Title: One Stupid Person
Author: quixotic-hope (harrysev)
Beta: Amanda Saitou
Pairing: Harry/Severus
Rating: R
Genres: Romance, Angst, Fluff, First time
Warnings: slight-AU (ignoring HBP)
Spoilers: 1-5
Summary: Having lost his value as a spy for the light, Severus must now take a Death Eater-aging potion and befriend the dratted Boy-Who-Lived. But what happens when he starts falling in love?
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and Co. belong to the wonderfully talented JK Rowling. I mean no harm by using her characters in this story. I am making no money whatsoever; I merely hope to entertain people.
Chapter 5: Fights and Friendship
Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Alan were seated around a table in the Common Room. Harry was trying to add another four inches onto his Charms essay; Alan was engrossed in a book; Ron and Hermione took turns looking at their papers and looking at each other. Finally, Ron broke the silence.
"I'm tired of homework," he said.
"Me, too," said Harry. He hadn't really had much of a chance to do anything interesting with Ron in a while; the redhead was always off doing something with Hermione. Harry hoped that maybe tonight he and Ron could do something together.
"Want to play chess or something?" Harry asked.
"Nah," said Ron, shaking his head and giving Hermione a very pointed look. "I think I need some fresh air."
"I think I'll come with you," said Hermione, piling up her books. "I'm almost done with this essay, anyway. I can finish it later."
"See you later, Harry," said Ron as he and Hermione got up and left.
Harry watched sullenly as the two left. He had been happy for Ron and Hermione at first, but this was getting ridiculous. He never got to see either of his best friends anymore. Sure, Alan was there, but he wasn't much of a conversationalist. He usually just sat around reading or watching people.
xxx
Severus watched the scene before him unfold. He was slightly irritated with Weasley and Granger. Couldn't they see that they were hurting Potter? Not that he cared, of course, but they should. Couldn't Weasley play a game with Potter before going to snog his girlfriend?
Severus watched as Harry, once again depressed, turned back to his essay. Maybe now was a good time to get Potter's mind off his friends' idiocy.
"I don't see why you care so much that they're gone," he said, idly turning the pages in the book he had read ten times already. "I mean, I don't see their absence as a great loss."
xxx
Harry looked up, startled. His confusion suddenly turned to anger. Sure, maybe his best friends had ditched him, again, but they were still his best friends. Who was Alan to insult them?
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Harry snapped.
xxx
Well, angry-Potter is better than sullen-Potter, thought Severus. At least he was making progress.
"That means that, while some people's absences leave one feeling sad and bored, your friends' absences leave no such feelings. They provide neither meaningful insight into a person's life nor, as far as I can tell for the month or so that I have known them, anything slightly entertaining to any conversation. I would have just as soon miss a pile of bricks as I would one of them."
"You don't know anything about them!" yelled Harry defensively. "They are very entertaining people! They're a hell of a lot more entertaining than you are! All you do is sit there reading a book. What do you do to provide 'meaningful insight' into people's lives, huh? No wonder you don't have any friends."
With that, Harry turned and stormed upstairs to his room.
Well, that wasn't what I was aiming for, thought Severus. He had only been trying to get Potter to not feel so glum about his friends' new relationship. Well, he supposed he did that. Now, instead of feeling sad about his friends, Potter would hate him.
Great. He was supposed to be befriending Potter. Severus sighed. He believed he should apologize to the brat. He thought back to what Potter had said…No wonder you don't have any friends…
No, Severus never wondered why he didn't have any friends. He knew damn well why he didn't have any friends. People were stupid. That and the fact that as soon as he got to Hogwarts Potter Sr. and Black had made sure that no one would speak to him.
Shaking away thoughts of his first seven years at Hogwarts, Severus tried to find the will to go up and apologize to Potter. He still didn't think he had done anything wrong, but he thought that he should get back into Potter's good graces. He wondered what he'd have to do to win the boy back. Something highly embarrassing, no doubt. That thought delayed Severus' going upstairs for another ten minutes at least.
xxx
Once upstairs, Harry thought about what Alan had said. His initial anger had worn off, leaving him feeling cold and empty. Alan had a point. Sure, in the past six years Ron and Hermione had been great friends, but now they were hardly friends at all. In fact, Harry spent more time with Alan than he did with Ron and Hermione. And Alan was somewhat amusing most of the time.
Harry sighed. He supposed he shouldn't have gotten so mad at Alan. The boy was only trying to make him feel better about being ditched by his best friends. Well, Harry assumed that's what Alan was doing, anyway
Harry thought back to what he had said to Alan. No wonder you don't have any friends…How could he have said that? He knew what it was like to grow up alone and without any friends. How could he say that to someone else? Especially to someone else who had only been trying to help, someone who was no doubt the only friend Harry would have for the next few months or so, while Ron and Hermione were infatuated with each other.
Harry sighed again. He wondered what he'd have to do to make Alan forgive him. Would the other boy forgive him? Harry had been pretty nasty. Then again, Alan had insulted his best friends; he was allowed to be slightly pissed off, wasn't he?
Deciding that he was going to have to say something sooner or later, Harry turned and started walking toward the door. He was about to reach for the handle when the door opened and Alan walked into the room. They both stood there, not saying a word.
"I have something to say to you," said Alan.
"Let me go first," said Harry.
Of course he gets to go first, scowled Severus. He's the Boy Who Lived. Well, let him go first. He'll start cursing me. Then I'll apologize, and he'll look like an idiot.
"Alright," agreed Alan.
"Okay, good," said Harry. He drew a big breath. "I'm sorry."
"What?" That wasn't what he expected at all.
"I'm sorry for what I said. You were right. They haven't been too good of friends lately. I should never had said what I did. You're actually pretty funny most of the time. And I know what it's like to not have a lot of friends, so I should have known better than to say that. I understand if you don't forgive me, but I had to say it anyway."
Severus was shocked. Potter was apologizing? What the hell was wrong with the boy? Severus briefly stopped to count the number of times he had asked himself that question in the past month and a half, then turned his attention back to Potter. The boy looked sincere in his apology.
"I suppose I should apologize as well," said Severus, still slightly suspicious of Potter's behavior. "They are your friends. I should not have insulted them…even if what I said was true."
Harry laughed a little at the end of Alan's apology.
"You shouldn't really apologize. You're entitled to your own opinion. Besides, I know you were just trying to make me feel better, in your own way. So, I guess, thanks."
Potter is thanking me for insulting his friends, thought Severus. Dear Merlin, the world's coming to an end.
"I'm glad you realized that," said Severus.
The two stood in a semi-awkward silence for a moment. Then—
"Do you want to play a game of chess?" asked Harry tentatively.
Severus saw Potter's hesitancy, and, for some reason he could not understand, felt a wave of sympathy for the boy.
"Alright," said Severus, and he tried to tell himself that he didn't care in the slightest that Potter now looked happier than he had in weeks. "But don't expect me to go easy on you."
Harry grinned.
"Wouldn't dream of it."
A/N: Sorry for the delay. I wasn't going to update this until I had finished the next chapter, but I'm about halfway through with that one, so I figured I'd go ahead and update.
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