Chap. 9 Reassurance
Harry Potter was lying stretched out on the stone floor of Severus' main chamber. He had originally been studying in his bedroom at number four Privet drive, when the Headmaster's phoenix appeared right on top of his book. That had caused him to go flying backward with a thud. As he landed on the floor he was thankful that once he had turned seventeen he was allowed to use magic legally, as the first thing he had done was cast a silencing spell so that his relatives could not hear noises coming from his room. Smiling he stood up and reached out to pet Fawkes head. Surprisingly the phoenix hopped backwards and then stuck out his leg.
Harry noticed a note attached to Fawkes leg and gently removed it. Upon reading the note he pulled his wand and began casting spells. Ignoring his clothes and other belongings that were moving around the room and into his chest, he yanked open the door and headed downstairs to tell the Dursleys that he was leaving. About ten minutes later a dazed young man returned to his room. Everything, including the items under the loose floorboard, was packed neatly in his trunk. He placed Hedwig's cage on top of his trunk, sat beside it and then as he touched both the trunk and the cage Fawkes landed on his shoulder and they appeared at the gates of Hogwarts.
Harry thought it best to head for Severus' chambers and wait for him to show up. All he really knew was that the order was at a meeting in the Great Hall. The note from Dumbledore asked him to wait outside of the Hall, while remaining in the castle until the meeting was over and they had time to talk. Harry knew that the Headmaster would tell him what was going on, if only to keep Remus and Severus from leaving the order.
Harry remembered how when he came back to school for the beginning of his sixth year he had seen Dumbledore being cornered by both Severus and Remus. A few days later he was called to the Headmasters office and to his immense surprise Albus had proceeded to give him a Wizards Oath. Albus solemnly swore that he would never again withhold information that could lead to another incident like the one that had claimed Sirius' life. Harry smiled at the thought of how Siri would react to his friendship with Sev. Sighing he plopped down onto Sev's floor and stared into the fire quickly loosing himself in meditation.
The main door slammed open causing Harry to jump to his feet and pull his wand. He relaxed once he saw it was only Sev. As he put his wand away he couldn't help but notice how tense Severus was. Remus came barreling in through the open door and slammed it shut. Remus opened his mouth and then shut it again as he noticed Harry standing in front of the fire.
"What happened? You guys usually don't get this worked up." Harry said as he sat down on the floor. He looked from one man to the other. "Is everything ok? Voldemort's not attacking is he?"
Severus just shook his head and summoned a bottle of Firewhiskey from his private study. Harry's eyes widened as Sev brought the bottle to his lips and began chugging. Remus strode over to Severus and snatched the bottle from his hands. Severus glared at the werewolf and grinned.
"Since you won't let me drink, you can bloody well explain what happened." The potions master swayed slightly before lowering himself to the floor. He waved a finger in Remus' direction. "After you explain I want my bottle back."
Remus shook his head. "You can have it back only if you have another bottle. Harry's going to need it tomorrow."
Severus waved his wand and out the study door flew a potion vial. Harry watched as he downed it and immediately became sober. Not even bothering to look in Harry's direction Sev began to speak. "I'm sure you remember that we weren't allowed to tell you what happened at the New Year's death eater revel. Albus bound us with an oath which we only agreed to because at that time we were trying to get along for Remus' sake."
"I remember that Dumbledore even ordered the House Elves to keep it a secret. Dobby spent almost three hours crying because he couldn't tell me anything." Harry lowered himself to sit beside Severus. "He did manage to tell me that it would make me happy, but at the same time he also mentioned that he was glad I didn't have to decide while I was just becoming friends with you. Since he wouldn't have been able to keep silent if it was dangerous to anyone I knew I didn't worry too much."
At that point Remus piped up. "We really thought he would tell you before you went back to Privet drive for the summer, but with everything that was going on it was better that he didn't. You're going to find out tomorrow morning. I hate to say it but all hell is going to break loose. As for tonight, well it turns out that Voldemort has told Sev to take you out of country for a few weeks and he's also supposed to get laid while away." Remus grinned as Harry looked at Severus, who just happened to be blushing.
"Well," Harry spoke as he rose to his feet. "I guess we'd better get some sleep, and Severus I want you to know that no matter what happens tomorrow I wouldn't give up your friendship even if Siri was still alive and wanted me to." He smiled at the shocked look on his friends face. He turned and walked out into the corridor, but just before he let the door close he said, "I'd suggest going to bed a bit early, after all it sounds like Sev is going to be busy for the next couple of weeks.
The two men left in the room looked at each other. Remus chuckled before speaking. "So far so good."
Severus just looked at him. "At least until tomorrow."
Sitting down on the floor Remus uncorked the bottle he still held. The two men began to silently pass it back and forth as Harry Potters laugh rang throughout the empty halls of Hogwarts.
A.N; It took me over a week to write this chapter (once I got started that is) because I ended up getting stuck at the point where Severus and Remus entered Sev's chambers. So how should tomorrow go? Has anyone figured out why Albus decided not to tell Harry, and why he was going to send Remus, Sirius and Harry?