A/N: This is unbetaed because otherwise I won't get this up in time. So I hope there's no horrible mistakes! Reviews would be nice...

'Susan?' Harry asked enquiringly, looking around the tiny study they shared. It wasn't as if there was anywhere for her to hide, but in the four official meetings they'd had so far, she'd never been late. He sat down and began to look through the prefect reports.

The door opened. 'Harry, I'm sorry I'm late.' Susan smiled weakly at him.

'It's fine. I was just going through these.' Harry waved the reports at her. 'Do you want to do them first, or the rota for the next fortnight?'

'Whichever you want,' she said.

'Umm...okay then. The rotas I suppose. They can't really wait. I was wondering if maybe we should change the pairs? Try and mix up the houses a little more?' he offered cautiously. Harry knew that some people thought he was taking this a little far, but Susan was normally a strong supporter.

'Okay.'

'Are you sure?' he asked in surprise. 'It's a big thing if we do it. People are going to sulk.'

'It's fine.

'Susan...are you okay?'

She was chewing at the end of her long plait, eyes on the desk. 'I'm fine.'

'Really? I can do this myself if you're not feeling well.'

'I'm fine!' she practically shouted. 'I just need to focus on this.'

'Okay.' Harry nodded quickly. 'So I was thinking that if we move...' He stopped. Susan was crying quietly, hands shielding her eyes to try and stop Harry seeing. 'Susan. If you need to...' He didn't know what to say. Seven years with Hermione had taught him that sometimes girls did things which were incomprehensible to the watching male. She hadn't, unfortunately, told him what to do when this happened. Although Ron had learnt, quickly and violently, not to imply it was "that time".

'I'm sorry.' Susan rubbed at her eyes. 'It's been a bad day.'

'Is there anything..?'

'You know my aunt?'

'The Minister of Magic? Yeah, I know who she is,' Harry responded, smiling.

Susan didn't smile back. 'There was an attack today.'

'In the ministry? I didn't hear anything,' Harry replied, shocked.

'It wasn't in the ministry. So they could hush it up.' Her voice cracked. 'I shouldn't tell you really.'

'I won't tell anyone.'

'She was visiting my mum at home. No one was...well, everyone's fine. They don't even know what it was. There was an explosion. They keep saying how lucky they both were.'

'I'm sorry, I didn't know.'

'I know you didn't.' She looked up at him and smiled properly this time. 'And I'm just being silly. No one got hurt really. They were both in St Mungo's, but it was just cuts. Mum's scared though.'

'Well, anyone would be,' Harry pointed out, reasonably.

'It's not just the attack. It's Uncle Edgar as well. You know they were all...they all died the first time. Because he was an Auror. And Aunt Amelia was attacked because she's the Minister. Mum's got it into her head that I'm more likely to get hurt because of this. The Head Girl thing. Suppose I should probably tell her that the DA's more likely to cause the trouble...'

'Susan, I'm not...I mean, you can leave if you want. I'd like it if you didn't, because you're a good witch, and you keep everyone else calm, but if your mum's worried...'

'And there's no one that would be worried about anyone else in the DA? About you?'

'I've no parents to be worried.'

'Your muggle relatives...?'

Harry smiled wryly, 'Not as worried as you'd think.'

Susan shook her head. 'There's lots of people that would worry about you. And you're right anyway.' She pulled herself together. 'I am a good witch. And if Hogwarts is attacked I should help. Plus, the Head Girl is supposed to lead by example, isn't she?'

Harry grinned back at her. 'I think we both are. Although the leading we need to do now is probably doing our work on time...' He nodded at the prefect rota.

Susan laughed and wiped the remaining tears away. 'Probably right.' She bent over the pages and the two began the laborious task of rearranging the schedules.

When Harry opened Snape's door for Occlumency he was again forced to look around the room for someone who clearly wasn't there. 'Where's Malfoy?'

Snape looked up from his papers. 'Mr. Malfoy saw me earlier. I wanted to see the two of you separately this evening. It's been rather a while since I was able to test you individually.'

'Any particular reason you wanted to do this now? I thought we'd been getting better?'

'Both of you have become...remarkably proficient in a short space of time. What concerns me is the possibility that it is because of each other.'

Harry's eyes widened. 'What do you mean?'

'Don't look so alarmed. All I meant was that your magics appear to be feeding off one another. Aside from the fact that this should be impossible, I need to establish what your limit is separately from Draco. There may come a time when you are unable to aid each other, and I need to be certain that you can protect yourselves alone.'

'Could Draco?'

'His Legilimency suffers when you are not beside him. More so than I would have guessed. It appears you may have been helping each other even before you realised it.'

'I don't understand. I thought you wanted us to look out for each other.'

'We do. My problem is that I also need to be certain that in a...situation, you will not reach for each other's magic first.'

'In case one of us is dead.' Harry finished lifelessly.

'Perhaps,' Snape responded, without breaking stride, 'or perhaps simply incapacitated, or unable to offer help because you have your own problems. There are multiple reasons why one of you may be unable to offer the other assistance, one of which is death, and there is no need to be melodramatic about it. It is a possibility. It has always been a possibility for both of you, and not one which is increased by your acquaintance. It may, however, be increased by dependence on the other's magic. So we shall work to correct this, is that understood?'

'Yes, Professor,' Harry responded only slightly chastened.

'Good. Legilimens!'

Harry shielded his mind easily. Snape probed for gaps in Harry's defences. Harry tried to place a gloss over his thoughts, so that Snape's attacks would slide past without having to throw his Professor out. In shock he discovered that this was not simple. Every few seconds, Snape found another weaker spot, and tried to force his way past. Finally Harry resorted to the alternative approach, and simply flung Snape out of his head with as much force as possible.

When he opened his eyes, Snape was rubbing his head gingerly. 'Sorry,' Harry offered.

'You definitely have a problem with control, Mr Potter,' Snape responded.

'I think I overreacted a bit.'

The older man looked incredulous. '"A bit"?'

'You might have been right.'

'Undoubtedly, but about what in this particular instance?'

'I was looking for Draco's help. I didn't notice until I needed some more control. I might not have noticed even then if I hadn't made sure beforehand that I was cut off from him.'

'In your case, this may be less of a problem. Loathe as I am to admit it, your approach lacks finesse, but it does work.'

'Draco needs the control though.'

'Draco has it. It's the power he's missing.'

'So what do we need to do?'

Snape barely heard the question. He muttered to himself, 'It's not even something that can be taught.'

'Sorry, Professor, but what isn't?'

'Power. I can't see any way of Draco increasing his much more than it is. He's already far above what his age should allow. But he isn't going to be as accomplished as you are.' At Harry's confused look he added, 'Harry, you are perfectly aware of the fact that you are the strongest wizard in your year.'

Harry paused in the act of taking a breath and choked. When he had recovered, he focussed watery eyes on Snape and stammered, 'What?'

'Don't act so shocked. Every other student and Professor is aware of it.'

'Hermione? Draco? Lots of people are better than me.'

'You are also a better wizard than you think you are, but that's not what I said. You are the strongest wizard in the year. Ms Granger knows a great many spells, but you can perform them with greater ease than she. Mr Malfoy has more refinement with Occlumency, but you can repel me faster than he can.'

'Why?'

'I wish I knew. Some of it is simple talent, no doubt. Your mother...and your father... were extremely gifted. But there are many students in Hogwarts who are the sons and daughters of talented wizards. And an equal number I suppose who come from a family of no magic at all. Genetics can only tell us so much. Persistence may well be another factor. Beyond that...well perhaps you can tell me?'

'How should I know! I didn't know I had any magic until I was eleven. But I'm not the only person who did that.'

'Indeed not.'

'And I'm not the only person who did magic accidentally when they were growing up. You should be able to tell more than I can. When I got here I was just like everyone else!'

Snape laughed wryly, 'Mr Potter, you were never like everyone else. Perhaps that's the reason. A self-fulfilling prophecy.' He looked thoughtful. 'Or maybe the knowledge of a different prophecy...'

Harry's face closed off. Dully he asked, 'You think I've suddenly gotten better since fifth year?'

'More focussed certainly.'

'That doesn't make me stronger.'

'I wouldn't be so sure.'

There was a long silence. In an attempt to change the subject Harry questioned, 'Did you know the Minister was attacked?'

Snape allowed the topic change. 'Amelia Bones? Yes. Ms Bones informed you?'

'Yeah. Her mum's upset. Not about that. Though I suppose she probably is about that too. But about Susan. She thinks Voldemort's going to take the Head Girl and Boy out first.'

'Indeed? She credits him with a much more discriminatory eye than anyone else. The rest of the parents think that simple association with you will be enough. They seem to be balancing out the danger of being in the same place as Harry Potter alongside the safety of having Albus Dumbledore.'

'And at the moment Professor Dumbledore's winning?'

'So it seems.'

'Susan mentioned the DA. Do you think...do you think I'm making it more dangerous for them?'

'Perhaps.' Snape answered unhelpfully.

Harry was stricken. 'So I should stop?'

'No.' Snape looked at him, not unkindly. 'I refuse to lie to you to make this less difficult. You have numerous other adults who are happy to coddle you. But you should accept that the people you have with you do not need protection either. They have chosen to fight alongside you, and you are helping them do so. Yes, they may be in more danger if he brings the fight here, because they will step forward to protect the other students. But they make the choice, don't make it for them.'

'If I went somewhere else...'

'He would kill everyone here, one by one, until you came back to stop him.'

A shiver ran down Harry's spine. 'So I should just...'

'Pay attention in class. Pay attention here. Let those who wish to fight do so. Anyone who chooses to fight risks death. Amelia Bones knows that, so does her niece. So does Draco.'

Harry managed a wan smile. 'I'm not sure if that was meant to be a pep-talk or a dire warning.'

'Why don't you go and ponder it then? It's late, and we both have classes in the morning. I expect a three foot essay on Blood-Replenishing Potion.'

'I know.' Harry went to the door. Standing in the frame, he turned back. 'Thanks. I think.'

'You're welcome.'