AN: Well, here's the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it. I'm sorry it's been taking me so long to update, but college and work have been keeping me really busy this semester. This is my first day off in months and I wanted to finish the next chapter.

I had fun with this one, even if it took me longer than I want to admit.

"I know you don't feel that way about Justin, but it won't hurt to go with him to Hogsmeade next weekend." Hermione insisted, sitting beside Harry one night as she read over her notes for arithmancy. "I'll be there as well, so it shouldn't be interpreted as a date."

"I hate when you're right," Harry teased as he sighed softly, running a hand through his unruly hair. "I just really don't wanna hurt his feelings." He admits, softly trailing his fingers along the spine of his rune's textbook, lost in thought. "I hate to sound picky-" Hermione cut him off with a firm voice.

"You're not being picky, Harry. It's merely a thing called preference. You're not into him like that, and it isn't your fault," She said sternly, looking at her friend with hard eyes. His lips turned upwards at the look and shook his head.

"I know, I know." He pacified her. "It's kinda hard to grow out of thinking that way, you know?" The wizard commented, looking out the window. "My whole life involved the Dursleys telling me I wasn't worth anything, let alone something of this nature," Harry explained as he finally turned back to her, meeting the sad eyes that made him squirm. "I don't believe it obviously. It's just…something to get used to." He shrugged, letting Hermione take his hands.

"They're vile people," She spat out. "Dumbledore had no right to keep sending you back. He's just as bad, if not worse than them," Harry only nodded in agreement, knowing how his friend would get when they were on this subject. He rarely mentioned it though, deciding to only comment on it when necessary. "It's horrid, considering Hogwarts is your home, yet Dumbledore messes that up for you too," This time, the wizard does sigh.

"That's my main issue right now," He admits, biting his lips in thought. "I have no idea what I'm going to do after I graduate. I know I have so much to chose from, but…" Licking his lips, he shakes his head. "I don't want to leave Hogwarts for too long. If it were up to me, I'd like to be a professor one day. Not immediately of course, but one day," Harry sighed wistfully as Hermione lit up.

"Did you figure it out?"

"Yeah. Sev-Snape," Harry quickly corrected, hoping Hermione didn't catch his slip-up. "helped me realize what my passion was. I love creating spells and teaching them," He knew all of this, but hearing it come from his professor helped him even more. "He told me that Hogwarts used to have a dueling professor long ago, and it made me think of the school having one again. I could teach the practical defense and have spell crafting as an elective for fifth years and above."

"It sounds like you've discussed this quite a bit," Hermione says, interested in reasons unknown to the wizard, who merely shrugged.

"There's only so much you can discuss during detention." The witch grinned and gave him a teasing look.

"What else do you do in those detentions?" Oblivious, Harry hummed.

"A lot of stuff actually. I've been teaching him my spells and he's been improving my potions occasionally. He's a little impressed I managed to fool him about being inept in the subject for six years." She smiled a bit at that.

"I think he's the type of person who hates not knowing something," She added, and the wizard chuckled at her statement.

"In a way, I suppose. He was more frustrated at the fact that I was talented at potions, and he was none the wiser. It's one of the things he's passionate about and he was displeased that I hid my talent for so long. I help him brew his potions occasionally, so I have a feeling he thinks I'm adequate." Harry joked.

"More than adequate," Hermione huffed with fond eye-roll. "If Professor Snape allows you to brew with him, he must admire your skills to some degree. He wouldn't allow just anyone to help him with something like that." She reminded, watching as his cheeks colored.

"I don't know about that," He trailed off, still flushing. "I think he's impressed with some of my spellwork, but I wouldn't say he admires me. That would be the other way around." Harry explained, catching Hermione's inquiring eyes. "I mean," He tried to quickly explain himself, flushing more. "He's also created his own spells and he's even made his own potions too, it's so impressive! The fact that he's been able to spy on Dumbledore for so long is also astounding." He finished explaining.

Hermione knew something was going on, but she wondered if her friend had even figured it out yet. "I can tell you admire him," She said instead, being nonchalant as she flipped a page in her book.

"He's also one of the few people that understands me," He sighed softly, shrugging. "Snape helped me so much by keeping Dumbledore away from me. I can be myself when I'm around him. Before you and the twins, I never had that."

"I know," She smiled sadly as she took his hand, giving a gentle squeeze. "I'm glad you have more people you can relax around. Besides Ron being an annoying git this year, I think it's been a great start." The wizard grinned and nodded enthusiastically, his eyes brighter.

"Yeah. This year hasn't been too bad. We managed to find some great friends in Gryffindor that we overlooked at one point." Dean and Seamus were great people and it was a shame they hadn't interacted more. It was nice knowing that the two Gryffindors had his back and supported him in not wanting to follow Dumbledore anymore. "I should have paid more attention."

"We both should have." Hermione reminded, not wanting Harry to take the blame. When it came to Ron, they both had made their fair number of mistakes, so it wasn't right for one person to take the fall. "I was disgusted at the way he kept nudging you towards Ginny. For someone that was supposedly like your brother, he was adamant that you date her," Harry made a face at that, shaking his head.

"Even if I weren't gay, I would never touch her for a lot of different reasons." He didn't say why and just shook his head. "The main one being that she looks like my mum and I don't have an Oedipus complex," Harry hummed, earning a snort from his friend as she playfully hit his hand.

"Merlin, Harry. That's awful," They both laughed amongst each other.

"Good evening, my boy. How has this school year been treating you?" Harry paused as he felt his back tense as Dumbledore cornered him in the hallway, about an hour before dinner.

"Well, sir." Harry cordially replied, thankful that he was holding some books in one hand, which would give the impression that he was busy. "Was there something you wished to discuss, headmaster? I'm afraid that I have a lot of homework that I would like to get done in advance," Harry informed, making sure his shields were up.

"There are a few things that need to be discussed in my office, yes." Dumbledore had the infernal twinkle in his eyes, and it took all of Harry's self-control to not shudder in displeasure.

"If you don't mind me asking, sir, what needs to be discussed? I can't think of anything important." He enjoyed watching the twinkle start to slowly dim.

"It's extremely important, my boy. It's about what we talked about last year," Harry sighed and shook his head, not wanting to get into that discussion again. The younger wizard had already voiced his opinions on finding the Horcruxes and fighting Voldemort, but Dumbledore seemed to find the need to use 'destiny' against him, even if it wouldn't work. Not that the old man knew that though.

"I've already informed you of my decision, sir. I have no desire to get involved with the war or fight Voldemort." Harry kept his voice low. Despite it being dead, the last thing he wanted was to gain attention right now. As much as he desired to put Dumbledore in his place, now was sadly not the time for that.

"I know it seems like a harrowing task, my dear boy, but surely you understand that you must be the one to defeat him?" Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he felt his left temple dully throb as a migraine started to form. "This is why I wanted to move this into my office, lad. We can discuss the things that you need to do."

"What I need to do is pass my NEWTs and graduate," Harry replied, impatiently tapping on his books quietly. "Even if I were to fight Voldemort, how could I even compare to him since I lack the skills he possesses? It would take me years to catch up to him. I might be a Gryffindor, sir, but I do value a few of the Slytherin traits. Such as preservation." Harry said stoically, wondering what nonsense the elder would spew now.

"I wish there was another way. It has to be you," Dumbledore looked grim. "The whole wizarding world is counting on you to defeat the Dark Lord, Harry. It said so in the prophecy," Ah yes, the thing that took away his free will. How quaint.

"Then perhaps the wizarding world should find a new savior, Professor. If they're all counting on a teenager, then I see an issue." Harry stood his ground. Seeing that the younger wizarding wouldn't budge, the headmaster tried a new tactic.

"If that's how you feel, very well. We'll have to talk about that more in detail later. However, I did want to talk to you about another issue. I noticed your deteriorating friendship between Ronald and Ginevra. It concerns me." Harry easily caught the diversion. It seemed that the Headmaster was desperate to find a way to bring him into his office.

"I don't think those are adequate reasons as to why I need to go to your office, sir. We've been over it once before and I don't fancy repeating myself over and over." Harry spoke up, getting more impatient now. "As for my relationship with Ron and Ginny, I don't see how that should be concerning. The friends I chose to keep or make are up to me,"

"Yes, yes," Dumbledore hastily agreed, stroking his beard. "You'll have to excuse an old man for his needless worrying, my boy. I simply hate to see a wonderful friendship being destroyed." Holding back a sigh, Harry nodded.

"If that's all-" He wanted to make his way into either the library or the great hall-anywhere to get away from the Headmaster. Maybe he could go to detention a few hours early-

"Actually," Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling in a way that started to make Harry uncomfortable. "I am also growing concerned about all of your detentions with Professor Snape," He informed, making Harry nervously shift and inwardly curse. "I know you two have never seen eye to eye, but it isn't like you to receive so many detentions in such a short span of time. I'm very worried about this behavior, Harry,"

"The detentions I administer should be none of your concern, Albus." Severus' tone was cool as he approached the two, his arms crossed in a displeased manner. "Are you questioning my methods of detention?" His eyebrow was raised, a blank look on his face.

"Of course not, Severus," The Headmaster quickly appeased him. "I'm more so worried about Harry's behavior. Along with the number of detentions, he's no longer interacting with the Weasleys or playing quidditch. He's not acting like himself."

"It was my decision to stop playing quidditch, sir. It was also my decision to break my friendship with the Weasleys, as I stated earlier." He hated repeating himself, but here he was, doing just that. "I don't see how that should matter in this situation," Harry spoke up. Oh, he knew Dumbeldore was grasping for straws now, but he wished the man would hurry up. He wasn't lying about having homework that he wanted to get done beforehand.

"As your Headmaster and friend, I'm merely confused by your sudden change in behavior-"

"The behavior is why he's in my detentions, Headmaster. I've seen no other issues outside of my classes." Severus informed, his lips twitching into a small sneer. "Unless you think you could discipline him better?" Again, Dumbledore was quick to draw.

"Now, now, Severus, you know I didn't mean it like that." The twinkle was extinguished by now, blue eyes wide. "I know you're more than capable of taking care of things like this," Humming, Snape leveled the man with a look that spoke no arguments.

"If that's the case, Albus, I would appreciate it if you didn't question my detentions." The words were spoken slowly, each word a sweet poison that Harry found himself drawn into. "Or bother the students attending them," Again, the words were slow and deep, promising hell if the headmaster were to intervene more.

"Right. My apologies, Severus. Harry," Dumbledore took a step back and turned around. Harry felt a sense of Déjà vu as the event occurred, eerily reminding him of the start of term. Once the man was out of earshot, and a clever spell was cast, Harry sighed.

"He seems to like cornering me," Harry commented as he gazed off in the direction Dumbledore had gone, completely missing the protective fire that started to ignite in Snape's eyes.

"I've noticed," Snape dryly spoke, arms still crossed. When Harry did turn to look at him, he sighed.

"I don't suppose I could start detention early?" Harry questioned softly, catching the small smirk as Snape inclined his head for the younger wizard to follow him. It was a familiar trek to the dungeons, but Harry was a little surprised when they passed the potions classroom and office, going straight to a door on the other side of the room.

"Sir?" Harry questioned.

"Dumbledore never gives up so easily. My quarters will offer us some privacy," Severus explained with ease, mumbling something under his breath as the door opened for them. "I had planned on taking this time to finish the amortentia for the sixth years," He informed, leading the way into his private lab. Harry followed, a little in awe that Severus was allowing him back here. There were two fairly large tables, one with a simmering cauldron, and the other empty. He must have been frozen in place because Snape rose an eyebrow. "Well?" It seemed to snap the younger wizard out of his thoughts.

"Sorry. Kind of in shock that you would willingly take me back here," Harry admitted as he placed his things on the empty table, being careful as he did so.

"You're not completely inept at potions," Severus responded, starting to get to work. "As much as it pains me to say, you have more talent at the subject than many of the Slytherins." The only person that surpassed Harry was Draco Malfoy and Severus attributed that to the fact that Narcissa had been teaching Draco his entire life. She had excelled at the subject too after all.

"The first two years were hard. Coming from the muggle world to here was a drastic change for me. I had never even heard of many of the terms, asides from a few that I learned from cooking." Harry shrugged. "After I learned the basics though, it came naturally." He admitted, sitting down at the empty table as he started to focus on his work.

As they focused on their work, the only sound that could be heard was the occasional chop and stir, or the sound of Harry turning a page and writing something down on his paper. It wasn't until later when a pleasant smell surrounded the room that Harry stopped working, placing his quill down. There were a few scents he could make out, but he was having a hard time with the others. He inhaled, trying to name the scents. Some of the smells hadn't changed, but there seemed to be some new scents.

Treacle tart, crisp paper, ….something homely, and…the last smell was the one that was throwing him off. Potions? Potion ingredients? It didn't make much sense, so Harry went back to work, only occasionally finding himself relaxing and inhaling the scent that was wafting through the air. Even after he finished his work and was merely reading, Harry was still distracted by the intoxicating smell.

"It seems that I've kept you longer than anticipated," Snape broke the silence after a while, something…rough in his voice.

"Hmm?" Harry looked up from the Runes book Hermione was letting him borrow, blinking at the sudden interruption. Severus cleared his throat.

"It's almost eleven," It was easy to lose track of time when brewing and Severus was no exception to that.

"I had no idea," Harry mumbled, suddenly finding himself tired. Thankfully he always packed his cloak, so if Dumbledore were waiting, he had the upper hand. "I was engrossed in my book," Runes had always fascinated him and when he found something he liked, it was hard to put it down.

"I figured," Severus smirked lightly, knowing the feeling of being engrossed.

"I suppose it is time to go, though," Harry hummed and stretched, windlessly summoning all his items. It was second nature to him, and he often forgot that not many could do wandless magic. "What?" He saw the look on Severus' face.

"You merely astound me, Potter. I forgot about your wandless magic until just then," Harry shrugged and gave a shy chuckle.

"I forget that it's not common, honestly." Harry was pulling his cloak from his bag. "Been doing it for so long…" He trailed off, eventually turning back to Snape. "I should go, just in case Dumbledore decides to visit Gryffindor tower. Good night, Severus." Harry smiled at the man, putting on his cloak and vanishing.

"Good night, Harry," Severus felt his lips curve into a small smile as the door opened and then closed, signaling that the boy had left. Once he was alone, the potion master sighed, still gripping the table tightly.

Had Harry been paying attention, he would have noticed the man gripping the table every time the cauldron blew out the pink smoke. Thank Merlin he had self-control.

It wasn't until Harry was in bed that he realized the amortentia smelled like the potions lab, which was the smell that clung to Severus' robes.

"Fuck."