Sincere apology in the Author's Note:

I decided to keep that bit of information to myself for now. Surely the adults already knew. I propped my broom beside the entrance as I wandered through our quarters. I ran into Severus, literally.

"Really Harry? I thought we were past walking without looking," the exasperated potions master chastised. I barely even noticed.

"Severus, is Hogwarts safe?" I asked him. He immediately tensed up, "of course it is, has something happened? Did you see something?"

I quickly shook my head, "of course not. But in less than a month, this place is going to be filled with children, and it would devastate everybody if something happened."

Severus took me by the shoulders, "Harry, that is not your place to worry, it is mine. You have enough on your plate. As a member of the Order of the Phoenix and a teacher at this school, it is my job to make sure it is safe for the students, not yours. Let the adults handle this one."

I nodded, not totally convinced though. He sighed but let it drop. Instead, he changed the subject.

"Starting tonight, before you go to bed, I am going to teach you Occlumency," he said, adding extra emphasis on the new word.

"What is occunancy?" I asked, confused.

"Occlumency, Harry. And it is the art of protecting one's mind from invaders who can see or influence your thoughts and feelings. It also helps you gain control of your anger and just generally think things through, and we know you need all the help you can get with that," the older wizard said teasingly. He returned to a more serious note, "at the moment, you, myself, and the headmaster are the only occupants in the castle, excluding the house elves. It is a perfect time for you to learn, seeing as you will not run into your classmates for a while yet."

I nodded, "sounds good. So when are we going to start occludensy?"

Severus shook his head, hiding a smile, "again, occlumency. Oc-clu-men-cy. And we are going to start it tonight before you go to bed. It is very simple and there is nothing to worry about." I nodded, letting his words put me at ease.

True to his work, that night, as I was laying in my room in Severus' quarters at Hogwarts - the house elves added it just for me - he was sitting beside me, guiding me through different breathing techniques and teaching me how to calm my mind. Honestly it worked wonderfully. That night I fell asleep almost instantly.

HPHPHP

I smiled fondly at the young man laying before me. Apparently it was a rule that teenagers had to sprawl out as much as possible, claiming the largest area for their own. In the recent days, I knew I had come to love Harry as much as if he was my own son. Unlike my relationship with my own father, he trusted me and came to me for help. If I had discovered this Harry existed five years ago, I would have adopted him as my own.

I got up, turning the lights out in his room before softly shutting the door, though a herd of hippogriff thundering through his room probably wouldn't wake him at this point. I froze, someone else was here.

I turned to see Dominique sprawled out on the couch, acting as if he owned the place. I just shook my head, "did you get yourself a snack, too? Or a glass of warm milk?"

"Come now Severus, you know human food disgusts me, though Harry does seem to fancy your cooking quite a bit. Apparently it has the same allure for him now as it did before," the younger-looking man mused, gracefully pulling himself up.

"Why are you really here? It has to do with Harry, doesn't it?" I asked, feeling dread growing in the pit of my stomach.

He tapped his nose, "hit the nail on the head, you did. I know you're teaching the boy Occlumency, which is honestly a fantastic idea. Not being gifted in that area myself, you are the more likely candidate. But you know why I'm here, I heard Harry was a Shadow Bender."

I gritted my teeth, "yes, he proved he was the other day when I had to save him from the clutches of the Dark Lord yet again."

He thoughtfully tapped his chin, now perched on the arm of a large arm chair, "I see. He did this accidentally, didn't he? He is one powerful teenager."

"Yes, yes, we know this. Now why are you here? You're dancing around the subject," I practically growled. Yes, I knew I was being unpleasant, but I had the feeling that my entire life was about to be ripped away from me.

"I'm here to take the boy, I want him to become my Apprentice."

A/N: Sorry for not posting for... ever, it seems like. The time just flies though summer. I am going to be starting school again soon, and I'm not sure if that will help or hinder me as far as updating. I do think I've done more harm then good with this chapter. Oh well. Don't worry, it's cleared up in the next chapter.

I want to thank everyone who subscribed and favorited. I was just looking through it literally minutes ago and was blown away. That is what made me update. And to Siruslove, the reason that I made Harry gay is because I do plan on having him find his soul mate, if you will. And honestly none of the girls in the story appeal to me that much, none of them have much dept to them from the original Harry Potter, and those who do I think should go to someone else. I make such a big deal out of it because I am part of the LGBT community, and I know how hard it is to be openly homosexual with those you care about, it would also help explain his shy and reclusive demeanor. As for Dumbledore, Rowling came right out with it and said that Dumbledore was gay.

Keep commenting and subscribing and favoriting, it's what convinces me someone out there actually wants to read this.