"Do you think he's going to yell at me, King?" Harry nervously straightened his robes for the tenth time.
"Calm down, Harry. No, I don't think he is going to yell at you, and I am going to be right there with you."
The teen swallowed. "He should yell at me – I do deserve it. He's been so kind to me until now, but I know it can't last."
Kingsley Shacklebolt took both shoulders – still skinny, but definitely an improvement now that the boy was receiving proper nourishment – and shook him gently.
"I know you hardly believe that anyone would not yell at you, especially when you did something wrong. You must realize, Harry, that what you did wrong during the holidays was not because you are a horrible cruel person, but because your own feelings and upbringing wouldn't allow you to recognize abuse for what it is. Severus understands that, and while he may, at some point, feel angry with you he is unlikely to string you up by your toes!"
Harry smiled feebly. "The letters we exchanged were nice enough," he said, "If he was really very angry with me he would have said something before, right – not written me back."
"Exactly. Now come on."
From his office, Dumbledore saw them cross the ground to the Apparition point where Aidan was waiting for them. He sighed.
"How am I ever going to make things right with Severus, Fawkes?" he idly asked his phoenix, "he refuses to see me until I've done what he needs, but how am I going to show him without actually being near him?"
He stroked the beautiful head and the phoenix trilled.
"What can I do for him from the distance?"
After musing for a little while longer, he smiled brightly. "I think I have an idea…"
sssssssss
"Professor Snape," Harry greeted politely.
The older man shook his head at him. "Stop being so nervous, Mr Potter. I am not inclined to start ranting at you. At any rate, I think Mr Shacklebolt would not appreciate it."
Kingsley grinned. "You know what I'm like with my students, Severus."
"Oh yes. I do remember when you came to give Ms Tonks some extra lessons in her seventh year and you caught me yelling at her. Which she completely and utterly deserved."
"I did apologise for throwing your cauldron across the room."
Snape gave the Auror a rare half-smile. "Yes, you did. Well, Harry – convinced I won't bite today?"
Harry sighed. "I just don't understand why you aren't angry with me."
The Potions Master closed his eyes for a moment. "Look at it this way, Harry. Imagine when you were small, your cousin had given you food whenever his parents weren't looking, or did your chores when they weren't home. Would you have been angry with him?"
Harry gaped. "Dudley would never have done that."
"No, but imagine he would have."
"I….I…no, I wouldn't have been angry with him," Harry admitted.
"Would you have blamed him for how your Aunt and Uncle treated you, knowing he did his best to help you? Would you have blamed him for not wanting to believe the worst of his parents? Would you blame him for not telling anyone, knowing that if he did, he would lose his parents and his home?"
"I….I….no…."
"That is why I am not angry with you, Harry. You fed me and protected me as much as you could. Your relatives' treatment of you made you less aware that it was wrong, and your need to have your godfather in your life prevented you from talking. You yourself did me little harm. The only time you yelled at me was the time I reminded you of, well, of myself, correct?"
"Yes…" Harry stared at Snape wide-eyed, his ability to respond limited to single words.
"After all the yelling I did at you for reminding me of your father, I can hardly blame you. It happened only once, and you did nothing worse than send me from the room, with the food you just gave me. Am I understood, Mr Potter?"
Harry nodded mutely and then turned to Kingsley, who put an arm around his shoulders and pulled him to his side for a moment.
"After such deep discussion, shall we have some tea and cake, and direct to conversation to lighter topics?" Snape suggested, "I am very curious if the Weasley children refrained from any more pranking."
"Oh, they wouldn't dare," Harry said, still a bit shaky, "You haven't seen Mr Weasley when he's really angry."
"Your letters did not mention young Ronald at all," Snape prompted.
"Ah, well, Ron is a bit busy with Hermione these days. They are dating. Either way, they agreed the pranks were out of line. Ron may think the punishment was a bit harsh, but he's not going to risk his father getting mad with him. He doesn't really like my truce with Draco Malfoy, but reduced hostilities mean less time patrolling and more time with Hermione, so he's okay with it."
"And Professor McGonagall still has not repented of her threats to us?" Severus inquired with a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
"Alas, no, Sir. She confiscated the letter in class – I know, I know, I shouldn't have been reading in class – and added that she would give both of us the Detention from Hell if we were up to any mischief."
"Ah, Minerva, ever the stern teacher," Severus sighed.
"Was she this stern when you were in school, sir?" Harry asked curiously.
"Believe me, Harry, she has mellowed with age," the Potions Master said dryly, "once I forgot to do my homework – just once! She made me turn porcupines into quills for an entire evening. By the end of it I couldn't lift my arm to do the wand motions and I was babbling the incantation. I never, ever forgot to do her homework again."
His eyes softened. "She was stern, but very kind, too. When she realized my father refused to give me any pocket money for the school year, she arranged with my Head of House that I could assist him in my free time and get a little money from our House fund."
Behind him, the Healer smiled. This description matched the impression he got of the witch, and Severus obviously was fond of her. Then again, Severus was fond of anyone to show him care and affection at this point – that being the precise reason they needed to keep people like Albus Dumbledore, who had in the past played on that need to use Severus to his own ends, far away. Severus was doing well and growing stronger, but they weren't nearly there yet. Though his relationship with Aberforth was improving every day. Once the Healer had caught them in the morbid game of thinking up creative torture methods they'd like to submit the Headmaster to. Suggestions included a variation on the Tantalus myth – bind him and bury him up to his neck in enchanted lemon drops that floated away every time he tries to eat one – and using Muggle Laser therapy to burn the twinkle from his eyes.
Some of the winning ideas had left the healer feeling a wee bit queasy, but he supposed it was good therapy.
The other three were amiably chattering about Harry's training now, the boy blushing as Kingsley recalled some of his more amusing failures. The dark Auror countered his tales by also relating Harry's biggest successes, which really made the boy turn crimson. Severus listened, gave some advice when asked and encouraged Harry to keep up the good work. For all the hatred that had existed between them for over five years, they got on remarkably well now. The Christmas holidays, horrible as they had been, did force reconciliation between the two.
sssssssssssss
Over breakfast one sunny morning in early spring, the Headmaster called for attention.
"As you all know, Professor Snape has been away from Hogwarts for a while now," he began, "leaving Slytherin House without its dedicated Head. I have been informed that the students from this House nevertheless perform well in class, receive few detentions and in general, have made the best of this situation. For that, I am very, very proud of them. Therefore, I am awarding fifty house points to Slytherin for being faced with a difficult situation and handling it admirably."
Stunned silence descended on the Hall. The Slytherins dared not believe what they had heard.
"Do you think someone should check for Polyjuice? Or Imperius?" a Slytherin fourth year finally asked quietly.
"Possibly," the fifth year Prefect allowed, "Or the old man finally has gone insane."
The Headmaster sat back down, aware of the suspicions but deciding not to comment on them now. It was not exactly difficult to understand that the Slytherins would be suspicious of his sudden change of heart.
Angry whispers began to emerge from the Gryffindor table. Dumbledore winced as Minerva stood up and strode regally to her House table.
"Quiet," she ordered, not raising her voice but the hairs on every Gryffindor's neck stood up at the chill in it.
"I am disappointed in you," she continued, "The Headmaster is correct. Slytherin House is in a difficult situation, they miss their Head of House yet have done very well. They deserve those points, and you should not begrudge them that! I do not want to hear another word about it or this entire House will be on early curfew for the next month. Do I make myself clear?"
The eldest Prefect cleared his throat nervously. "Crystal, Professor," he managed.
She turned around, her lips flashing a very tiny smile at Harry's approving face.
ssssssssss
"Hey Potter!" Draco moved over to Harry as he left the Hall after dinner.
Harry turned around and waited politely. Draco took out a sealed parchment and handed it to him, like he had done before. Besides Harry, Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey, and of course the Headmaster, no one knew where Professor Snape was exactly. Slytherin had been writing to him through Harry or Madam Pomfrey, so Harry simply took the parchment with a nod, indicating he would send it as soon as possible as usual.
"Bugger that we can't just send it ourselves," Malfoy grumbled.
"You know very well why you can't, Draco," Harry replied tiredly, keeping his eyes locked with that of his former opponent.
Draco kept his gaze for a long time before sighing. "It isn't fair, though," he muttered, "hardly the Professor's fault he got de-aged."
"There are some who would blame him even for that, regardless of the circumstances," Harry shrugged.
"I know. It seems so – pointless," Draco frowned, "what advantage can there be to being unfair? We – Slytherin has waited a long time to be recognized by the Headmaster, Harry, and only now do I realize, now that we have it, how much it actually means to us. We hated him – in the end, no one can live without recognition. We did not want to follow the Headmaster because he never showed us any, so what is the point to turning to….another, who apparently does not show consideration at all? It makes no sense…"
He turned around abruptly. "See that the Professor gets that, Potter."
