Nobody does. And I told him that he should go to you if he ever felt like he needed an adult to talk to. He told me you wouldn't want him coming to you but I insisted that you wouldn't mind; that you liked him. Wow, do I feel like an idiot now. I got his hopes up and you just smashed them into pieces. I hope you're pleased."
"You told him that?" Snape asked weakly. He was definitely feeling guilty now.
"Yes. But that was before I knew you'd go and prove him right," Draco said, moving toward the stairs. "Please inform me when you've decided to descend from your pedestal and act like the Severus I thought I knew."
With that, Draco walked stiffly up the stairs and Snape didn't bother calling him back, having nothing to defend himself with any longer. He didn't feel like he deserved to be defended.