Severus pushed into the boy's mind with almost no resistance, or at least no tangible barrier or wall. Instead it felt like Potter's mind was coated in thick, grey fog.

Perturbed, he attempted to sharpen his own senses to compensate for the disorientation, but the fog crept around the edges, obscuring his view. He was becoming more and more disconcerted and did a quick sweep for emotions or memories he could cling onto but the fog only expanded and soon his own head was swimming. Vaguely he felt his purpose and intentions fading and his thoughts numbing…

Alarmed now, he violently pulled out from from the boy's mind and found his physical self on his knees across the room, breathing heavily and struggling to get his bearings.

Cursing angrily with a sick mix of humiliation at being floored and confusion, he rose swiftly and brushed the dust from his shins, crossing the room in quick, long strides to grab Potter by the collar and yank him to his feet.

'Explain yourself!' he snapped in the boy's unnervingly blank face.

Potter's eyes slowly shifted to meet his and with disbelief, Snape saw that they were glassy and unfocused. His pupils had shrunk to pinpricks, making the green around them seem unnaturally vast. He felt his grip on Potter's collar lose some of its sureness in his shock.

The boy was off his face.

Feeling disgusted, Snape shoved Potter roughly to the floor where he landed in an undignified heap with an even more undignified whimper. He seemed almost alcohol intoxicated but Snape knew it to be more than that. These weren't the eyes and actions of a drunk. Potter had taken something a lot stronger to affect him so profoundly.

And Snape was going to find out what.

'What have you taken, Potter?' he questioned with no small degree of warning in his voice.

The boy shook his head and opened his eyes wide as if trying to determine if they were closed or not.

'Wha…nothing'

'DO NOT LIE' Snape roared. He towered close over the boy. 'I'm warning you now Potter, do not treat me like a fool. What. Have. You. Taken?'

'I…just a potion. For anxiety'

Fury gripped Snape searingly and he yanked Potter up by the scruff of the neck, all but throwing him against the back wall and pushing his face next to Potter's, allowing him no relief from Snape's scrutiny. How dare Potter of all people sit there and lie to him.

'I SAID DO NOT TREAT ME LIKE A FOOL! No calming draught would cause such a despicable state, you can barely stand unattended!'

Snape had also noticed that boy's words were slurred and his breathing was laboured, but from whether that was from whatever he'd taken or fear, Snape didn't know or care.

'I...I thought it was, I found it…in one of the rooms'

The complete disbelief Snape felt at this explanation almost overtook his anger, but not quite. Though it did seep darkly into his tone.

'You found and drank an unfamiliar potion in a house full of dark artefacts?' he hissed, 'you stupid, stupid child.'

He studied Potter's face. There was indeed some fear present but there was much too much blankness in his expression for Snape's liking.

'Are there more?' He watched Potter's face carefully.

'N…no, sir. Just one.'

Snape opened his fist abruptly and the boy sank in a pile at his feet.

'If I find you have lied to me again…'

Potter shook his head. Snape watched him carefully for a long moment. He didn't seem to be in danger of overdosing; rather, the boy was just very high.

Revulsion filled his entire body. 'You are pathetic' Snape spat as he watched the boy struggle to prop himself up efficiently. 'How I wish the people could see their chosen one now. Crawling on the ground, wasted.'

Potter gave a weak moan and lifted his hands to cover his face.

'There's no point being ashamed now, Potter. Face the consequences of your foolish choices. How much did you ingest?'

A pause.

'Half.'

'Half of what?' Snape snapped.

Potter didn't move.

'Fetch me the bottle.' He demanded, and when Potter still didn't move 'NOW!'

He watched the boy stumble out the door and heard unsteady footsteps climb the stairs.

Anger rolled off him in dark pulses. Everything, everything, rested on the boy and at every turn he continued to be reckless and selfish. Snape had thought the mutt's death would have been the slap in the face Potter needed to understand that his foolhardy actions had consequences but he was clearly mistaken. The sheer arrogance of it astounded Snape. He didn't know if Potter really had downed the first thing he'd found to cure his 'anxieties' or if it had been a purposeful attempt at being intoxicated but both options just confirmed for him the stupidity and self-destructiveness that the boy had adopted as his defining attributes.

A soft sound at the door had him spinning round in time to see the perpetual pain in his neck retuning, leaning one arm heavily on the doorway to keep his balance. A small glass potion's phial hung loosely from his fingers. Not bothering to hide his noise of contempt, Snape strode over and grabbed Potter tightly by the upper arm, steering him to the stool before he had to watch any embarrassing displays when the boy keeled over. He snatched the phial from the limp fingers and bought it up to eye level.

Studying the dark liquid inside he noted the phial was of particularly cheap material, usually designed to be disposable. Whoever had brewed the substance hadn't decanted it particularly carefully either; the entire bottle was tacky and stained. Carefully uncorking it, he paused to check Potter was still conscious and upright then took a careful sniff. A strong scent of ketones and something bitter that he recognised as wormwood filled his senses.

Snape inhaled sharply through his mouth and corked the bottle before slipping it inside his robe. He recognised the potion as a strong recreational substance, used to induce feelings of euphoria, numbness, and lethargy, among others. It was also highly addictive, restricted by the ministry and toxic in high enough doses.

No wonder the boy was utterly out of it.

Snape had expected some sort of recreational potion use but this was a significantly more extreme example than he had expected, it was considered the wizarding heroin by those familiar with muggle narcotics. Even a half dose on a boy Potter's statue would be exceedingly potent.

He ran his eyes across Potter's slumped form and then abruptly gathered a fistful of the boy's hair and tilted his head up sharply to expose his face. Peering into green blotted eyes, Snape could see the boy was struggling to keep them open and they seemed to stare through Snape like he wasn't even there. Potter's cheeks were flushed and his breathing was slow and rather shallow, forcing Severus to perform a hasty diagnostic spell to check his oxygen saturation levels. Satisfied there wasn't any immediate danger, he roughly heaved the boy up off the unsupportive stool once more and half dragged him to the wall where he slumped against it.

A noise like cutlery rang softly from the doorway and both of them turned instinctively towards it. Then the boy looked to him pleadingly.

'Sir, please, don't tell…please' he whispered.

Snape sneered. 'You're not in a position to inform what I do, Potter. You clearly can't be left unsupervised and you're not wasting any more of my time'

Potter groaned and slumped his chin into his chest.

Lip curling, Snape swept across the room and out the door, shutting and locking it behind him. He entered the kitchen to find a ragged Lupin nursing a cup of tea gingerly. His movements had a tender element to them that belied the proximity to the full moon.

'Where the hell have you been?' he snapped, making the other man jump and slosh tea over his hand.

Wincing, Lupin glanced his way and grabbed at a threadbare tea towel to dab at his wrist.

'Severus, you startled me…'

'Then you can only imagine my own surprise at finding an emotional teenager with a habit of making dangerous and impulsive decisions left here alone, to his own foolish devices?'

Lupin looked uncomfortable and Snape could sense he was avoiding his gaze.

'We had a slight…disagreement. At the time I thought it best if we both had a bit of space—'

'You are supposed to be watching the boy! Not quarrelling like lovers and sulking off in a huff!' Snape interrupted loudly.

At his words Lupin stiffened visibly, his eyes shooting up to meet Snape's once more. His face twisted and Snape was momentarily surprised at the vitriol lacing the usually unruffled man's voice.

'Mind your words, Snape.' he said warningly.

Lupin's voice was deep and Snape thought he could all but hear the wakening wolf behind his words. Somewhat gratified by the rise he had gotten he leaned closer.

'Or what, Lupin? I feel it would be difficult for you to cause much more damage than you already have.'

The wolf's brows kitted together and Snape smirked as he set his cup down clumsily.

'What do you mean?' Lupin asked slowly.

Snape stared back at him.

'Where's Harry?' the werewolf questioned, something bordering on panic suddenly rising in his tone.

Snape felt a delicious thrill of anticipation for the reaction to his next words. Potter being in this state right after he and the wolf had clearly been quarrelling would all but destroy Lupin, but foolish actions deserved their consequences.

'He's out of his mind on drugs' Snape reverently announced.

Lupin just stared at him. 'What?'

'Your golden boy, he's in the drawing room wasted as we speak. Slurring and stumbling like a Knockturn begger'

Lupin continued to stare. When Snape didn't break eye contact or reveal his words were all some cruel joke, he shook his head and whispered a disbelieving 'no…'

Snape almost snorted. It had always been painfully hard for Potter's doting fan club to grasp the truth that Snape could see so plainly; the boy was an arrogant swine.

'He came to his Occlumency lesson already off his face having downed a potent strain of "Oblivion". No doubt your mongrel is to blame. I must say how frustrating it is to have him fucking things up even from beyond the grave' Snape hissed.

Lupin had gone very pale. He pushed past Snape and a moment later could be heard barking 'Alohomora' at the drawing room door.

Snape gave a grim smile as the sound of the wolf's voice; high and desperate as he no doubt discovered his undignified saviour slumped against the wall.

Good.

He wouldn't allow this to be his problem.

-A/N-

Some Snape POV for you all. Please review!