AN: Thank you for all of your reviews and support.

Disclaimer: please refer to chapter 1

Warnings: This story is rated mature for sexual situations, language, adult content etc. I will do my best to give warning when explicit sexual content will be in chapters. Otherwise, you need to self manage. I do not wish to receive angry reviews regarding the content. This is an adult story so if you are uncomfortable with the content please STOP reading. I will not be offended. It is your job to ensure you are comfortable with what you are reading.

Chapter 3

The next morning the Gryffindors got up and readied for a day of classes. Harry having received merely two hours of sleep was feeling sluggish. He couldn't wait to drink some caffeine and escape his treacherous thoughts.

He walked down to the Great Hall in silence, Lily and Alice both casting him looks of concern. Though he had yet to meet Alice formally he could see she was Neville's mum.

Neville had the same crystal clear blue eyes that she had. Alice had a kindness about her that warmed anyone she came into contact with. What would Neville have been like if he had grown up with his two parents?

Harry shook his head to clear the depressing thoughts that were drifting through his mind. Before he knew it they had arrived at the Great Hall. He noticed the Slytherins had already made an appearance and Draco had beckoned him over with slight tilt of his head.

"I'll see you all in Potions then with the Slytherins at 9 o'clock right?" The group nodded and Harry walked over to the Slytherin table. He found it amusing that after all these years he was actually excited to leave the Gryffindor side and join in with the Slytherins. Draco stood up and met him when he was almost there. Placing his arm around Harry's shoulder he leaned in so no one could over hear their conversation.

"Harry, you look like shit, trouble sleeping?" Draco said quietly. "Did you get any sleep last night?"

"Bout two hours or so, I'll be fine once I've had some coffee."

"Alright are you ready to enter the snake pit?" Harry snorted.

"Will I ever be? Realistically, I'm just going to go sit, you can all have fun with your politics." Draco gave him a look of concern before placing his mask of indifference back on.

Walking over Draco took his seat with Harry beside him, Parkinson having moved down to accommodate the two. Draco began introductions when he finally arrived at Severus, Harry's eyes shot to the boy sitting beside him. A look of shock and then happiness flashed over Harry's face before Draco nudged him and moved on.

"So you're Draco's Gryffindor friend, will you be joining him in his classes?" Lucius interrupted Draco and Harry's silent conversation. There was a slight sneer on his face at the mention of the rival house.

"Um, yes, I believe we have the same schedule with the exception of Arithmacy and Ancient Runes. I'll be taking Care of Magical Creatures and Magical Theory." Lucius had raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at the mention of Care of Magical Creatures but allowed a smirk to warm his face at the subject of Theory.

As the conversation continued Harry turned back to the only other person not interacting. Severus Snape was sitting quietly sipping his tea and reading a Potions journal. Harry couldn't believe it was the man that had terrorized him all those years and then become a trusted confidante and mentor in the final years. He had been a dear friend and Harry had shared a close companionship with him before the final battle.

Harry was stunned.

Severus Snape looked amazing, and sexy. The man had always looked good, there was always something about him that was just attractive but what Harry saw now was making him drool.

He studied him unabashedly until the boy in question looked up at him scowling.

"Is there something amusing on my face?" Severus questioned sharply. His eyes narrowing at the new comer.

"No, there isn't I was just noticing how alluring your eyes are." Harry said. Severus stopped reading in shock. He gaze shifted quickly between his journal and Harry. His eyes widened slightly before he regained his composure.

"My eyes are alluring, you say?" Harry smiled and nodded.

"Well I don't know what game you're playing at Williams but I don't like it. Did Lucius put you up to this?" Severus glared at him and returned to reading.

Harry long since accustomed to Severus' most ruthless looks didn't even blink.

He made a quick decision.

He reached out and placed his hand gently on the boys arm. Severus paused and then slowly looked down at the offending appendage. He then slowly brought his glare up to rest on Harry's face. Harry gave him a smoldering look.

"No game, I think you look sexy." Harry said quietly to the now shocked boy. "I look forward to vying for you attention Mister Snape." Harry finished with a smirk.

Severus had a look of outrage on his face before swatting Harry's hand away.

"In your dreams Williams." Severus slammed his journal closed and said goodbye to the table, indicating to Lucius that he would meet him in Potions. The group looked towards Harry, who had internalized his gleeful looked and now portrayed one of confusion.

"Must have been something I said," Harry played off in a light manner. The only ones not buying his explanation were Draco and Lucius, who not surprisingly were wearing the same expression. One of suspicion and incredulousness.

Draco wrapped his arm around Harry's before dragging him up. Making their apologies and telling the group they'd see them in Potions Draco dragged an amused Harry out of the Hall.

A corridor away from the Potions classroom. Draco stopped and cast a silencing spell around them.

"Harry," Draco asked in a deceivingly sweet voice. "What did you say to my Godfather?"

Harry avoided his eyes, noting that the temperature had increased significantly.

"Oh nothing Dray, I just toldhimthathewassexyandhadalluringeyes…" Harry blurted out quickly before fanning himself.

"You what?!" Draco looked like Harry had slapped him in the face. Harry as flushed.

"Dray is it hot in here or is it just me?"

"Would you stay focused?!" Harry smiled sheepishly.

"Must be just me then," Draco rolled his eyes and motioned for Harry to continue.

"I told him he had alluring eyes and that he was sexy?" Harry said in a way that made it sound like he was questioning.

"Oh my gosh, you're propositioning my godfather. Will the wonders never cease. You must have a death wish. He'll murder you! Skin you alive...dice you into potions ingredients…" Harry quickly interrupted before Draco could work himself into an episode.

"Dray, don't you get it. I now understand why I have been craving that man's company since before the final battle. He is like this unmoving rock or support I guess. He never wavers. He made me feel calm when I wanted to destroy the rest of the world. When I had lost everyone, I would find myself wandering the castle aimlessly. When I finally looked up out of my thoughts I would be in front of his doors. Often times I would end up joining him for tea and I would just talk to him about the unfairness of it all. I could scream, shout, throw things and most times he would either sit there or when it had gone on long enough he would stop me with one of his acerbic witty comments." Draco looked at him indulgently.

" I know now that I wasn't just craving someone to listen to me, I was craving him. His company, his voice, his smell. After the battle when we both withdrew I found myself drifting into depression and I couldn't shake it. I'd always had him before but when he'd been injured and everything was over it was awkward. I would wake up in the morning with a pain in my chest that would never leave. The only time it eased was if I saw him. It took me coming to the past and seeing how great he looks to realize that I've wanted him all along. I've wanted him long before I realized how sexy he was. Now, I'm going to have him. I'm going to make him fall in love with me if its the last thing I do. I want that man so badly it hurts." Draco gave him a sad smile.

"But Harry, what happens when we return to the future?" Harry looked pensive then a resolve flashed across his face.

"Then hopefully he'll be willing to wait for me. I don't want this to just be a fling. I want him for forever, I want to wake up to him every day. I want to have children with him and grow old with him." Harry eyes were glassy when Draco wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulders gave him a comforting squeeze.

"Alright friend, we will see if we can catch ourselves a potions master." Together the two headed off to Potions class.

Arriving in the Potions corridor Draco and Harry noted the distinct segregation between the two houses. The two not wanting to separate stood between the two sides.

Lily noting Harry's forlorn expression gave up trying to ascertain his wellbeing from the Gryffindor side and came to join them in the middle.

"Hey Harry, is everything alright?" She asked cautiously, her natural mothering tendencies screaming at her that this boy needed support.

"It will be Lily, it will be." Harry said as he stared at the object of his desires which was studiously ignoring his stare. Turning back to the two in front of him Harry introduce Draco to his mother. James seeing his girlfriend over talking to the new boys went to join her, wrapping a protective arm around her waste. Lucius also noting the unlikely group made his way over.

"Well Potter, see you made it to NEWT level potions, what a shock." Lucius drawled as he arrived. Harry swiveled around when he heard his one time name. Only Draco's swift kick to his shin stopped him from answering.

"Well Malfoy, we can't all suck up to the professor for good grades now can we, some of us have to work." James said smugly. Draco feeling a sense of deja vu gave Harry a look. Harry just grinned before changing the subject of the conversation.

The door to the Potions classroom opened and the students filed in. The Potions Professor was a strict looking man who seem to be over the age of 100. He had on green robes and square framed glasses. He instructed that the students find a seat but not to become comfortable as they would be assigned partners for the year.

"My name is Professor Dogwood. I am also the Slytherin Head of House for our new students." The class all turned to see Harry and Draco sitting at the back of the class. I will not tolerate petty rivalries in this classroom. If you cannot take potions seriously I will throw you out of my class and you will fail. The art of Potions is a subtle one, the combination of the ingredients is just as important as the correct methods for implementing the potion. This year more than ever we will be working on that subtlety. We will begin with more simple potions and I expect perfection or you will receive a zero. Then as we move up to the more difficult material I will become more lenient with regards to their completed state. Some of the potions we will attempts can only be completed those with the gift for potions, so do not feel discouraged. Now for your partners.

Bones and McLaggen

Parkinson and S. Black

Potter and Malfoy

Lupin and Carpoli

Evans and Solarie

Greenfield and Zabini

Longbottom and N. Black

Williams and Snape

Krane and Dickson

Figg and Avery

Everyone please move to be with your partners." Everyone started shuffling around. Harry looked like Christmas had arrived early. Shooting Draco a grin he settled into the set beside the snarky boy.

"Hi," Harry said to the boy who was studiously trying to ignore him. Severus didn't even spare him a glance.

"We will be working on pepper up potions in today class. The information is on the board get to it. You have 90 minutes." The Professor said as he began walking around the room.

"You go get the ingredients while I get the cauldron started. I have a feeling you will be completely useless at brewing." Severus said to Harry exasperatedly. Harry shrugged amused and went to gather the ingredients. Harry returned with everything required and listen as Severus told him how to prepare the ingredients. Harry tried to focus but the sound of the boys voice had Harry in a daze.

"Williams...Williams…'SMACK'." Harry slammed forward into the desk knocking over some ingredients. He turned surprised towards Severus who was smirking and had gone back to stirring the potion. Harry simply smirked and continued listening to the instructions he was being given.

Draco was working with Lily and seeing as both were proficient brewers the potion was coming along well. On the other side of the classroom, Lucius and James were fighting over which ingredient. The incident had required the Professor intervening and naming Lucius the victor in their squabble. The time passed quickly with Harry all the while trying to touch Severus anyway he could. If Severus was reaching for an ingredient Harry would grab it for him first. As he passed it to Severus he would allow his fingers to linger. He had moved closer to Severus on the bench so now their thighs were touching. Severus while he was outwardly angered, inwardly he was shocked. No one had ever shown him interest. It had to be a joke of some sort. Thus, he continued to spurn the advances.

The class ended, the students bottled their potions and exited the room. Their homework was to find another potion that aided magical folk in a similar method as the Pepper Up Potion.

Before the next class Defense Against the Dark Arts again with the Slytherins. The students had their lunch break. Draco joined Harry at the Gryffindor table, much to the ire of Sirius.

"Damnit Harry, its not right. He's a Slytherin and has no right to be here!" Sirius argued as the boys sat down. He leveled a glare at the brown haired boy. Harry turned to Sirius fed up with his attitude.

"Why?" Harry asked finally after attempting to ignore Sirius for the better part of the meal.

"Because Slytherins are evil."

"What makes them evil?" Harry asked diplomatically, Draco ignoring them and continuing his discussion with Lily about the Potions assignment.

"They practice the Dark Arts."

"So you're saying only Slytherins practice the Dark Arts? Or are you saying that it is the Dark Arts that makes a person evil?" Sirius looked puzzled for a second but Harry cut him off before he could continue.

"Sirius the magic a wizard chooses to indulge in does not make the wizard. Everything from genetics to environment account for how a wizard chooses to use the gifts he is given. With magic such as the Dark Arts or even the Light Arts its all about intent.

Take a simple shield charm, its typically used as a protective charm however I could form the shield all the way around you and cut off your oxygen supply. My intent would be to cause you harm thus, the spell would fall under a darker category. On the flip side I could use a compulsion spell on a person who is going to harm themselves to stop them. There are some spells that are simply dark, The Blood Boiling spell for example and there are some spells that are light like cheering charms, but even those spells can be manipulated to fit the casters desires." Sirius looked thoughtful.

"Look, I understand you grew up in a darker household but you cannot blanket the entire group simply because of your past. It would be like swearing off sex because you had a bad experience once." Sirius looked horrified at the thought of giving up sex.

Being the player that he was he looked down the table and caught the eye of 6th year girl, once she was swooning and he mollified he returned to the conversation.

Draco finally finished his conversation with Lily turned to Harry indicating it was time to head to Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Draco and Harry walked ahead as was becoming the norm, the other students both Slytherin and Gryffindor following the behind. They arrived at the 3rd floor defense classroom and went in as the door was open.

Professor Amelia Bones was the Defense instructor. She was an auror that had been given a leave of absence following an injury and had decided to pass the time by teaching at Hogwarts. Harry looked over at Draco questioningly and he nodded in agreement. This was the same Amelia Bones that was now Chief Justice of the Wizengamot and the aunt of Susan Bones. She looked so young that it was almost impossible to reconcile this soft, smiling woman with the strict, harsh and ambitious woman she would become.

"Welcome to Defense, I'm Professor Bones today we will be focusing on shield charms." Sirius cast a wary look at Harry.

"You will be using the Disarming Hex Expelliarmus to try and get through your partner's shield. Pick a partner, spread out in the dueling area. Ensure you have plenty of room so we suffer no accidents." Harry and Draco immediately partnered. Harry walked over to an area that would be close to Severus and Lucius.

Harry took on the hex casting position while Draco started off attempting to shield. The assignment was so easy for the boys that they began using other spells. Professor Bones had stepped out of the room to run an errand. So the students kept dueling away some of the other students branching away from the assignment as well and sending less the pleasant hexes at the their partners. Harry so focused on making Draco's shield crack that he didn't see the hex coming towards him.

"Harry look out!" Draco yelled. Harry turned and tried to duck but the spell had a locator charm attached to it and thus hit him straight in the chest. Harry flew backwards colliding with the wall. The class stopped and fell silent. Draco ran over and lifted Harry's head off the ground supporting it with his thighs. Lily had abandoned her partner Alice to come and check on the boy. Even James had left a gaping Sirius to come and see.

Draco tried to revive Harry but nothing was working. He didn't know what hex had been used and thus couldn't counter it. He was getting increasingly flustered as it seemed Harry was having trouble breathing.

Severus and Lucius finally joined the fray. Severus pushing through and noticing it was his admirer, threw caution to the wind and joined Draco on the floor beside Harry.

"What happened? What spell was he hit by?" Severus asked as he used his wand to run scans. Lily had tears in her eyes and an upset looking James attempted to comfort her. The two could not understand why they were so affected by seeing Harry on the ground struggling to breath.

Severus found the spell to be a lung constricting curse.

It was a slow killing hex that would cause the victim to slowly asphyxiate. He looked shocked at his findings only Draco and Lucius recognizing the curse for what it was. Severus began muttering the counter curse, he had to say it four times before Harry's lungs stopped constricting, a testament to the strength of the curse. Finally, Severus said an Enervate and Harry shot up sputtering as he drew deep, long breaths. Draco calmed him down using their codewords that had come in handy in the war.

"Four eyes you're fine, I've got you." Draco laid a hand on his shoulder and Harry leaned back against his friend as he tried to regain his equilibrium. Harry looked around noting his parents looking distraught.

Frank, Alice, Remus, Sirius were all a ways back while Lucius and Severus were right close to him. He turned to Severus, who was still kneeling in front of him and smiled.

"My hero," Harry said in a grateful voice yet his eyes darkened to show his arousal. Harry smirked as Severus cleared his throat and quickly got to his feet.

"You should go and see Madam Pomfrey to be sure. I am not a healer."

"I trust you." Harry said seriously. "I think I'll be just fine." Never mentioning that Harry had suffered from the same curse during the war and Severus had been the person to help him then as well.

Harry, up from the floor with Draco supporting him, moved towards the desks. No one else feeling quite like continuing the exercise joined them at the desks talking quietly. Draco turned to Harry with a serious look.

"Are you okay?" Draco asked as he grabbed Harry's chin to check how dilated his eyes were. Harry knocked his hand off jokingly.

"Dray, I'm like a cat, I've got 9 lives," Harry said cheekily. Draco looked covertly around the two of them and discretely cast a silencing charm.

"That was a dark curse and you know it." Draco hissed to Harry angrily.

"Yes, I'm aware Dray, but there's nothing we can do about it now. We don't even know if it was intended for me." Draco looked at him incredulously.

"Harry it had a locator charm attached to it, how could it not be meant for you."

"It hit my chest where my rings are located. It could have been a charm attached to the magic in these rings." Harry pulled his shirt away from his chest at the neck and showed Draco his lordship rings he had inherited upon turning 17 that year. The rings were the Potter and Black rings and each had distinct magic. "The curse could have been directed at one of them and got sidetracked when it felt the magic from my rings. I'm going to have to be careful. If someone finds out I have them, that could turn into a sticky situation." Draco nodded in agreement.

"We'll have to stay on our guard. I'm not going to rule out that someone is coming after you just yet. Too many close calls in your life not to at least be vigilant." Harry smiled at his friend before putting his class work into his bag.

Professor Bones returned and saw the class not practicing but sitting at the desks.

"I apologize. I was having a discussion with the Headmaster and time got away from me. Until next time class, please read chapter 4 in your textbook and write 3 feet regarding the benefits of shield charms and which ones are more useful than others. Cover at least 3 different types of shields in your paper due next week. Class dismissed."

Everyone filed out and headed back to their respective common rooms to wait for dinner to begin in few hours. Harry and Draco went off to find a deserted classroom. Just as they turned the corner a shadow followed them silently.

Harry and Draco entered a classroom and began discussing trivial things having left the door open. Harry placed his bag down on the desk and went to close the door. Noting something was off he gave a signal to Draco who immediately hit the ground as Harry sent out a 4 meter radius stunning charm. They heard two thumps hit the ground. Once the classroom was warded and secured they went to deal with their followers.

Draco noticed the shift in the air around the floor and cast a reveling charm. Lucius and Severus melted into sight. Draco turned to Harry and started laughing, he laughed so hard he fell over. Never had he been able to get the jump on Severus or his father for that matter and now he had gotten them both in one go.

Harry cast a binding spell upon them that cause ropes to wrap around their arms and legs while Draco confiscated their wands. Finally, Harry cast Enervate upon the two of them who opened their eyes and began looking around. Harry got a hard glint in his eyes as he went to question them.

"Why were you following us? Wanted to finish off what you started in Defense?" Harry knew the two had not been the ones to cast the curse as he knew how each of their magics felt. Severus looked at him shocked.

"Williams I swear to you we had nothing to do with your attack this afternoon." Harry gave him a hard look and then released them both.

"You're a strong wizard to be able to cast a radial stunner so easily," Severus commented quietly.

Harry turned to him and the two stared at each other. Harry couldn't even answer as he didn't want to break the moment between him and Severus.

"Look we came here to warn you and keep an eye on the two of you," Lucius interrupted giving the two boys odd glances. "Someone has it out for you, Draco you're a Slytherin now and we protect our own. Williams seeing as Draco has claimed you, our protection goes to you as well." The moment broken as Severus scowled at the mention of Harry's claiming.

"Thank you for coming to our aid today in class. What do you request in return?" Draco asked formally. Harry spun towards him and gave him an incredulous look.

"All Severus and I will ask is that you and Williams watch our back as we have watched yours. One can never have too many allies, you never know when it will come in handy." Lucius answered after a silent conversation with Severus. "You may as well address us by our first names." Harry nodded to Lucius and responded in kind.

"We better head to dinner," Draco began walking to the door. The four left the classroom and headed down to the Great Hall, never noticing the pair of eyes watching them from down the hallway.

Steelo