Chapter 14: Return
Snape's feet slammed onto the floor of the Infirmary. Harry landed right next to him, and immediately toppled over to the ground. He would have hit the floor had it not been for the potions professor standing right next to him, who was able to grab him before he caused himself more pain. Snape quickly lifted Harry in his arms and carried him to the nearest bed while screaming for Madame Pomfrey.
At first the nurse looked a little angry at being awoken so rudely this late at night, but when she saw who it was she immediately lost her furious look to adopt a more concerned look. She pushed Snape aside and set to work on her patient. Snape stepped back and looked down at the pendant still clasped in his hand. He pulled it to his lips and said, "Potter's in the Infirmary."
He put the charmed item back around his neck. As he did so, he felt the Dark Mark on his arm begin to burn. Grabbing onto it painfully, he knew that the Dark Lord had found out about Potter's absence, and since Lucius was stunned on the floor, there was going to be no surprise as to who had taken the boy.
Snape sighed and started to absentmindedly rub his arm, watching the nurse distressing over Potter. She was careful not to cause the boy more pain than he was already in, moving him only as much as needed to check him over. It wasn't five minutes since they had arrived when the hospital wing doors burst open to reveal a very large, very loud group of people. Snape saw that it included every order member at Hogwarts, both younger Weasleys, Granger, and Longbottom. Snape mentally sighed; he should have known such a large group would show up.
"Severus, what happened? Is he alright?" Dumbledore asked before anyone else could speak. They all looked anxiously over at Harry. Mrs. Weasley choked back a sob when she saw what a terrible state her surrogate son was in.
"The Dark Lord ordered Lucius and me to remove Potter from his cell and bring the boy to him so that he could kill him. I was going to get all of you there so that it wouldn't look obvious that I was the spy, but Lucius would have heard something and told the Dark Lord anyway. Besides, I felt that it would be easier for me to take Potter back here than wait for you all to show up; in the amount of time it was bound to take you to get there the dark lord would most likely already have Potter, and you might be too late. I didn't have much of a choice. I stunned Lucius and activated a Portkey to bring us here."
When Snape finished everyone in the group was either looking at him or Harry. Everyone under eighteen were looking at Harry. Everyone over eighteen was looking at Snape, obviously trying to think of something to say. Dumbledore recovered first.
"So Voldemort knows that you're the spy." It wasn't a question but Snape answered anyway.
"Yes."
Dumbledore sighed and walked over to Madame Pomfrey, who had left Harry's side to talk to the large group before her.
"It's not good, headmaster," she answered honestly. When she saw the look on everyone's faces she hastened to add, "He will recover." Everyone relaxed. "It's just going to take some time. He hasn't eaten or drunken anything for over a month, and he has been under prolonged torture for just as long. It will take a good while before he is as he was before."
"He was placed back under Dementomins," Snape informed them quietly. They all looked even more crestfallen at that.
"We have to treat his physical injuries before we can even think about dealing with the psychological ones," Madame Pomfrey told them. "Professor Snape, may I ask you to brew some more Dreamless Sleep and nutritive potions, please. I have some, but not nearly enough to deal with what Harry's going to have to need."
"Of course," he replied curtly, and turned to leave the room. He was halfway to the door when the headmaster called him back.
"You did well," was all that he said. Snape nodded to show acknowledgement, then left the room. Dumbledore turned back to the group.
"I'm afraid that, even though the holidays have started, Harry is still not going to be safe here. We will have to increase the wards around the school so that no Portkeys will be allowed unless I make it, and so on. During that time, I think it would be best if Harry return to headquarters for the holidays." Upon seeing nearly everyone open their mouths to protest, the headmaster continued. "Anyone who wishes to accompany him may do so. Just keep in mind that he will need peace and quiet if he is to convalesce from this encounter."
"I'm going with Harry," said Ron instantly. Hermione and the rest of the Weasleys nodded in agreement.
"I'm going, too," said Neville in a small voice.
"I'm not leaving his side," said Lupin forcefully, looking over at the fragile young man lying feet away from him, an inch from death.
"It's settled, then. You will leave in the morning. I think that it is best that we let Harry rest for at least one night before attempting to relocate him," Dumbledore told them.
"Can we stay with him?" asked Hermione.
Dumbledore nodded. "Anyone who wishes may stay in the hospital wing tonight. But please get a bed and get some rest; you will do Harry no good if you don't get any rest. Have a good night. I will see you all in the morning. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a potions master to attend to." With that Dumbledore exited the hospital wing.
XXX
The door to Snape's rooms burst open and the owner stepped inside, slamming the door shut behind him and adding just about every protection and warning spell he could think of on it. When he was satisfied that no one could enter and he would be alerted if anyone came within ten feet of his door, he turned and headed towards the cupboard where he kept his potion supplies. Then he set to work creating the potions that Madame Pomfrey needed.
A few minutes later the wards went off in his head, alerting him that someone was coming by. Assuming that it was Voldemort come to kill him, he gripped his wand firmly and walked to the door, preparing to attack him the second he saw him. He felt his wand drop to his side as he opened the door to reveal Professor Dumbledore.
"Headmaster," nodded Snape, sounding tired. "To what do I owe this pleasure? Surely you're more concerned with Potter at the moment?"
"The Weasleys are looking out for him, he should be fine for the time being. You, on the other hand-"
"Albus, I'm fine," snapped Snape, turning back to his potion after Dumbledore had shut the door.
"You made the right choice, Severus," said Dumbledore gently.
"How can you say that?" demanded Snape, turning his back on the potion once more to glare at the headmaster. "I was supposed to warn you all that it was time and then you would get Potter out of there. That way he would never have known that I was the spy. Now you have no way to get information out of him."
"I cannot disagree with you there," agreed Dumbledore. "However, you did the right thing by taking Harry out of there while it was just you and Lucius. That saved us the trouble of having everyone show up and be outnumbered by Death Eaters and Voldemort."
Snape jumped at the sound of his ex-master's name and turned back to his potion, intending to finish it this time. Dumbledore seemed to realize that now was not a good time to have a long chat with the professor, so he simply said, "I do not regret the decision you made to save Harry. I hope that you don't either. I am moving him to Grimmauld Place tomorrow. I would like for you to accompany him."
"What?" Once again, despite his promise to himself, he turned away from the potion to stare at the headmaster. "What do you need me there for? Surely his fan club will be able to take care of him."
"It's not a matter of his safety."
Snape sighed. He knew that the headmaster was referring to himself. "How long?"
"Just over the holidays, so that I have time to adjust the wards and everything. No Death Eater should have been able to step foot in Hogwarts. I wish for you to remain where you and Harry are safe for the time being. If it were not for the boy's terrible condition I would have him sent back to the Dursleys. But as that is not an option at the moment, he will return to headquarters. You leave tomorrow morning, about ten. Meet us in the hospital wing."
"As you wish."
Dumbledore nodding and left, leaving Snape behind to dump his failed potion and start again on another.
xxx
By ten the next morning, everyone who had agreed to accompany Harry to Grimmauld Place had gathered in the Infirmary. Dumbledore had created several Portkeys to take them all there. The Gryffindors, minus Harry, all grabbed one and waited for the others. Most of the older order members shared one. Snape and Lupin made sure that Harry was able to touch the Portkey. He had not yet woken up, and since they didn't think that he would be able to grasp the Portkey on his own anyway, they decided it would be futile to wake him.
"One...two...three." Everyone in the room immediately felt a tug behind their navel and a moment later they reached Grimmauld Place. Lupin conjured a stretcher and placed Harry on it. After making sure he was securely on there, everyone made their way up to the room in which Harry was going to stay. Everyone, that is, except Snape.
"Severus, I trust that you remember where your room is located?" asked Lupin cordially from his position at the top of the stairs. Seeing Snape nod, he turned and led the way up to a room on the third floor of the house.
"This isn't where we stayed last time," observed Ron.
"No, it's not," agreed Lupin. "However, due to what happened, we felt that it was best that Harry got his own room, at least until he felt better, which might not be for a while."
"Oh," muttered Ron, who had been looking forward to sharing a room with Harry so that he could look out for him without getting in trouble.
Lupin seemed to sense this, for he said, "You will all be allowed to stay with Harry, but remember not to be too loud and don't try to get a reaction out of him. We will eventually make you get out of the room, but for now you can stay. If for some reason he wakes up, make sure that he's alright and get an adult immediately. And I am referring to someone who hasn't just left Hogwarts," Lupin added, seeing Fred and George start to open their mouths.
The next ten minutes were spent getting Harry as comfortable as possible in the large bed. Once that was complete, they set to the task of arranging the furniture (as quietly as possible, of course) so that there would be enough chairs for six people. Mrs. Weasley and Lupin left the children alone and made their way downstairs to make some brunch for them. They had been so concerned about Harry that no one had eaten anything for breakfast and Lupin knew that they would be hungry.
"Is he going to be okay?" asked Mrs. Weasley sadly as she made some sandwiches.
"He'll be fine," said Lupin with as much conviction as he could muster. "He's handled himself before this, he can do it now. Harry's beat the Dementomins curse before, he can do it again. And Severus is an excellent potion maker, he'll be able to make him recover form his injuries."
"I'm flattered that you think that," Snape said sardonically. Mrs. Weasley jumped; she had not realized that they were being listened to. Lupin appeared unabashed by Snape's comment.
"Severus, we were just making something to eat; would you like anything?"
"I'm perfectly capable of making my own food, thank you," replied Snape, stepping away from them and preparing food for himself. While he was making himself a sandwich, Mrs. Weasley left to bring up the tray of food to the group that had taken up residence beside Harry's bed. She returned momentarily and sat down beside Lupin. She had made herself a salad, but she didn't eat it. instead she pushed the lettuce around with her fork, trying not to think about Harry. Unfortunately, there was not much else to think about. What did bring her out of her stupor was Snape walking over to sit across from herself and Lupin. Both looked up and stared at Snape while he raised half the sandwich to his mouth. Before he could take a bite, however, he lowered it to glare at the two order members that were staring at him.
"Do you want something or am I really that good-looking that you can't take your eyes away from me?" he snapped sarcastically. Mrs. Weasley blushed and looked back down at her salad. Lupin just shook his head and went back to his untouched food.
"I just thought that you would have gone back down to your room," said Lupin.
"Would you prefer if I did?" asked Snape coldly.
"Not at all, stay."
"I'm glad that I have your blessing."
Deciding that Snape was not in a good mood to joke around (though honestly, when was he in a good mood?), Lupin swallowed a retort and the table remained silent. After a few minutes Mrs. Weasley broke the silence and turned to Snape.
"Was he really under the curse for over a month?" she asked in a voice begging to be told 'no.'
"Yes," replied Snape indifferently. "Not straight, but he was for as long as the Dark Lord felt necessary."
"How did he survive so long without going insane?" questioned Mrs. Weasley. "Didn't the Longbottoms only last for a few hours?"
"They survived for over fourteen hours," Snape informed them. "The reason that Potter lasted so long was because he was not under it for an entire month, it was split up to prevent him from losing his mind." How many times am I going to have to tell these people this? He wondered.
"Fourteen hours?" asked Mrs. Weasley incredulously. She looked down at her salad and pushed it away from her. Her appetite had, if possible, gotten even smaller. She got up, walked over to Snape, and did something that shocked both of the men in the room: She hugged him. "Thank you so much for getting Harry out of there," she whispered. When she pulled back she saw the potions master looked thoroughly shocked, something that he usually could hide well.
"I didn't have much choice," he replied, getting up and magicing his dish into the sink and turning to leave the room. "I'll be in my rooms. Inform me if Potter needs any other potions besides the ones that I left on the table." Then he left.
"I didn't mean to scare him away," said Mrs. Weasley apologetically to Lupin. "I just wanted to thank him."
"I know," Lupin assured her. "He's just not used to getting thanks."
xxx
"Is he going to wake up anytime soon?" asked Ron from his place beside Harry's bed. "I mean, how long is it going to take for him to wake up?"
"Ron! Now's not the time to get impatient," scolded Hermione, trying to keep her voice low. "Harry's been through so much, let him sleep."
"I was just wondering!" Ron cried in exasperation, he too struggling to keep his voice from becoming too loud.
"Both of you knock it off before you wake Harry up," said Ginny fiercely. That shut both of them up immediately.
"How did he last so long?" asked Neville, unknowingly echoing Mrs. Weasley's question. While the twins thought that Neville was merely curious as they were. The others, however, knew exactly why Neville was curious. they didn't know what to say. Nor, apparently, did anyone else. So they sat there all day, simply staring at Harry. The plate of food lay forgotten on a nearby table.
xxx
It was the same for the next few days. Everyone took turns watching over Harry. They decided to watch him in groups of three, so that everyone would have a chance to rest. They decided that three was the ideal number because that allowed for someone to stay with Harry, someone to go get one of the adults, and someone to go and get the other three that were not watching Harry. The only thing that they argued over was who would go and get the others, and who would stay with Harry.
In Ron, Hermione, and Neville's group, Neville volunteered to go and get the others. After much bickering Hermione agreed that she would be the one to get the adults. In the other group, it was agreed that Ginny would stay with Harry and Fred would get the others while George retrieved the adults.
Twice everyday Snape would appear and force some potions down Harry's throat. At first they were hesitant about allowing that to happen, but after the first fight Mrs. Weasley promised them that if she heard that they had done anything to get in the way of what Snape was trying to do she would send all of them back to Hogwarts. After that they allowed Snape to do what he needed to do. Hermione and Ginny even helped him get Harry to drink it on different occasions, depending on who was in the room at the time.
In the early afternoon Snape would arrive with several different potions designed to give Harry the nutrients that he needed. He also brought potions that were designed to help his body return to normal after what had happened to him. Every evening he would appear with a flask of dreamless sleep potion. At first they wondered why Snape was giving him a potion to help him sleep when he did nothing but sleep, but soon realized that it was to allow him to get better sleep, one that was not plagued with death.
They had been at Grimmauld Place for almost two weeks. It was Ron's groups' turn to watch Harry, and they were doing so. They were discussing some of the recent deaths that had been in the Daily Prophet when they heard someone moan. They looked around at Harry and saw that he was stirring.
"Harry?" asked Hermione cautiously as they all leaned towards him. When he rolled over and continued to moan they sprang into action. Neville sprang to go get the twins and Ginny and Hermione ran to find one of the adults.
Luckily for her, Lupin, Mrs. Weasley, and Snape were all in the kitchen when she got there. They seemed to be in the middle of a discussion when she interrupted. Normally she would have apologized or waited until they were done with their conversation, but that was before she knew that Harry was waking up. "I think that he's starting to wake up!"
All it took were those eight words before everyone got up and quickly followed her back upstairs. Snape even followed them, albeit much more slowly. By the time they got there everyone else had arrived as well. They were all crowded around Harry's bed, muttering to each other.
"I'm glad we didn't go to work today," muttered Fred. His twin nodded in agreement.
"Get out of the way," snarled Snape, stepping closer to the boy on the bed. Lupin and Mrs. Weasley stood on the other side of him.
"Potter? Can you hear me?" asked Snape. The boy remained silent. Snape looked up at Lupin with a 'you try it' look on his face.
Lupin crouched down beside Harry and took one of the younger man's hands in his own. "Come on, Harry. If you can hear me, squeeze my hand." After a moment he felt Harry respond. He almost didn't know that he had gotten a response at all, that was how light the squeeze was.
"Did he do it?" inquired Ron.
"Scarcely, but yes." He turned to Snape. "Are there any potions that he should be taking?"
"Not that I have," responded the potions master in an irritated voice. "He is still far too weak to even squeeze your hand properly. I don't think that there's anything that we can do for him now but continue to wait."
"But term starts again in a few days," Hermione pointed out. "What are we going to do then? Everyone's going to be wondering if we found him yet or not, what are we going to tell them?"
"I believe the headmaster will be talking to you all before term starts. He asked that you all be present the day that we return Potter to the infirmary."
"Did he not think that Harry would recover by then?" asked Ginny.
"I'm sure that he didn't," responded Snape curtly. "He was tortured for over a month with the most painful curse imaginable, deprived of sleep, food, and water. It's amazing that he was able to make any noise at all in less than a month."
With that Snape turned and exited the room, leaving everyone else to stare at him as he left.
"How long should it take for Harry to get better?" asked George.
"I'm not sure," was the only answer Lupin could give them.
xxx
The next few days passed in a haze for everyone staying at Grimmauld Place. They continued to watch Harry in groups and Snape continually forced potions down his throat. It had already become routine to them all. Finally, the day before term arrived. Everyone had portkeyed to the hospital wing, where Harry was now set up in his own private rooms.
"No one is allowed to come in here without my permission," Dumbledore explained. "The piece of parchment that I am going to give each of you will be your key in. It will only let you in and if someone takes it from you it will not let them in. Only those who stayed behind to help him fight will be allowed in to see him. The school will be informed that he is back with us, but is spending some time in recovery. You are not to tell anyone where he was or what they were doing to him. Understood?"
Everyone nodded.
Chapter 15: Recovery
It was dark. So dark, that the person lying beside the bed could hardly see more than three feet in front of her, had she been fully awake. She rolled over, trying to get comfortable, and opened her eyes up a little, intending to close them again in a second. Instead, they flew open as they saw a hand moving closer and closer towards her. Instinctively, she jumped to her feet and cried, "Stupefy!"
The other person, caught unaware, was hit by the curse and fell backwards with a loud thump. Mrs. Weasley stood up and raised her wand over the person that she had just cursed. "Lumos," she muttered. When she saw who it was on the floor she nearly screamed again.
"Remus!" she cried, dropping to her knees and quickly muttering the counter curse. As he opened his eyes she reached out and pulled him to his feet. "I'm so sorry!" she apologized as he rubbed the back of his head, where the floor had hit it. "I was asleep, and all I saw was this hand...I thought that it was someone trying to come after Harry, I—"
"Molly, it's okay," Lupin assured her, smiling. "I was just coming to see if you needed someone else to watch him as you went to go to sleep. Turns out I was right."
Molly hung her head, embarrassed. "I was only asleep for a few minutes," she told him. "What time is it?"
"About five in the morning," he told her, making his way over to Harry, who was sleeping on the bed. "Why don't you go and get some sleep, I'll take over from here."
"I don't want to leave him," she said in a small voice, sounding like on of her children.
"Well, then at least go lay down in the hospital wing on one of the beds. That way you'll only be a little bit away from him."
"Fine," she conceded. She walked over to Harry and placed a kiss on his forehead. Then she got up and left the room, after saying goodnight to Lupin.
Once she was gone Lupin lit the lamp beside Harry's bed and looked over in the corner. "Okay, you two, you can come out now."
Shocked, Ron and Hermione took off the invisibility cloak and stepped towards him.
"How did you know we were here?" asked Hermione.
"Hermione, you should know that. Excellent senses of smells we werewolves have."
Hermione flushed and muttered an, "Oh yeah."
"You two should go to bed. We'll call you if anything changes, okay?"
"But we want to stay with him," pouted Ron.
"No, it's late and you two have classes tomorrow. Go back to Gryffindor tower and stay there. If anything changes, you'll be the first to know."
"Yeah, right after everyone else who's with him does," argued Ron.
"Go to bed," said Lupin. His voice was understanding, and yet stern at the same time. "Have a good night's sleep and then you can come back tomorrow, after class."
"Fine," sighed Hermione, echoing Mrs. Weasley. Then she thought of something. "Can we stay in the hospital wing, too?"
"No."
"Why not? You let his mum," she countered.
"Because she does not have class tomorrow. You two need to get back to your dorms. I appreciate that you care so much about Harry, but really, you two aren't going to do him any good if you keep at it like this."
"We'll be back tom-later," Ron told him, throwing the cloak over Hermione and himself. They turned and exited the room. Lupin shook his head and sat down next to Harry.
xxx
Lupin didn't remember falling asleep. All he remembered was waking up. It wasn't a pleasant experience. An arm came out of nowhere, and hit him upside his head. If that hadn't woken him up, the scream that followed would have.
"He's moving!" squealed Ginny.
"You're telling me," muttered Lupin grumpily. Then what Ginny had just said registered. "He's what?"
xxx
Someone was shaking him. "Ron, wake up!" the person screamed. Ron moaned and rolled over, ignoring the person. That was, until he heard Neville's next words. "Harry's waking up!"
xxx
Ron got the easy way out. Neville shook him and screamed. Ginny chose a much more twin-like way to wake Hermione up. She was, after all, very upset about having to leave the hospital wing where Harry was in order to wake up these two schmucks. She walked over to the pitcher of water that was sitting next to the table between Hermione's and Parvati's beds. She picked it up and poured the whole thing on Hermione's head.
Immediately, Hermione sprung out of bed, fully awake. She stood in shock for a minute, and then looked over at Ginny. "What the hell was that for?"
You knew you were in trouble when Hermione cussed, since she seldom did it. But at the moment, Ginny didn't care. All she said was, "Hurry up, Harry's waking." Then she tore out of the room. It took a moment for that statement to sink in, and then Hermione was throwing on her clothes as fast as possible, and then tore after Ginny.
xxx
"What's happening with Harry?" Ron demanded as he and Hermione ran towards the hospital wing, Neville running beside them and Ginny sprinting a few feet ahead.
"We were watching him for a few minutes and then he started thrashing around. He hit Lupin in the head on accident," Neville panted.
"Why didn't anyone tell us?" Ron was furious.
"What do you think we're doing, dumbass?" scolded Ginny.
"Why were you there?"
"Well, seeing as how I didn't sneak into the hospital wing at three in the morning, I was fully awake around eight, and I decided to check on Harry before I went to class," Ginny informed him as they dashed past a group of Ravenclaws.
xxx
His eyelids felt heavy, so heavy that he was having a hard time opening them. Visions of his mother screaming and pleading flashed before his eyes, closely followed by other images, all just as unpleasant. He started to toss around in a vain attempt to get the image out of his head. When that didn't work, he decided that perhaps opening his eyes would make it go away, even though he didn't remember shutting them. Hesitantly, he opened his eyes to find warm brown ones staring down at him.
"How are you?" asked Lupin from his position right beside the bed. Concern was evident in his voice.
Harry looked around, confused. In addition to Lupin, all the other members of the Order were gathered around the room, even Snape, who was standing over in a corner. Mrs. Weasley was sitting on the edge of his bed, smoothing out his covers. Dumbledore stood at the end of the bed, staring down at Harry with a twinkle in his eyes.
"What happened?" Harry asked, his voice raspy from not being used in so long.
"What do you remember?" Lupin asked him quietly.
Harry thought for a moment. He opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by the door flying open to admit Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville. Gasping for breath, they pushed themselves forward, towards Harry.
"How – are – you?" panted Ron.
"You're – awake!" squealed Hermione at the same time, out of air as well. Harry couldn't help but smile to himself at how fast they had gotten there. The room in his head, which he had been doing his best to ignore, dimmed the slightest bit.
"He was just about to tell us what he remembered," Mrs. Weasley told them, frowning at them for disrupting.
"What do you remember?" asked Ginny, regaining composure.
"I remember being in the room of requirement, and having the Death Eaters turn up." A sudden thought crossed Harry's mind. "How is the DA? Are they okay, did any of them get hurt?" he asked anxiously.
"Oh, they're fine," snarled Ron. "Don't worry about them, they sure didn't worry about you. After that long of you spending your own time teaching them to defend themselves, when the time comes to use what they've learned to protect you, what did they do? They ran away!"
Harry, detecting the anger that was so evident in Ron's voice, smiled. "Don't worry about it Ron." He coughed in an attempt to clear his throat. "You can't blame them for being scared. No matter how many curses you practice, you can never really be ready for an attack." Harry coughed again and then looked up at his friends. "Thank you for staying, but I would have felt better if I had known that you were safe."
"No way were we going to leave you to take on that many Death Eaters on your own!" exclaimed Ron. Hermione and the others fervently shook their heads in agreement.
"Is that all that you remember?" pushed Dumbledore, ending that argument.
"I remember Voldemort, telling me that he would kill me if I didn't tell him what he wanted to know."
"What did he want to know?" asked Dumbledore gently. He knew, of course, what it was that Voldemort had wanted to know, but he needed to see if Harry remembered.
"The prophecy," Harry told him quietly. Ron and the others looked at each other in confusion.
"What are you talking about? It was smashed when you were pulling Neville up the stairs. How were you supposed to tell him something that you didn't know?"
"I don't know," lied Harry, keeping his head down. "I suppose he thought that I did know it, that's why he was so mad when I wouldn't tell him." He looked up to see Hermione looking at him closely, as though trying to determine if he was keeping something from her. In an attempt to steer the conversation in a different direction, Harry asked, "How long have I been here?"
"You have been here for about two weeks. You were rescued a few days into the winter holiday, and you were taken to Grimmauld Place until school started again. You've been asleep for about five weeks."
Harry's eyes widened. He hadn't realized it had been so long. It had been November when they had had their last DA meeting. It was now mid January. Harry shook his head. It was too much to take in.
"How did I get here?" he asked.
He saw Dumbledore exchange a brief glance with Snape, who was still standing in the corner, before Snape said, "Tell him whatever you want." Then the potions professor turned and walked out of the room.
"What was that about?" asked Harry, confused.
"Voldemort decided that you were not going to tell him the prophecy. He told Professor Snape and Lucius Malfoy to go and retrieve you from your cell and bring you to him so that he could kill you. Professor Snape stunned Malfoy and made a Portkey to get you both here," Dumbledore told him.
Harry sat there, stunned. Snape had saved him? Why? He hadn't owed his father anything, anymore. An idea struck Harry. "Does that mean that Voldemort knows that he's a spy?"
"Yes," answered Dumbledore.
Harry felt terrible. All those times that Hermione had said that he was really a spy for them Harry had told her that she was wrong. And even when he hadn't been the one to say it, Ron had, and Harry had always agreed with him. But now, Snape had not only saved him, but given up his job for the Order. He couldn't imagine him doing that, it just wasn't like him. It was so not like Snape, that Harry couldn't help but ask, "Are you sure?"
"Positive." That time Lupin answered.
Harry didn't know what to say. He looked down at his hands for a minute. When it became apparent that no one was about to say anything, he cleared his throat and asked, "What am I supposed to do now?"
"Well," answered Lupin, "you are physically capable of doing whatever you were able to do before this all happened. But I think that it would be best if you stayed here for a couple of days, so that you can get your energy back. You might not agree, but I think it's for the best."
Harry thought about what he just said. It was true, he didn't feel very energetic, and with the constant flashes of his parents, Sirius, and Cedric dying, he thought that it was best if he just stayed there for a little while as Lupin had suggested.
"That sounds good," he said at last. "How long do I have to stay here?"
xxx
"Hey Harry!" greeted Hermione as she, Ron, Neville, and Ginny all gathered around Harry. They had done as they were told and had not seen Harry since he had woken up in order to let him get his energy back gradually. It was now two days since Harry had been asleep, and would be another day until he was to return to classes. Dumbledore felt that now was an appropriate time to allow Harry some visitors other than Lupin, Mrs. Weasley, and, of course, himself.
"Hey, how are you guys?" Harry answered, trying to ignore the room in his head and focus solely on his friends.
"We're fine, what about you? What have you been doing for the past few days?" asked Ron.
"I've been looking over my books, so that I won't be as far behind when I go back to class. Lupin said that he'd help me practice the spells that you all learned. It shouldn't be too bad."
To Harry it looked like they wanted to ask him something, but didn't know how to say it. "Ask whatever you want, you guys. I won't mind."
"How are you doing with that curse that he put back on you?" asked Ginny finally.
"It's not as bad as it was last time," Harry answered her truthfully. He thought back to the conversation that he had had with Dumbledore yesterday about the curse, and decided to relay the information to them. "Dumbledore said that it was worse before because Sirius had just, well, you know...Now I've had months to deal with it, so it's not that bad. I still hate it, but I can deal with it better now."
"Well, that's good," said Hermione, trying to sound encouraging. They fell silent again, until Hermione decided to speak up again. "Why did Voldemort think that you knew the prophecy?"
Ron winced at the name as usual but Harry didn't notice. He was too busy thinking about the proposed question. He didn't really know for sure how Voldemort knew either. At least they didn't think that he did know it.
"I dunno, I guess he just assumed that after all the trouble it had caused last year, Dumbledore would have decided that it was time to tell me. Or he might not have known that I hadn't known then. I mean, the Death Eaters were shocked that I didn't know what it said, so that means that they all knew of it long before I did. It makes sense that, if I really hadn't known it at that time, I would know it now." Harry really hoped that that would be enough to change the conversation around to something else, and thought desperately for something else to talk about. He was about to open his mouth when Hermione spoke again.
"That makes sense. Dumbledore would have told you about the prophecy when that was all over. So that means that you really do know it, then."
Harry cursed his friend's deductive reasoning. He really didn't want to tell them what the prophecy was, partly because Dumbledore had made him swear but mostly because of what he had just suffered. He didn't want his friends to have to deal with that. He fought to make his voice sound bitter so that what he was about to say would sound more truthful.
"No, I don't know what it is. Dumbledore wouldn't tell me. He said that I had too much to worry about, what with Sirius and all. He said that he would tell me when he thought that I could handle it better. Now I'm glad that he didn't tell me, otherwise I probably would have told it to Voldemort."
Harry silently thanked any deity that was listening that his friends bought this. He cast around for another idea, having completely forgotten what he was going to say before Hermione spoke.
"So, are you guys still learning Occlumency?" asked Harry.
"We're working on it," Neville told him, speaking at last. "I still can't do it, but Lupin said that I'm getting a little bit better," he added.
"That's good," answered Harry. He turned to the others. "What about you guys?"
"I wasn't really paying much attention," said Ron truthfully. "I couldn't concentrate on it, so I didn't get any better yet. Lupin told me to keep practicing, and that we'd start up again once you were better."
"We didn't want to do anything while you were with Voldemort," said Hermione, "and to tell you the truth, it didn't seem like Lupin did, either. But Dumbledore said that it was really important and that we had to do it, so we did. None of us really did all that well. When you were brought back here, we didn't practice anymore, and Dumbledore seemed to understand. I think that he was trying to give us something to think about so that we wouldn't be worrying about you when there was nothing that we could do."
"That sounds like something Dumbledore would do," said Harry, agreeing with Hermione's reasoning. "What about Luna? How's she doing?"
"She's the same as she always is." It was Ginny who answered him this time. "She doesn't know that you're back yet, mainly because we haven't seen that much of her."
Harry nodded. He looked up as the door opened and Lupin walked in. He was levitating a giant tray of food in front of him. It had soup, sandwiches, and crackers, along with the usual pumpkin juice. He set the tray down next to Harry.
"It's about time for lunch, so I thought that I'd bring it up here, in case you all wanted to stay and eat with Harry," Lupin said.
"Thanks," they responded. They took a bowl and a sandwich and began to eat hungrily. Harry was the only one who was not digging into his food. He took a few sips of soup and nibbled at a sandwich before putting it down and taking a sip of juice. He met Lupin's eyes and knew that he would have to eat more than that. He ate two-thirds of the soup and half of his sandwich before he felt so full that he couldn't possibly eat anything else. He looked at Lupin to make sure that was alright, and Lupin nodded understandingly. He pushed away his uneaten food and lay back in bed.
"That's all that you're eating?" asked Ron incredulously, halfway through eating his third sandwich.
"Ron, leave him alone," said Hermione. "Just because he doesn't feel the need to shove food down his throat doesn't mean anything."
Once they had all finished eating Lupin cleared away the dishes and sat down at the end of Harry's bed.
"So, have you thought of how you're going to get rid of the curse?" asked Ginny tentatively. Harry assumed that the question was directed at him until Lupin piped in.
"We're working on that," he said. "We don't know whether or not we should do something to attempt to make it go away, or just let him go about his day and hope that something happens naturally to make it go away."
"We could always call Fudge back here," suggested Ron. They all laughed, even Harry.
xxx
Finally the day came when Harry was to start up his classes again. No one had said anything to the rest of the school, or to the teachers that were not in the order. This morning Dumbledore, Lupin, Mrs. Weasley, and his friends were all gathered around Harry. He was standing up, shifting his weight from foot to foot. It had been so long since he had walked on his own that when they had finally let him get out of bed and walk around a few days before he had been ecstatic. Now he wanted to get around and move around somewhere larger than his small room in the hospital wing.
"What do we have first?" Harry asked, looking at Ron, Hermione, and Neville.
"Defense," answered Lupin before anyone else could respond.
"Okay," replied Harry. "What all does the rest of the school know about what happened?" he asked, not sure what to expect.
"They were told that you were taken by Death Eaters and were rescued over winter break. They do not know what they wanted with you, they assumed that they simply wanted to kill you. I would not advise you tell them what happened," Dumbledore told him. "Breakfast is almost over, so if I am to make an announcement of your return, we should get going."
Harry frowned. He didn't like the idea of being put on display like that. He thought about how much they would all stare at him and everything. That was when he came up with another idea.
"Why don't we just act like everything's normal and see how long it takes everyone to notice that I'm here. Then you can make the announcement at dinner that I'm all better, and it won't come as a shock to that many people."
"We could do that," agreed Dumbledore. He saw the look in Harry's eyes and agreed. "Very well. I will not make an announcement. I will, of course, inform the teachers of your return."
"No, don't tell them!" whined Fred, having just arrived with George in time to hear that bit of the conversation.
"And why shouldn't he?" asked Mrs. Weasley.
"Because, it would be much more fun to see their reaction to Harry being back. Don't you agree?" he asked, turning to Harry.
"That would be entertaining," Harry agreed. He looked at Dumbledore. "Unless you think that it's a bad idea."
Dumbledore thought it over for a minute. Then, deciding that a bit of humor would be best for Harry, he agreed. "I will tell no one of your return, and wait until tonight to make any sort of announcement. Now, I would go and get ready if I were you. You wouldn't want to be late for your first class in over two months, now, would you?"
xxx
Everyone gathered around the door to the classroom, awaiting Professor Lupin. Dean was telling Seamus about something he had seen on the wall when Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville turned the corner and started walking towards them. Dean nodded hello to them and turned back to Seamus. Then he caught sight of the person slightly hidden behind Ron and Hermione.
"HARRY!"
Everyone around them immediately stopped talking and turned to stare at Harry. Usually having everybody stare at him was an unpleasant experience for him, but this time it was rather entertaining seeing the dumbstruck looks on their faces. Dean's jaw dropped open, closely followed by several others. Harry grinned in amusement at the looks on their faces, unwittingly causing the room in his head to dim.
"Well, so nice that you all remembered my name," said Harry, breaking the silence.
"You're alright!" exclaimed Lavender.
"Right again. Why, I'm so proud of you!" That time Ron spoke, who was caught between the anger that he had felt towards them since Harry's capture and laughter at the looks on their faces. The group glanced wearily at Ron, not wanting to upset him, since they had seen him snap on many occasions in the past few months.
"I'm really sorry that we didn't stay to help!" Dean burst out suddenly, causing Harry to blink in surprise. "We didn't mean to let you get carried off by Death Eaters, so if there's anything at all that we could do for you—"
"Don't worry about it," Harry said, stemming the flow of agreement coming from the mouths of everyone else who had not stayed to help. "No matter how prepared you think you are, there's nothing like an actual encounter with danger to wake you up. I do not blame anyone for what happened that night, don't worry."
A look of relief washed over everyone's faces. They had been afraid that Harry would be furious and not talk to them. The fact that he was joking and wasn't mad was a great consolation.
At that moment Lupin walked up and ushered them all inside. Everyone muttered on last "Sorry" to Harry and walked into the room. Harry entered last, grinning back at the smile that Lupin gave him before he shut the door.
"Good day, everyone, take your seats. As you all have noticed, Harry has returned. I ask you not to bother him about what happened to him while he was away, as I'm sure that's something that he would rather not think about. Today, in light of Harry's return, we are going to practice something that he told me you had never really gotten around to finishing. Patronuses."
There was some interested muttering following that before everyone settled down and gave Lupin their full attention. He glanced at Harry once before starting. "Now, let's see how good Harry's teaching skills are. Who can tell me what a patronus does?"
xxx
Never in his life had Harry thought that he would have fun having people stare at him. But that was before he got to watch all of their facial expressions, all of which helped the room in his head greatly reduce. The students all gaped at him, and then, once they realized that he was indeed standing there, had all burst into concern for him. The teachers that hadn't known that he was all right were even more entertaining.
Professor Flitwick stood upon his usual stack of books, glancing around the room to check attendance. His eyes shifted from the seating arrangement in his hand to the corresponding chair. When he got to the desk that was assigned to Harry Potter he didn't even glance at it, so accustomed to it being empty. So sure was he that Dumbledore would have told him if Potter was back that when his peripheral vision picked up someone in the boy's seat he opened his mouth to tell the person off for changing seats without permission.
His mouth froze in that position as he saw the person sitting in Harry's seat. It was Harry! The professor hastened to shut his mouth, swallowed, and then spoke. "Mr. Potter, what a pleasure to have you back with us. I wasn't expecting you today."
"Thank you, it's good to be back," responded Harry, internally laughing at the look on his teacher's face. The lesson went on as if nothing had changed, but Harry noticed that Flitwick's eyes continued to dart over to him every couple of minutes. The room in his head dimmed again.
The same sort of thing followed each of Harry's classes. The teachers recovered fairly quickly, usually letting out only a gasp or so before welcoming him back and then beginning with the lesson. Occasionally they would glance at him as though to assure themselves that he was really there.
The students, however, were not so obvious. After about his second class with the Gryffindors, they quit staring at him every time the teachers turned their backs to them. The rest of the students did not do that. Herbology with the Hufflepuffs proved to be eventful, when their attention was more focused on Harry than their assignment. What finally brought them back to the present was a very nasty cut that Ernie had received while he was busy apologizing profusely to Harry. Professor Sprout yelled at him for not paying attention and sent him to the hospital wing.
By the time lunch rolled around everyone in the school knew that he was back. Despite the teachers' warnings, several students asked him where he had been. Harry told them that he didn't want to talk about it and went on his way. He was starting to get sick of the attention again, but at least it had been fun for a while. The room in his head was still there, but it was rapidly vanishing. Harry had a feeling that if one more big thing happened it would disappear completely.
Deciding that it would be best to make an appearance in the Great Hall to let those who hadn't seen for themselves that Harry was back to see him, Ron and Hermione led the way, Harry following close behind them. No one noticed them at first, but after a few moments it became apparent that they had been noticed, due to the fact that several people were standing up to get a better view of him. Within ten minutes every member of the DA who had not already seen him had stopped by to apologize for running away. Harry began to wonder if Ron had said something to them. Judging by the fact that Ron was glaring at the lot of them, he strongly believed that he had. He brushed all of their apologies off and then turned to Ron and Hermione.
"What do you guys say we go sit outside under a tree until lunch is over? All this attention is starting to get at me."
"It's barely even lunchtime and already you're sick of it?" asked Ron incredulously. "We haven't even eaten anything yet!"
"Ron, you're plate is half empty," scoffed Hermione.
"I see it as half full," he responded, shoving a fork full of mashed potatoes in his mouth. Hermione rolled her eyes and turned to Harry.
"Come on, let's go. Ron can join us when he's finished."
That seemed to get Ron out of his eating frenzy. "Fine, I'm coming!"
They were leaving the Great Hall when Luna Lovegood walked up to them. She had yet to see Harry since the night he had been taken, and now seemed like an appropriate time.
"Hi Harry," she greeted him in the same dreamy voice that she always used. "I just came by to say hello and to tell you that I'm really glad that you're feeling better."
"Thanks, and thanks for being one of the few people to stay and fight. You all did a really good job, and, even though I was captured, I appreciate the help anyway."
"You're welcome," replied Luna casually. She looked around once, as if to make sure that nobody was listening, and said, "I overheard some Slytherins talking. They said something about being becoming Death Eaters."
Harry started at that information and, deciding that the Great Hall was not the best place to have this discussion, quickly asked, "Do you want to go for a walk with us?"
"Okay," she agreed, understanding Harry's true invitation. Together they walked outside and strolled idly over to a big oak, away from the few others that were wandering about outside. They sat down at the base of the tree, positioned so that if anyone were coming, Harry or Hermione would see them before they got close enough to hear what they were talking about.
"Okay, what were you saying about Death Eaters?"
"I heard several Slytherins talking about how over winter break, they got the Dark Mark," Luna told him in the same voice that one would use when discussing the weather.
"How long ago was that?" asked Harry.
"A week or two, about when we got back from break."
"Why didn't you say anything before now?" asked Hermione.
"Because I wanted to tell Harry and see what he thought about it first," replied Luna.
"How did you hear this?" pressed Hermione. "I mean, that's not exactly the sort of conversation that you have in the middle of the Great Hall. Especially not when there's people about."
"They didn't notice that I was there," Luna told her. "I was heading to the library when I heard them whispering. It was rather late at night, and I was hidden in the shadows while they were discussing it. I didn't hear all of it, but I know that they had no choice in the matter, although it didn't appear as if they minded at all. When I walked past them they said something about Malfoy, but what it was, I'm not sure."
"You walked by them while they were talking about Death Eaters?" asked Ron, astonished. "What were you thinking? You could have found out more stuff!"
"By the tone of their voices they were almost done talking and they were getting quieter, so I figured if I could get a little closer I could tell what they were saying."
"Well, that was quite a risk, don't you think?" asked Hermione.
"How was it a risk? I couldn't hear anything more from where I was standing, and this way I had a chance to hear more," said Luna, confused as to where Hermione was going with this.
"Did you really think that they would continue their conversation at all once they realized that you were there?" asked Hermione exasperatedly.
"They did," answered Luna. "People take one look at me and automatically assume that I'm not threat. I look like I'm lost in my own little world most of the time, that way people will underestimate me. You are the smartest person in your year...if you can underestimate me, I think a bunch of junior Death Eaters can too."
Ron and Hermione stared at her once her speech was over. Harry grinned and looked out over the yard, making sure that no one was within earshot. Then a thought crossed his mind.
"Who was talking?" he asked Luna.
"I'm not sure," she replied. "One of them was a boy in my year, Marcus Eckler. The other one I've seen before but I can't remember his name. I think that he's in your year, though. His name sounded like...oh what was it...Blake? No. Bl—"
"Blaise?" suggested Hermione. "Blaise Zabini?"
"I think so," said Luna, blinking up at her. "I don't know what the last name was, but Eckler definitely called him Blaise, now that I think of it. I don't know how many sixth years are named that, so I think it's safe to say that that's who it is."
Harry nodded at her reasoning. "Thanks for telling us. I'll make sure that Dumbledore knows."
"Okay," she said, smiling, looking like her usual crazy self. "Well, that's all that I wanted to say. It's good to have you back." She stood up and walked back over to the double doors leading into the school. Harry, Ron, and Hermione remained seated.
"What do you think about that?" asked Ron as soon as she was out of earshot.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked him, not liking the sound of his voice.
"Do you think that she's telling the truth or—"
"Why wouldn't she be?" demanded Harry. "This isn't the thing that you'd lie about."
"But it's also the sort of thing that you could get confused about," Hermione answered for Ron. "We're not saying that she deliberately lied to you, I'm just saying that she might have gotten her information wrong, that's all. It's like if we see Malfoy doing something, we automatically think that he's doing something wrong, and we jump to a conclusion before we get all the facts. What if she did the same?"
"Do you really want to take a chance not telling anyone because you're afraid that you're going to be wrong?" asked Harry, the curse that was currently taking over his brain taking a backseat for the moment and thus getting slightly dimmer. "I'm going to go talk to Lupin about it. I'll tell him that Luna overheard them talking and then let him decide what to tell Dumbledore, okay?"
"Okay," agreed Hermione. She looked down at her watch. "But it's going to have to wait until later, because we only have about ten minutes until our next class."
"Which is?" asked Harry, not yet used to the schedule.
"Potions."
Harry groaned. He wasn't looking forward to this class at all, the class filled with the future Death Eaters, or, if Luna's information was correct, they were already Death Eaters. Not to mention the fact that he didn't know what to do about Snape. Seeing the others get up, he too stood up and followed the others glumly down to the dungeons.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" sneered Draco Malfoy to the other Slytherins as Harry and his friends drew nearer. Harry made a point of ignoring him before leading the way to a wall across from the door to the classroom.
"I heard all about what happened to him while he was...shall we say...away."
By this time the whole class has gathered around them, the Gryffindors both angry and eager to know what happened to Harry, since they were forbidden from asking.
"He was under the Cruciatus curse for weeks," boasted Malfoy, as though he had had a helping hand in what happened to Harry. "My father told me all about it, how Potter was so weak that within a few weeks he could barely even moan anymore. Some savoir that you all have there; I know that I wouldn't want my life to lay in the hands of someone that weak."
Harry was growing angrier by the minute, though not nearly as angry as Ron, Hermione, and Neville were. The other Gryffindors, who hadn't known what had happened to Harry, all gasped in horror.
"Yup, that's right," continued Malfoy. "He was so weak that he couldn't even make a sound when my father kicked him in the head. Can you believe that? If that traitor hadn't had stepped in the way, then he'd be dead right now. Just like that loser godfather of his."
At the mention of Sirius' name, Harry got even more furious. He could handle the insults about him, but if he went so far as to insult Sirius...
"My father told me all about him. You all know him," Malfoy informed the group at large. "Sirius Black?" the Gryffindors gasped. "Yup, that Mudblood lover. He was born into one of the most influential families of that time, next to mine, of course, but he went and threw it all away to hang out with trash like that werewolf, the Mudblood-loving Potter, and even the Mudblood herself. What was her name, again? Lily—"
Before he even knew what was happening Malfoy found himself being flung across the hall and into a nearby wall. He dropped to the ground, and looked up, only to find himself staring into the tip of Harry Potter's wand.
Harry hadn't been this angry since the night that Sirius died. Malfoy had just insulted every single member of his family, and Remus. He wouldn't get away with this. He had remained silent for too long, but now he was going to make Malfoy suffer for everything that he said. Harry was so angry, and had all of his energy so focused on Malfoy that he didn't even notice that the room in his head was rapidly dimming, and the screaming was almost inaudible.
As if by instinct, Malfoy made to raise his wand. "Expelliarmus!" cried Harry, and, since he was so close to Malfoy as it was, he was flung backwards into the wall once again. Harry deftly caught his wand and put it in his pocket. He raised his wand. The whole class was watching, he could tell by the sudden intake of breath. He was about to shout out the next curse when a voice behind him made him stop.
"Mr. Potter what exactly do you think you're doing?"
The cold voice made him drop his wand and turn around to face the one professor he had been dreading seeing ever since he had found out what had happened. For some reason, he found that he couldn't stare Snape in the eye, so he stared at a spot on the wall that he was eye-level with. For some reason, the sight of Snape no longer infuriated him like it once had.
"Nothing, sir," he answered. "We were just talking."
"Fucking traitor," he heard Malfoy growl from behind him. Harry felt a new wave of anger wash over him, although he couldn't understand why. He was suddenly aware of the fact that he still had Malfoy's wand.
"Ten points from Gryffindor," spat Snape, and he turned and walked towards the door to his classroom.
"Potter has my wand," Malfoy informed Snape coldly.
"Aw, Malfoy, you must feel so embarrassed to have your wand taken from you by someone as weak as I am," Harry patronized him. "You should really take better care of your property. You wouldn't want your master to be disappointed by the fact that Potter has your wand, now would you?"
The Gryffindors laughed at the first thing that Harry said, but everyone became silent as soon as Harry's last words registered. Malfoy's gray eyes narrowed as he looked at Harry. Knowing that he had at least managed to make Malfoy look like a fool was enough for now, he decided. He took Malfoy's wand out of his pocket and threw it at the Slytherin. Malfoy, unprepared, made to catch it but dropped it at the last second.
"You're a disgrace to the name of Slytherin, Malfoy," Harry told him, before turning around and walking into the classroom. He glanced up at Professor Snape as he passed, but quickly dropped his gaze as soon as he met the cold black eyes. It wasn't until halfway through potions that Harry realized that the curse had disappeared completely during his fight with Malfoy. It took him even longer to realize that he hadn't lost points for what he had said to Malfoy.
Chapter 16: Conversations
All conversation stopped as soon as Harry walked into the Great Hall that evening for dinner. Shaking his head in annoyance, he walked over to the Gryffindor table and sat down. Ron and Hermione sat down on either side of him. He helped himself to some of the food and started to eat, trying not to notice the looks coming to him from all directions. I am going to kill Draco Malfoy for letting everyone know what happened to me, he vowed to himself. Finally having enough, he slammed down his fork and turned to look down the table at some of the people who had been staring at him.
"Didn't anyone ever tell you it's impolite to stare?" he snapped down at them. Hearing the anger in his voice, everyone immediately turned to look elsewhere, this time wearing identical looks that said, "I wasn't looking at him, were you looking at him?
Sighing in frustration Harry turned to look up at the staff table. Dumbledore caught his eye and gave him an apologetic look. Harry shrugged and continued to look down the table. His eyes roamed over McGonagall, Lupin, Mrs. Weasley, and Moody before coming to rest on an empty seat near the end of the table.
"Where do you think Snape is?" Harry asked Ron and Hermione.
"Who cares?" asked Ron, shoving down his tenth chicken wing. Hermione gave him a look of disgust before turning to look at the staff table as well.
"I don't know," she said thoughtfully. She looked back over at Harry. "Why?"
"I was just curious," he shrugged. He pushed the remaining mashed potatoes around on his plate. After a few moments he set his fork down and stood up.
"Where are you going?" asked Ron and Hermione in unison.
"I'm gonna go for a walk," he told them.
"Then I'm going, too," Ron told him, making to stand up as well.
"No, that's okay. I want to be alone so I can think about some things."
"I'm not leaving you alone after what happened!" Ron told him incredulously.
"Yeah, because you were all a great help last time," snapped Harry before he could stop himself. Seeing the hurt in Ron's eyes, he immediately made to amend his last statement. "That's not what I meant. You guys were great. It's just that they already got me. I didn't give them the information they needed, so they won't try me again. You guys are the ones that are in danger here, and I don't think that walking around with me while everyone else is at dinner is such a good idea. Besides, I might end up somewhere that you don't want to be, and then..."
"Where might you end up?" cut in Ron.
"I'm not sure, that's why I said I might.—"
"Are you going to talk to Professor Snape?" asked Hermione.
That girl's really too smart for her own good, Harry decided. He was about to respond when Ron cut in again.
"Why would Harry go talk to that greasy git for?"
"I have to ask him something," Harry answered. Ron's mouth fell open.
"You mean you are going to talk to him? Why?"
"The man saved my life, Ron. I have to say something to him. And if I wait too long it wouldn't seem right. Let me do this before I lose my nerve, okay?" he requested.
Hermione seemed to understand because she said, "Sure thing, just be sure to go right back to Gryffindor tower when you're done, I still don't want you wandering around down there by the Slytherins longer than you have to."
"Okay," Harry agreed before turning and exiting the great hall. He just hoped that Snape was in his office.
xxx
Okay, he really hoped that Snape wasn't in his office. He took a deep breath and then knocked on the door. It was silent for a moment before he heard a voice from inside ask, "Who's there?"
Taken aback by the suspicion in his professor's voice, Harry mentally shook his head and answered, "Harry Potter."
Footsteps were heard from inside and suddenly the door opened and Harry found himself face-to-face with Snape. He held his breath.
"What do you want?" snapped Snape.
"I, well I, um..." Harry began.
"Out with it Potter, I don't have all day."
"I was wondering if I could talk to you for a minute," Harry asked him rather hurriedly, as if Snape would let him in if he asked really fast. The potions professor's face went from surprise to suspicion in less than three seconds.
"What about?" he asked coldly. Harry gulped.
"About what happened over winter break, sir."
Snape looked like he was considering it for a moment. He gave Harry a sharp look before saying, "Fine. Get in."
He stepped aside to allow Harry room to enter. Harry stepped inside and looked around the room. Behind him Snape shut the door and muttered a silencing spell. The professor stepped around Harry and sat down at his desk. When Harry remained standing he rose one of his eyebrows and then looked down at the empty seat across from him. Figuring that was the closest that he was going to get to an invitation, Harry cautiously sat down.
"What did you wish to discuss?"
It amazed Harry how Snape could make the simplest of questions sound as though the world would explode if he answered it wrong. Harry looked down at his hands. Now that he was here he didn't know what to say. But he had to say something or else Snape would kick him out and he would never have another chance.
"Why did you save me?" he asked quietly, raising his head to meet Snape's eyes. "You could have just let Vol-the Dark Lord kill me and told Professor Dumbledore that there was nothing you could do. Why did you give up spying to save me? It's not exactly a secret that you hate me."
Whatever Snape had been expecting, apparently this wasn't it. He stared at Harry for a moment, pondering the question and debating what to tell him. Finally he settled on the truth.
"Dumbledore told me the prophecy."
Now it was Harry's turn to be surprised. He hadn't been expecting that, even though it made sense. Noticing Snape's eyes on him, he realized he had to say something. "Oh." That sounded stupid. "That makes sense then."
"Why did you want to know?" demanded Snape, eyeing Harry.
"I couldn't figure out why you would risk so much for one person whom you hated, sir," answered Harry.
"I assure you it had nothing to do with you personally," Snape told him.
"I didn't think it did," responded Harry.
They sat in silence for a moment before Snape asked something that had been on his mind for the past few weeks. "Why didn't you tell the Dark Lord a fake prophecy? I hear you have been excelling in your Occlumency lessons," he said in a tone of voice that left no doubt to Harry that he didn't believe that. "You would have been able to make something up."
Once again Harry was surprised. He hadn't intended on being the one questioned, but since he owed this man his life, he supposed there was nothing he could do but answer. Snape had already seen him at his weakest time, he didn't have much dignity left to lose at this point.
"The prophecy says that I'm the only one who can kill him," he started, not looking at Snape. "If I told him the prophecy then I have no doubt that he would have killed me. Then there would be no way for him to die. As long as I was still alive, there was some way, even if it was only a tiny percentage." Harry took a deep breath and then proceeded to tell his professor the rest of the reason why he hadn't said anything. "I was hoping that if I held on long enough, then someone would eventually figure out where I was and would get me out of there."
Snape sat and stared at Harry for a few minutes. That was more than he would have expected out of Potter. He actually made sense. He would never tell him this, of course, but it was something to think about. He was about to open his mouth when Potter spoke.
"Professor, you've always been honest with me. Or, at least more honest than everyone else. You've never been worried about babying me or hurting my feelings. Can you answer something for me honestly?"
Snape gave the boy a searching look before finally nodding in acquiescence. "All right then."
"Do you think I can do it?"
"Do what?" snapped Snape, sounding more like himself.
"Kill Voldemort?"
Snape automatically flinched at the sound of the name that Harry had forgotten to omit. He looked into the bright emerald eyes of his most hated student. In them he saw the fear and uncertainty that had taken up residence there ever since he had first learned the prophecy all those months ago. For some reason that he himself didn't even know, Snape found himself answering the question.
"If he were to come up to you right now and demand a final battle, then no. You would die. You should have been preparing for this all along, but the headmaster felt that you needed some time to be a kid. Now your time is running out, and if you don't start practicing spells soon, then no, I don't believe you could do it. "
Seeing the look of defeat in Potter's eyes, he forced himself to finish his train of thought. "However, you have shown strength and talent that no one else has shown at your age. You can produce a Patronus, completely throw off the Cruciatus curse, have thrown off the Dementomins Curse twice, and have spent more than a month under continuous torture and are still alive and sane. You have the potential to kill him; that much is given in the prophecy. Now all you need to do is practice. If you give it all you have, then yes, I do think that you can beat him."
Harry stared at his professor, making sure that his jaw was clamped shut tight lest it drop open in shock. He had never expected that kind of an answer from Snape. The man hated him, had never had a decent thing to say to him, and now he was telling him that he thought that he could defeat Voldemort? What was the world coming to?
"Would you help me?"
It was harder to tell who was more surprised by the question: Harry or Snape. Snape was shocked that Harry Potter was asking him of all people to help him. Harry was surprised that he had asked anyone for help, let alone the professor who hated him the most.
"It's just that, well, you were a...well, you know...for so long, then you'd know what sort of curses I have to look out for, as well as what spells I need to know, and stuff like that. I don't mean that you have to teach me them, I can do that on my own, but if, you know, you suddenly think of a curse that could help me, if you could like write it down or something..."
Harry realized he was babbling and quickly stopped talking. He looked up at Snape, but quickly looked away, suddenly afraid to hear what Snape would have to say.
"What do you mean you can learn them on your own? If people could learn things on their own they wouldn't need teachers, would they?" sneered Snape in an attempt to bring things back to normal.
"It takes less time if you have someone there who can explain to you what you're doing wrong," conceded Harry, "but it's not mandatory. I practiced a bunch of spells on my own."
"Arrogant, aren't we Mr. Potter?" Snape asked acidly.
"That's not what I meant, sir," Harry said quickly. "I just meant that it was possible, it still takes a long time. It took me about a week of practice before I could finally stun someone properly..."
"Enough," cut in Snape. He surveyed Harry quietly for a moment. Harry tried hard not to squirm under such an intense gaze. After what felt like hours (in reality it had been but a minute), Snape came to a decision. "You really want to learn these spells?"
Harry nodded, deciding not to mention that Snape hadn't told him any of the spells that he would have to learn.
"And you willing to spend hours learning, practicing, and perfecting these spells?"
"Yes, sir," responded Harry.
"Very well. Come down to my office Thursday. Right after dinner. Then we shall go over some of the curses that I think you will find useful. We shall let that lesson determine whether or not I feel we should continue. Do not let any of the Slytherins find out that I am teaching you these things, understood?"
"Yes, sir," said Harry, then he fell silent. Snape's words had stirred another memory, one that he was supposed to tell Lupin. Since he was here, he decided he might as well tell Snape, and then let the man decide whether or not to inform the headmaster.
"Professor?" asked Harry. Looking up and seeing that he had Snape's attention, he continued. "I was talking to, someone, today," for some reason he felt like he would be betraying Luna if he were to give Snape her name, "and they said that they heard two Slytherins talking about becoming Death Eaters."
"Who told you this?" demanded Snape. Harry hesitated. "Well?"
"I don't want to give you their name," responded Harry slowly. Seeing the furious look in Snape's eyes, he decided that it would be alright if he told him who it was that had given him this information. Besides, maybe then Dumbledore would be able to question her if he needed any more information. "Luna Lovegood."
"And how did she find out?" Snape asked in a dignified sort of voice.
"She was walking to the library and she overheard Blaise Zabini and, uh, some fifth year talking about it. I think it was Mark, no Marcus, something-or-other. I don't know his name, but she could tell you. She said they were talking about getting the Dark Mark, and they said something about Malfoy."
"Are you sure?" asked Snape, his cold eyes boring into Harry's, although daring him to say that it was all a joke.
"That's what she said," Harry told him. "And she wouldn't make something like this up. I'm pretty positive that she's telling the truth."
"You need to learn how to stop being so trusting," Snape shot at him, his attention focused on a spot on his desk. He then raised his head to stare at Harry. "Is there anything else?"
"No, sir. Are you going to talk to Professor Dumbledore?" he asked curiously.
"That is none of your business," responded the potions professor. "Now, if you have nothing else to say, get out of my office."
"Yes, sir."
Harry got out of his seat and started to walk towards the door. He put his hand on the doorknob and started to turn it. He was halfway out the door before he turned to look at Snape one last time.
"Professor?"
"What?" snapped Snape, looking up from his desk to meet Harry in the eyes.
Harry met his gaze and said, in barely more than a whisper, "Thank you." Then, not expecting any response, turned back around. He was shutting the door when he heard, so quietly at first he thought that he had imagined it, Snape's response.
"You're welcome."
Harry was so consumed by the shock of hearing Snape say 'you're welcome' that he did not pay much attention to his surroundings. It was this that prevented him from noticing the dark figure lurking in a corner. Shrouded by shadows, Blaise Zabini watched Harry Potter exit Snape's office. He heard him thank Snape and the returning 'you're welcome'. Hidden in his corner, Blaise pondered his deadly errand and smiled; his task appeared much easier now.