Hey you guys…

Today I begin with a sad note :( I took long to get this out…but the chapter was done a week ago. But see, I send it to my beta and she wasn't answering and stuff and I got worried so I waited (I don't like to put un-beta-read chappies out). And turns out she had some health problems, and she's still recovering from a surgery, and I only found out about this today… so I'm like… feeling really bad about it. Hollee is a dear friend and I just wanna thank her for everything and all the work she's putting on this fic even though I'm struggling with it. Anyway, I just wanna say… I hope she gets better and that this chapter is dedicated to her :)

Sorry about the delay anyway… hope you guys understand. Also, this is obviously the un-beta-read version of this chapter and so there ought to be some mistakes, so sorry about that!

Jk owns them (still -.-)

--

"Aren't they pushing it?" Ron asked, sitting beside his girlfriend. "I mean, it's our brake" he said, matter-of-factly.

She sighed and shrugged softly "He said he has to finish the assignment of last night, so It's better to do it now, I guess. And it's not like they aren't crossing all the lines already. I mean, Snape cast a bond at them, Umbridge is… well you know. They're at their mercy in every way."

"I was thinking maybe we should tell someone about this" The red head said, looking into her eyes. "I mean, I know Harry wants to keep it a secret, he doesn't want them to know they're getting to him. But I think things are getting out of control, you know, Harry's all… odd. Maybe something's wrong."

"Not maybe, Ron, something is wrong" she corrected, matter-of-factly "Can't you see it? Harry doesn't talk to us anymore. Because of all that's going on… He's shutting himself off"

"Well, why don't you talk to him? I've tried, you know, sorta… but I'm not good with words like you are. I think he might listen to you. It's just so… He's not around anymore, it's like my best mate is gone…" he trailed off, not knowing what else to say. Ron's logic and emotions were very simple and he kept struggling with words, so he rather not say anything anymore, he knew Hermione understood him.

The bushy haired witch sighed and nodded, "Ok, here's the thing, I'll talk to him when he comes back today after his detention tonight. The common room will be empty then and so it'll be easier to talk to him."

He nodded to that and just hoped things would really go back to normal.

--

He watched as both boys ran out on the open field, not bothering with invisibility cloaks or disillusionment charms. They were getting quite careless lately, the potions' master noticed, shaking his head and continuing his walk back to the dungeons. He had been delivering some potions to Madam Pomfrey and was sure to check on his couple of headache-inducers.

See, Severus Snape wasn't used to seeing plans fail, as a matter of fact he couldn't quite remember one that did. And this time had been no different from all the others. Which, with him being a former Death Eater and a double agent for Albus, was to be expected. He knew very well how to play his cards right and manipulate people just the right way. Hell, he managed to lie to the dark lord himself, for all these years.

But this time he hadn't really expected things to work out smoothly, not as it had anyway. Yes, he had noticed the possibilities, he had studied the magic, he had learned from the two that centered his plans. But still, that everything had actually worked, that was quite surprising.

He had, at first, cast that silly bond just to have those two driving the other mad as much as they had done with him. It wasn't even a bond actually, just an invisible physical connection that limited the distance one could go from the other.

But the unexpected news that his godson had joined the dark side officially still bothered him. He hadn't stopped thinking since the day he learned about it… All he could do was think about his young self. Lost inside the false promises of a world that didn't exist. Seeking power in all the wrong places, putting at stake the only thing he had dear to him… He couldn't explain the regret… the guilt he felt back then when he learned what his little spying job did to the only person he had ever loved. And he could see himself in Draco, young with a need to prove himself, to show his strength and go further. But he also knew how this would end, in pain.

He cared about the boy more than he'd show and regarded him as a son, to protect him from this half-life he would lead was merely instinctive. He believed that, in the end, Potter would be able to do what he was supposed to, beat Voldemort. And he knew what would happen to the man's followers…

He had played with all possibilities, he knew he couldn't come up and talk to Draco, which drove him insane. He could do nothing another person could and he also knew he was the only one that could do something. So he acted in the only way he knew, manipulating those involved so he could wake in his godson the will of fighting these influences off.

It had been an astray thought, he had been angry that he hadn't been told about the boy's recruiting and so he invaded his mind. He searched everything in hope of finding something he could use. And it was there, screaming at the back of Lucius' son, the need to get away from it all.

He had heard the exact same thing just the day before. That feeling of being suffocated, the doubts, the wants… and he could very well place all of those thoughts. He had heard them from Potter.

He was constantly in the Boy-Who-Lived's mind. The occlumency had been enough to nearly know the boy inside out, but still he looked inside his head, because he needed to know about the boy's thought on the visions. He had the job of keeping the idiotic seeker away from Voldemort's traps.

It was then that things changed, he studied and searched, there had to be a way to put what his mind had conjured into action. There was to be a bond, a really strong magical bond that could open one boy's mind to the other's. He knew they'd go from there, He knew that such thoughts – so alike – would build something that could change the way Draco saw things. He knew the boy could still change… he only had to push it a bit.

And that had led to where they were now. It hadn't quite developed the way he had imagined, since the boys were now closer then he thought possible. But the main idea was the same, the strong bond had tied them together in a way neither could break free from and Draco was starting to doubt the path he had chosen.

He could see it in the slytherin's eyes, he wasn't searching in his mind, it was clear enough that he didn't need to do it. And legilimency was an extremely exhausting practice, he avoided it at all costs and resorted to it only when nothing else would do. Which was way he used it against his favorite little student, Mr. Potter.

He watched them drop to the ground far away by the lake, and it became hard to tell their bodies apart from the tall grass, so he just looked away and kept on going, he had a couple of silly essay to grade.

--

She wasn't quite sure what she'd say to him when he came through the portrait. Hermione was a very intuitive person, she always put two and two together and something was tugging at the back of her head, she knew she was missing something.

Maybe it was the fact that Mr. Lupin was gone for so long and didn't answer Harry's letters often, after all the man had always been the one Harry could open his hear to. Maybe it was that Harry was going through something she couldn't understand, she wasn't sure. Many possibilities opened up in her head, and all she wanted was to have a clearer idea. He had to say something, he couldn't just be giving up on them… he couldn't just drift away. It had always been the three of them, back and forth through everything , and she didn't want that to change.

She was taken out of her deep thoughts and speculations as the door opened and in came the one she was waiting for.

"Hey, you're back" Hermione greeted at once.

Harry turned sharply at the sound of her voice, much like a startled cat, which left her frowning. The boy had to stop acting so suspicious! Or else, what would she think?

The Boy-Who-Lived just stood there, still on his tracks, looking at her with uncertainty. He wasn't really expecting to have to communicate with anyone that night.

"Ah… hey" he greeted back, getting very worried all of a sudden about his appearance.

He ran his hand through his hair, imagining it must look even more messy than usual, trying to smooth it a bit.

He tried to avoid looking at his friend as well, afraid his eyes might say too much, or that a direct look at his face would make anyone understand where he had gotten his reddened lips.

"I didn't realize you spent so much time in detention, Snape keeps you for that long?" she asked, shaking her head.

"No, actually, I just take too long getting the essays done… you know how slow I am with these things" he chuckled softly and noticed it had come out forcefully.

Hermione smiled, but he caught her worried expression. He wouldn't mind her being less smart at that precise moment.

"So ahm… what are you doing? You're not usually here when I come back" he said, approaching the couch she was on. He might as well talk to her now so she doesn't start her speculations.

"I'm… nothing… I was just… reading" she said, looking at scattered books around her.

He frowned, he didn't quite believe that, but couldn't bring himself to ask either. Maybe they could talk in the morning or just later, he wasn't sure he was thinking clearly yet and he just might say something he didn't mean to. Or worse, say something he actually wanted to…

The thing was, he had been filtering most of what he said around Ron and Hermione lately. It was as though he was, purposely, turning their friendship into something shallow so he didn't need to come to them with his problems. After all, his two friends were in a relationship, and Harry was at war with everything around him… he didn't need to pull them into that, and they wouldn't understand anyway. They weren't Dra-

"Harry, can I talk to you?" she asked, putting her book down and looking straight at him, pulling him out of his thoughts.

He sighed; it wasn't as if he could just say 'no'. So he sat down by her side, making room for himself between her books.

"I was actually waiting for you to come back…" she admitted "I wanted… I just think maybe we should talk a bit…" at his nod, she continued "It's feels as though… Ron and I haven't seen you at all lately" she began "I'm worried about this, Harry. I wish you would say something"

He ran a hand through his hair, Merlin, his thoughts were far away at the moment!

"I'm with you guys all day. I don't know what you mean"

"Yes you do… you are just there in body, but you're… you're shutting us out, Harry. I don't know what's going on that you have changed so much. I don't know why you won't talk to us anymore, it's like… you don't want to be with us."

The seeker looked away, why was he having this conversation right now? Why today of all days? Couldn't she just wait until tomorrow? His head was still full of his "detention" encounter.

"It's not that, Hermione"

"Then what is it?" the bushy haired witch demanded.

Yeah, that was certainly the question of the year. Answering that would be as hard as putting the connection he shared with Malfoy into words. He sighed.

But he knew he owned it to her, he knew he wasn't acting very helpful lately. Yes, he had found his fortress in the most unlikely place… but he felt guilty when he realized he was discarding his best friends, it wasn't fair. And, though they might never understand what he really felt, he didn't want to lose them, it was never the plan to make them go away.

"It's complicated… Look, I don't want… to shut you out. It's just… there's much more to me than you guys are willing to understand. Because of everything that's going on, and because of things even I can't understand, I'm changing. You guys are experiencing things that I should be as well, but I'm not because… I'm… not allowed to think of things like this. I have a bloody war breaking around me, I've got people inside my head, I've got…" 'an inexplicable bond with one of our enemies' he had meant to say, but didn't.

"See, you're wrong, you don't have to do this, Harry. We're all caught up in this, that's why we have the DA, to fight. But we do have our lives as well. We are fighting to keep the people that matter to us alive, that's what makes us face this. But you're… you're losing that, you're losing the ones you love, so what's the point?! If you have nothing that matters to you, why are you fighting? What's giving you strength?" she asked "You know how we were talking about Malfoy? How he looks like he died and is still walking around? You know what, Harry? You're starting to look just like him"

Ok, 'wrong thing to say' was an understatement.

"So what?! See? This is why I don't bloody talk to you anymore! You and Ron both! You've got to stop expecting me to be fine all the time! I'm effing tired of putting on a face for you both to be happy!"

"We don't want you to pretend, Harry! We want you to tell us what's wrong so we can help you! That's what friends do! And we're your friends! We want to be there for you! But you've got to let us!" she said back, raising the volume of her voice too.

"It's not that simple… you think that… " he let out a frustrated sound, he knew what their reaction would be should he tell them about his odd situation. "… Look I… I really don't want to push you guys away. You're my best friends, and I don't want to lose that, but I'm feeling too… suffocated by everything, I need to just… think a little. I need to breathe, you know?" he said in a lower voice, trying to control himself.

Hermione sighed " I know Harry, you're having to take on much more burden then you should, I know. But still… we're… we're here." She said softly, placing a hand over his. "Through everything…" she added, looking him in the eyes.

It made him want to say something for a moment there, but the truth got caught in his throat. He just nodded and mustered a smile that however small was true.

--

He knew that the delay in getting what he wanted drove the, already insane man, even more out of his mind. Voldemort didn't cope well with waiting and his patience had already run short a long time ago.

Potter wasn't following the dreams, not as far as the Dark Lord wished, and they were all waiting, just expecting the gryffindor to do something. Using the boy's werewolf father was just part of a new attempt, one that could fail as the other ones had.

And being called to see Voldemort when the man's mood was as dark as Snape knew it was couldn't be a very good thing.

He had barely entered the room and the snake like man started bombarding him with questions, the usual ones at first. What Potter's mind was telling him, did Lupin's fake letters affect him, would he now follow the dreams to the inside of the Ministry?

But then he asked of something else, something the potions' master had been trying with much effort to hide.

"I have learned that you, Severus," The man started, staring at him intently "put our dear Harry Potter on a temporary bond with Malfoy's son. And I was not told about this, and under the circumstances, I would be very pleased to know why" The ruthless and imposing voice echoed through the room.

The potions master felt his occlumency shield being bombarded with the man's attempt to break through it, and he conjured all his magical power to keep him away. One look in his mind right now and it'd be the death of far too many people the professor was working to protect. He wondered, at the same time, how such information had reached his master's ears.

"My Lord, it is true that I have done such thing, but it was a mere response to their poor behavior in class. I, above all, have to maintain my figure as a teacher, I can't see why I'd need to bother the lord with such an insignificant thing."

The dark figure sitting in a throne-like chair in front of him stood up, towering over his kneeling figure.

"An insignificant thing, Severus?" the man asked, arching what could have been an eyebrow. "You dare tell me that Harry Potter acquiring a magical bond with someone his age who he'd come to trust is not worth mentioning. Especially when said person is on our side!" He yelled, his mood changing like water adapting to new surroundings. "I've been trying to lure Mr. Potter into getting the prophecy ever since I've regained my body. And it, obviously, has not been an easy thing to muster and yet you hide such a thing from you Lord, do you?" he asked menacingly, straightening his eyes.

Snape could already feel it coming, the punishment for hiding what he knew very well was a piece of very important information. But he still held his shields up, keeping all of those around him from learning what hid in his memories and thoughts.

"Forgive me, Sir, I just assumed it wasn't worth your attention. And now that we had managed to lure Lupin in through Dumbledore, I thought he'd be enough, Potter trusts him more than he does anyone." He tried, diverting the man's attention to something else was always a good idea. "I, however, realize it was a mistake to not inform you, sir, of it. It will not happen again" he assured with a firm voice, keeping his gaze safely on the floor.

But he heard the man step closer, he heard him reach for his wand in his robes, and then he heard the hissing noise that was the sound of the man's voice. "You're right, Severus, it will not"

--

"I need to speak with you" he said very harshly, stopping his godson from going any further towards the dungeons. He hadn't taught potions to the slytherins today and so he had to go looking for the blonde himself. In the end he had to wait until dinner where finally Draco had decided to show up.

The boy didn't look very happy about it, but stopped none the less.

"…yes?" he demanded when Snape said nothing.

"Not here. In my chambers" the potions' master said through gritted teeth, he was already angry to be doing this, he didn't need his godson's hormonal behavior.

Draco breathed out heavily, "Will it take long?" he asked.

"Look here, you impertinent little boy, you come with me and stop this pestering if you wish to keep your limbs attached to your body. I am not in the mood for this." He said, towering over him in an imposing way.

The seeker sighed, and nodded, before following his professor to the dungeons. He was trying to figure out what Snape could possibly want with him at an hour like this. It wasn't related to detention or the man would just say it. It had to be some sort of news on the Dark Lord, or his father. Draco's stomach wasn't very happy with either possibility.

Surely enough, when the greasy haired man closed the door to his office and sat down on the enormous chair behind his desk, he stared at his godson and started "I met with the Dark Lord today"

For some reason, Draco established he'd rather have that then some request from Lucius. So he just nodded for the man to continue.

"He is, somehow, aware of your… proximity with Mr. Potter" he said bluntly. He was definitely in no mood to dance around subjects. Draco could interpret it as he wished, for all the potions' master knew, he could be talking about their bond only.

There was a change in the boy's eyes, that much was very clear, but otherwise his posture stayed the same "Our bond, your treat, yes" he said, outright choosing to ignore the possibility of someone knowing what he actually shared with the Boy-Who-Lived.
Snape let it go and continued "And, either you know it or not, our Lord has been trying to lure Potter into getting him an artifact that only he can get… and unfortunately he has not succeeded in doing so." He explained, laying back a bit on his chair. "Then there's you, a card that the Lord wasn't quite expecting… " he said through gritted teeth "And that, now, he's going to put to use."

"Oh?" the blonde arched his eyebrow, as though to point out he was not useless as his godfather had once suggested. However, that attitude was just one of many masks, he could barely process what he upcoming task would be.

"You are going to persuade Potter into following the visions he's been having. I don't care how you'll do it, but you will do it. The Dark Lord did not summon you on my request, because I knew both of us missing could trigger the mind of nosy little Gryffindors. But these are his direct orders, and you should know that he does not tend to be forgiving…" he said, staring at the boy as though he could see his soul, he was carefully reading every single thought the boy was having at the moment.

"This is… Potter has never considered any of the things I have, in the past, said to him. And I am most certain he will not now. But, even if I have to resort to… other means, it will be done." He said with calculated confidence, then he nodded "Well, then, professor, if that is all I shall be going before I am missed, I'll be back for detention later tonight" he said.

The potions' master, that was far gone inside his mind, just nodded back and held onto every thought his godson had until the boy was too far to be reached.

And as the blonde's mind dissipated from his grasp, Severus could only let a frown take over as he learned one bit of information. Draco was already setting his mind on something, it was just a small thought, but the potions' master knew his future actions would be based on it.

It could have been anything, but it wasn't what he had been expecting.

--

A.N:

Notes about this chappie:

-Things are gonna play out differently here. In OotP Snape didn't know what voldemort was going to do to lure Harry in, here he does and he's part of it sorta.

-Right I know that in the books and movies the person is aware when they're being attacked with legilimency, so I changed that =P It's something you can't notice =PP

Answer to Reviews:

luckycharm9: Hahah I'm glad you do :DD Hmm unfortunately this one was more of a plot work sorta thing heheh, but more slashy goodness will come :D

Nenifer121: Hahahha drunk are you lololol Ok XDD well, glad you like it :DD

Airlady: yep, obsession and hormones, that pretty much describes it all hahah

Fantasyfan4ever: Definitely lust for now, who knows about love, the future will tell :PP Err Remus hmm hahahah It's hard to keep it going, specially cause I'm a little confused with plot and stuff hahahhaha but I promised and ill keep it, I'll never leave a fic in progress hhaha so this will be finished heheh. ty!

Reviews made to the guardian:

jeebs: Yep, love goodie chappies, I'm glad you liked them! Oh thank you for such a wonderful review :) I'm glad you enjoyed it!

FiveForChibis: Hahahah I'm sorry, this story was not beta-ed hahah and I have the amazing ability to murder any written speech ahhaah Thank you :) I'm glad you're liking it!