A/N: *sits whistling to herself while the readers wait impatiently* Hullo! Everyone out there alright? Hope so. Anyway this is the next chapter. I was thinking of adding another part but decided to cut it off where I did.



Remember: Peace, Love, and be a Marauder! I mean, why wouldn't you be?



Chapter 12- Truths Unspoken and Findings in a Dream



Disclaimer: I own NOTHING! And that includes Harry Potter.





One week later, officially the last week of the bet, Harry waited patiently for Severus to return. After the, what Harry had aptly named, "therapy session" that had completely and utterly shattered the last boundaries of hesitation and shyness, their friendship had grown rapidly. Every night they set aside at least one hour for their "therapy session". Harry confided in him about everything now and likewise Severus was doing the same. Harry had the feeling that he'd learned more about the man in the short space of a month than the teaching staff had in all of their combined years of working with him. Except Dumbledore. That man would always seem to know more about a person than they did themselves. They only things they did not speak of were his meetings with the Order of the Phoenix and his missions for Dumbledore. He never said anything about them and Harry never asked; it was an unspoken agreement between them. Harry also found he liked Severus tutoring him, once the man had let go of his usual method of teaching, Harry learned rapidly and eagerly. He didn't know what had gotten into him, he'd never been /this/ serious about his work before. Guess Hermione was starting to rub off on him. He felt confident he would be able to take his exams and pass them, especially at the rate they were going.

Tonight Severus was off on a mission for Dumbledore. What bothered Harry was that he'd been on one every night that week. So he stayed up, like he did every time Severus went out on a mission, with a healing potion on hand and healing touch. He was becoming quite adept at his new found powers since Severus seemed to need them often. The healing potion had been one of the first things he'd had Severus teach him. It was a general, broad-based kind that was meant to stop most pain and heal minor cuts and bruises. It was nothing like Kit's who had potions for specific injuries; and if she didn't have it, she was working on it.

Tonight was no different than any other; he was curled up on the couch, book in hand. Harry blinked sleepily down at the Transfiguration book. It was no use, the words just kept blurring together. Right when it was getting to the interesting parts too. He glanced over at the ancient grandfather clock by the stone fireplace. (Severus had said it had been enchanted so it would work inside Hogwarts) Two a.m., no wonder he could barely keep his eyes open. Harry looked at the portrait-hole and sighed; Severus had yet to return. 'Maybe if I took a short nap I can help him when he comes in,' he thought. With that decided, he stretched out his now much longer legs and laid the in his lap, leaning his head back against a pillow. He left the candle he'd been reading by burning since he intended to awaken later. Seconds after his eyes closed, he was in a deep sleep.

Severus eased the portrait closed behind him and yawned. The mission had gone off without a hitch; no one had been seriously hurt and all the Death Eaters had been captured. The Order had really put a serious dent in Voldemort's recruiting efforts. He glanced at the grandfather clock and winced; three a.m., no wonder he was so tired. Yawning again he made his way towards his bedroom when a flickering light caught his attention and he turned. There on the couch, fast asleep, was Harry. Smiling slightly, he walked over and picked the teenager up. His smile widened when Harry sighed in content and snuggled his head into the crook of Severus' neck. The boy trusted him, even in his sleep, he trusted him. Pausing only to blow out the candle, he made his way into Harry's bedroom. With a brief snap of his fingers the covers pulled themselves back and Severus laid him in the bed, tucking the heavy blankets up to the boy's chin. Bending down he brushed a feather light kiss on his forehead.

"Sleep well young one, sleep well."

Harry sighed in content as he sensed Severus' icy warm presence. He'd come to know that feeling and be comforted by it. He felt the strength of the presence diminish and knew he'd must have been put to bed. Like a small child. But he didn't mind, not one bit. He felt something light brush against his forehead. Had he imagined it or had Severus just kissed him goodnight? Never, in all the years of his life that could he remember, had anyone shown him that much affection and caring towards him. He was sure he had plenty of it while his parents had been alive but certainly never at the Dursleys. Harry smiled at the warm feeling the simple gesture created surge through him and wrap his soul in a soft, warm blanket. The presence was moving away again, and with it, it's protection. Almost immediately Harry felt darkness' sharp talons reach in and rip the blanket the kiss had created to shreds and drag him away. He managed a feeble "What?", before darkness claimed him completely.

"What?" Severus turned around as he heard Harry begin to murmur in his sleep.

'Damn, I must have woken him up.' "It's just me childing, go back to sleep," he whispered, walking towards the door again.

"Voldemort." Severus whipped around again when he heard this. Could the boy be caught in a vision? Why else would he be dreaming of Voldemort? Severus summoned a chair and sat down beside the bed, determined to what this out.



(Vision)



Harry sighed in defeat as the vision/dream took over. A bone chilling mist surrounded him, obscuring his sight.

"You'd think as many times as this has happened I'd be used to it by now," he muttered as the mist solidified and took shape. He didn't immediately recognize the place but by the looks of it, it could only be a prison. He studied his surroundings carefully, committing everything to memory in the off chance he may need to remember in the future. The air was by no means warm and it was dark except for a few poorly light torches. What the torches did illuminate did not waver Harry's belief that it was a prison. He was in what looked to be a long corridor. The walls were made of stone and damp in appearance. The over all effect was worse than any dungeon Harry could imagine. Harry sensed, rather than heard, someone coming up behind him. Before he could turn, Voldemort swept past him like a cold blast of wind. Harry involuntarily shivered and closed his eyes, trying to block out the man's intruding anger. Since he'd acquired the staff his awareness and ability to pick up on other's emotions had grown steadily and strongly. Snape had done his best to help him deal with these powers by teaching him to meditate and a few mental exercises to help him concentrate. He knew that if he didn't learn over the summer, he'd be in real trouble the first day of school. All of the students' emotions pressing down on him. He'd likely be out in the first hour and stuck in the hospital wing for the rest of the year. With a sigh of relief he succeeded and he opened his eyes again. Voldemort was almost at the end of the hall and he debated on whether or not to follow him. He didn't particularly want to see what happened to the target's of the dark lord's anger. His dilemma was solved for him when an invisible force began to tug at his navel, dragging him forward.

"What the....? Alright, alright, I'm going!" He jogged until he caught up with the dark lord then slowed to walk beside him. Before he knew it they reached their destination, a cell. The guard dropped to the floor and kissed the hem of Voldemort's robes.

"Master."

"Open the door," the evil wizard commanded. The man must have also sensed Voldemort's anger because he scrambled to his feet and searched frantically for the key. Finding it, he inserted it in the lock and turned it with a quick snap. The door swung open and Harry was almost knocked to the floor by the putrid smell that was expelled from the cell. Bile rose in Harry's throat and his eyes watered, he desperately fought down the urge to retch up his guts right then and there. If he didn't know any better, the smell reminded him of human waste....and blood. Reluctantly he followed the dark lord inside. He knew that who ever was in here he had to try and help, somehow. Voldemort glided over to the three shivering shadows in the corner, Harry close behind. He stopped before them and lashed out with his foot, earning a whimper from one.

"How much have you been feeding them?" Voldemort demanded to know.

"Just enough to keep them alive, as you ordered sir."

"Good. Let's see them by a better light, shall we? Lumos!" The bright light flared from the end of the dark lord's wand, allowing a clear view of the entire cell and the prisoners. Harry got his first good look at them and blanched, almost losing the contents of his stomach again. It was the Dursleys.



********



"What are they doing here?!?" Harry shouted, a look of utter surprise creasing his face. Severus grabbed the boy's hand in his own. What was going on in the vision?



********



Harry could safely say he couldn't have been more stunned if Voldemort had suddenly announced he was going to become a muggle and take up knitting. Then knitted a sock and given it to Dumbledore. These were the last people he'd expected to find in the cell. He was also surprised by the way they looked, although, he told him self, he shouldn't be. Vernon's normally purple face was now ashen gray with fatigue and hunger. He was no longer a beefy man by a long shot; he was so thin that Harry couldn't even begin to calculate how much weight he'd lost. And by the looks of Dudley, he was in much the same predicament. The once massive whale like boy, the one Harry had referred to as a pig in a wig, was now a mere shadow of his former self. Harry judged that by the weight the boy must have lost he was probably about the size of an average teenager his age. Huddled in between the two was Petunia, looking for all the world like a racoon with her two black eyes. By the way they were almost swollen shut Harry had the feeling they weren't from lack of sleep. All of their clothes were torn, worn down to mere rags, and stained with blood. Voldemort seemed pleased by their appearance for he asked casually.

"So, how /are/ my /favorite/ prisoners?" Vernon stirred at the sound of the man's voice and opened his blood shot eyes.

"Please let us go. We don't want to have anything to do with you or your kind..." he began pathetically.

"Silence muggle, I will not be spoken to like that, Crucio!" Harry's ears rang with the sound of his uncle's screams and the fiery backwash of the Cruciatus curse coursed through his body, sending him to his knees. After a few seconds the pain receded and Harry was able to see his uncle panting on the floor.

"Why, why do you hurt my family and me?" Petunia dared to ask. Harry had to admire her courage, he wasn't sure he'd do the same. Voldemort simply smiled.

"Because you are Potter's relatives and muggles, I need no other reason than that. /You/ are paying for his crimes against me in his place and trust me, I'm being lenient. I know you couldn't take half of what I intend to do to that brat once I get my hands around that scrawny little neck of his. And for asking such an /obvious/ question warrants a punishment. Crucio!" Harry was once again sent to the ground with the blinding pain, only this time darkness crept into the edges of his perception. The sound of his aunt's pain-filled screams followed him down into the dark abyss.



(End of Vision)



Harry's eyes snapped open and he sat up straight in bed. Severus was beside him in an instant, pulling him into a hug to try to calm his shivering. When the boy regained his senses he stared up at Severus accusingly.

"Why didn't you tell me the Dursleys had been captured by Voldemort?" he whispered, his tone accusing as well. Severus flinched slightly.

"To tell the truth I thought they were dead. I figured Voldemort had disposed of them after they told him about me," he admitted. Harry's eyes widened.

"They were the one's that gave you away?" he repeated incredulously. Severus nodded. Harry pulled away from him and leapt from the bed, heading towards the door.

"Harry where are you going?" Severus called out.

"To the library. I saw some maps in there the other day and I'm going to try dowsing for the Dursleys. They have to be around here somewhere," Harry answered, reaching for the knob. A pair of hands grabbed him by the shoulders and spun him around.

"I've got two things to say about this first Harry. One, why would you even want to help those slugs after what they did to you?" Harry bit his lip. Why should he save them after what they did? He knew he just couldn't leave them there to be Voldemort's play things, that just struck him as wrong. Also....it was guilt. They were there because they were related to him. He had to get them out. How was he supposed to explain this to Severus?

"If only I could show you.....," he began then the idea hit him. Maybe he could show him. Harry placed two fingers between Severus' eyebrows and summoned the dream back to the surface and sent it to Severus. It played itself over, detail by agonizing detail. He heard Severus take in a shuddering breath.

"You see? I can't just leave them there. Not even the Dursleys, for all they've done to me, belong in Voldemort's clutches," Harry's eyes pleaded for him to understand. Severus nodded, he did understand, to a point. He could sense Harry felt guilty about them being there and blamed it on himself.

"Alright, we'll look for them, in the morning. Honestly childing, you aught to be given a sainthood. Not many, if any, would save the people who did what they did to you. There's just one more thing."

"What?"

"You're going back to bed. It's almost four o'clock in the morning and you're still dressed in your pajamas. There is no way that you will run around Hogwarts in your night clothes while under my care. Plus you've had practically no real sleep and you're going to need it, so back to bed." Harry recognized the voice of reason when he heard it and obeyed, crawling back under the covers and allowing him self to once again be tucked in. As Severus turned to leave Harry caught his hand.

"Will you stay with me at least until I fall asleep, please?" he asked quietly. Severus didn't answer but sat on the bed beside Harry and leaned back against the headboard. Harry immediately curled against him and Snape put an arm around his shoulders. Before long, both were sound asleep.





A/N: Raise your hand if you think Harry should be made a saint for wanting to save the Dursleys. *raises hand* I certainly do. Most people would just leave them there to rot. Anyhoo. *shakes collection tin* Please review, they're greatly appreciated.