A/N: Here, like I promised, is chapter 14! Enjoy!

Zarroc: Thanks. Glad you like it. Keep reading

Xenia Marvolo: Here you go. Hope you like it

disclaimer: i do not own Harry Potter or any characters

0-0-0

The next day, Potions class was a horror. Harry tried to stay hidden behind his book, careful not to make any eye contact with Snape for fear of what he might do. Ron and Hermione were noticing his strange behavior, but because Harry had moved to a table further away from them, they couldn't ask what was wrong.

"Potter!" Harry jumped, startled, and looked in the general direction of Professor Snape.

"Yes, sir?" he answered in what would be a confident tone. Snape smirked and looked Harry straight in the eyes.

"Yes sir," Snape mocked in a high pitched voice causing many Slytherins to snigger. "If you had been paying attention you would know!"

"I'm sorry, sir," Harry replied meekly. "I just have some things on my mind," he said more sternly. Snape smirked once more.

"I could pretend to care of these things going through your mind, but that would take unnecessary time and energy out of my day. I would suggest though, Mr. Potter, to perhaps spend more time studying and less time gallivanting around the school grounds after hours," Snape said coolly. "Now, perhaps one of my better students could answer the simple question that Potter failed to? Ah, Mr. Malfoy, why don't you give it a go."

"It would concoct a sleeping potion, sir," Draco replied before turning to flash Harry a curled smile.

"Very good. Five points to Slytherin," Snape said and looked back to Harry who had turned away once Snape had stopped talking to him. "And ten points from Gryffindor."

"That's not fair!" Hermione burst out. Snape turned to look at her.

"Really?" he sneered. "Would you, Miss Granger, like to explain to me why it is not fair to award someone who answered a simple question correctly because he was paying attention and punish someone who clearly wasn't? Because I am dying to hear what you can come up with." Hermione felt her cheeks blush a light shade of pink.

"I thought so," Snape said. "Another five points will be taken from Gryffindor on your count, Miss Granger." Snape turned and walked away, and Hermione opened her mouth to object, but stopped when Ron whispered to her that it wasn't worth risking more points.

After Potions was over, Harry hurried out of the dungeons toward the Gryffindor common room, leaving Ron and Hermione behind.

"How long do you think he can hold this grudge against us?" Ron asked as the two of them made their way up the staircase. Hermione shook her head signaling that she didn't know.

"I'm not sure, but I have a feeling something more is bothering him than just us," she replied. Ron looked over at her.

"What do you mean?" he asked curiously.

"Didn't you notice how Snape was acting toward Harry today?" Hermione asked. "He was clearly being harder on him than he ever has."

"Well, yeah, but there could be many reasons for that," Ron pointed out.

"Yes, but," Hermione continued, "he also made a point that Harry should spend more time studying and less time on school grounds after hours."

"So?" Ron asked, still clueless.

"Don't you see? Snape obviously knows something! And that's what's bothering Harry," Hermione explained. "How would Snape know Harry was outside after dark if he hadn't been there too? Something happened, Ron, and I think we should find out what."

"Come on, Hermione, what are the odds Harry will tell us anything? It's still pretty ticked," Ron tried to reason with her.

"I know. But we've got to find out," Hermione replied and continued quickly toward the Gryffindor common room to hopefully find some answers.

When Hermione and Ron reached the common room, they saw Harry sitting on a chair in front of the fire place, obviously in deep thought. After glancing at each other, they slowly walked over to him and took a seat of the couch beside him.

"Harry?" Hermione started. He looked up at her briefly before looking back at the fire place. "Harry, I know something's bothering you. And you know you can tell us anything." Harry looked at her once more and after a few moments, gave into her big brown eyes.

"I can't really explain it to you, because I still haven't figured it out for myself yet," he said quietly. Hermione looked at Ron, confused.

"Maybe you could start by telling us what happened," she suggested. Harry took a deep breath and looked back at the fire place. He sat there for a moment trying to decide how to explain it.

"You two obviously noticed Snape's behavior toward me today," he said. Hermione and Ron both nodded. "Something happened to nights ago, and I think Snape's up to something. I just don't know what."

"What happened?" Ron asked. Harry paused and looked at the fire again.

"I went outside after hours down to the lake with my dad's invisibility cloak. I was down there for a while when I heard someone come out of the castle. It was Snape. Obviously, I thought that was strange, so I followed him. He went into the Forbidden Forest; very deep into it. I followed. A while later, he stopped in front of a cloaked figure," Harry stopped and took a deep breath. "It was Voldemort."

"He was in the forest?" Ron gasped.

"He was on school grounds? How? I mean, wouldn't your scar have felt different if he was that close to the school?" Hermione asked. Harry shrugged.

"The point is, Snape was with Voldemort and I know it involved me," Harry said.

"Well anytime he's involved, it can't be good," Hermione stated. Harry nodded in agreement.

"I don't know what I'm gonna do," Harry sighed. "Honestly, I'm so damn tired of him showing up every single bloody year, trying to kill me. I can't get through one damn year without him being near me. I'm sick of it."

"Harry, I'm scared for you," Hermione said. "I know you have some hard feelings toward Ron and I right now, but I don't want anything to happen to you."

"I know," Harry said quietly. "I know."

"So, how are you going to handle this?" Ron asked. Harry shrugged.

"I really don't know. I keep thinking, if he doesn't kill me this year, or if I don't defeat him, then he'll just keep coming after me when I'm out of Hogwarts," Harry confessed. "Like he came after my parents." Hermione reached out and took Harry's hand, and Ron felt a pang of jealousy rush through him, feeling bad about it afterward.

"Don't worry," she assured him. "If anyone can beat him, you can." Harry smiled at her.

"But you do know the reason Snape was in there that night, don't you?" Harry asked.

"I have a pretty good idea," Hermione replied, looking down. "But I didn't want to say it."

"Well I will," Harry said. "We all three know it. Voldemort wants me dead. And Snape's gonna do all he can to help make sure it happens."

0-0-0

A/N: So there's chapter 14. It's actually pretty much longer than most of the rest of these chapters. Anyway, so I hope you liked it and it wasn't too long. Let me know what you think.