Disclaimer – It isn't mine.

Thanks so much for your reviews. Obviously this plot so far is going down well. Thanks again

Chapter 2 – Revelations of Many Kinds

'It had been a trying day for all of us. ' Snape cut in smoothly. 'I suggest some rest may be in order and we can discuss this further in the morning.'

The rest of the staff seemed to want to protest but the combination of Snape's most acidic glare and Harry's look of stunned melancholy that had yet to be directed at anywhere but the headmaster's chair and they all filed back out of the room, albeit not without grumbling.

When the room was empty Snape moved towards Harry, placing a gentle hand on the young man's shoulder startling him so much he flinched. 'Try and get some rest. I will return in the morning.'

Harry nodded but Snape could see the young man didn't really hear him. He gave the shoulder a final squeeze and moved towards the door.

'Goodnight, Professor.' Harry said softly showing that he had in fact heard the older man.

Snape looked back to see Harry leaning against the wall, cloak pulled tightly around him, his eyes back to the empty chair.

'Goodnight, Headmaster.' He replied before disappearing down the staircase before he could see Harry's green eyes flick to him in shock.

The eyes widened as the full reality of what the potions master had just said finally hit him. 'Oh god, Albus.' Harry whispered. 'What have you done?'

Snape barely slept, instead allowing himself to grieve in the privacy of his own quarters. A number of glasses of Fire Whiskey were consumed, and several bottles found themselves smashed against the walls as Snape finally let out the anger and loss he had been feeling since Dumbledore had spoken to him those three long days ago.

It was only as morning arrived that he thanked Merlin he was a potions master as he swallowed an extra strong hangover draught and went to ready himself for the day. There were students to be told, a Minster to be informed and staff members to be fought with. They were not going to be happy, that went without saying, but they had no choice. It had been Hogwarts decision, just as it had for every headmaster before.

When Dumbledore had told him just a week ago that the end was near and who exactly the castle had chosen to be his successor Snape had been floored. For starters, he had known exactly how the young man had felt after leaving the United Kingdom. Dumbledore had been very forthcoming regarding the Boy-Who-Lived, to Snape anyway. He knew how much Harry Potter would detest returning to the school and the people he had left behind almost a decade ago.

He also knew the reactions others would give and he wondered whether the man Harry Potter now was would be strong enough to handle the prolific number of Howlers that were sure to arrive once the news got out. He knew Albus had had immense faith in the boy, but he wasn't so sure. He sighed as his mind bought forth the promise he had made before leaving for the US.

'Damn you, Albus.' He swore softly.

Harry had sat on that cold stone floor, staring at the empty chair in the room that held so many memories, for longer than he could fathom.

Even as the dark sky outside finally gave way to light he sat still as stone. A thousand thoughts ran through his mind but the most significant one had him gasping.

Headmaster.

Headmaster!

What on earth was Albus thinking?

He couldn't be the headmaster of Hogwarts. He was barely thirty.

He couldn't think properly. His head was spinning and he knew he was going to be sick, summoning a waste basket without thought.

He wretched for what seemed to be hours, unable to come to terms with the fact that he was stuck here. He didn't want to stay. He didn't want to see everyone. He'd left for a reason.

'Damn you, Albus.' Harry gasped as tears filled his eyes again. 'You left me. You bastard, you left me.'

Hands grasped his shoulders and held him tightly. 'Calm down, Harry.' Snape's soothing voice barely toughed on the edge of his consciousness.

'He left me. He left me.' Harry sobbed.

'It'll be alright.'

'No it won't.' Harry cried wrenching himself away from the older man who he hadn't even noticed come in. 'He was all I had, and he left me. He made me come back to all this and then he left me. I don't want this. I don't want any of this. I just can't believe he did this to me.' Harry finished, his chest heaving with the exertion of his rant.

'He didn't do it to you, Potter. He did it for you.' Snape said quietly. 'Someone of your age shouldn't be so isolated from everyone.'

Harry let out a bitter laugh. 'Ha, that's rich. I have two words for you, Snape. Pot and black. You figure it out.'

Snape ignored the biting sarcasm. 'It's true. You'll only turn into a bitter lonely old man.'

Harry's head shot up, his eyes glittering furiously. 'Have you thought that that's maybe what I want. Did Albus ever think that? God.' Harry turned away. 'Ten bloody years and everyone is still living my life for me.'

Snape waited in silence until Harry looked up once again. 'Have you ever thought, Harry, that perhaps that is because yours has been a life half lived?'

If Snape had thought the young man was angry before that was nothing compared to the fury that was flashing in the green eyes now. 'Have you thought, Snape, that perhaps that was exactly how I chose to live. Ten bloody years he tried to get me to come. Every week he came, stayed through the holidays, encouraging me to return but I didn't. Do you know why?' Harry snapped and Snape wisely didn't answer the rhetorical question. 'BECAUSE I DIDN'T WANT TO.' Harry bellowed. 'THEY HATE ME. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM. THEY USED ME AND CAST ME ASIDE. I TURNED MYSELF INTO A MURDERER FOR THEM.' Harry spun away to stare out the window, the Quidditch Pitch bathed in golden light from the rising sun. 'I buried every feeling I had. Love, happiness, guilt, loss, right, wrong. Everything. My heart was screaming at me that what I was doing was wrong, but it was what everyone expected of me. What they trained me to be. You cannot begin to imagine what it is like at fifteen to be told that either you kill, or you will be killed. No one can know what what's like.' Harry finished softly, his eyes squeezing shut as he swallowed.

'You must have had some feelings left, otherwise you wouldn't have run away.'

Harry sighed, his hands wringing into what looked almost like knots. 'I spent more than two years turning myself into exactly what they wanted me to be. Two years, and then, after it was all over, after I saw what I'd done, I lost it. Albus took care of me and kept me away from everyone. I didn't even know exactly what had happened until much, much later, and by then I didn't care. I had Albus. I didn't need anyone else.'

'He did love you, Harry. You have to know that. He did what he thought was right, but above all else, you were his family.'

'And he was mine.' Harry whispered sadly, his eyes squeezed tightly shut as if in pain.

Snape stared at the broken young man before him. He hadn't realised just how strong the depth of feeling between Harry and the man who had obviously been like a father to him. He had known Albus had visited the boy regularly, or he had after Albus had told him several days ago. He just hadn't realised how much the young man had relied on the elderly wizard.

'What are you going to do now, Harry?' He asked hesitantly.

Harry sighed. 'I have no idea. Can you imagine what is going to happen when this gets out? We'll be lucky not to have a lynch mob down by the gates.' He muttered.

'Hogwarts won't let anything happen to you, you know that don't you.'

'Do you think that really matters to me?' Harry snapped, turning away. 'I would have thought you'd have worked it out before anyone. I can't die, Snape. God knows I've tried. Many times.' Harry added harshly, throwing up his hands and missing the horrified look on the older man's face. 'I could walk off the bloody Astronomy Tower right now and all I would get for my trouble is probably a sore arse and a hell of a headache.'

'Merlin.' Snape breathed.

Harry turned back to face him, a twisted sneer marring his features. 'What? Albus didn't pass on that little fact when he made you promise to look after me?' Harry snarled.

'I didn't promise to look after you.' Snape said coldly.

Harry's laughter was colder. 'Yeah, right. You're here out of the goodness of your heart.' He retorted. 'You hate me, Snape. You always have. You wouldn't have been caught within a hundred miles of me if you could help it. So what did Albus bribe you with to make you stay? I would have thought you of all people, would be leading the mob calling for my head. What did he promise you in return for you faith in me?'

Snape could see the hurt, frightened boy deep in Harry's eyes and his hard expression softened. 'I'll not lie to you.'

'That'd be a change.' Harry mumbled.

Snape growled. 'I've never lied to you, Potter.' He said challengingly. Harry met the glittering black eyes for several moments before he looked away and nodded. 'I did make a promise to, Albus.' Snape said slowly, going on when Harry opened his mouth to speak. 'I promised him I would give you a chance. I promised him I would stand beside you for the rest of the year at the very least and then, and only then, when I had enough information to make an informed choice, then I could.'

Harry's eyes widened. 'You were going to leave?' He whispered, looking slightly panicked at the notion.

Snape's first thought was to lie but he quashed it. 'No. I wasn't. Albus just wanted to make sure you had someone in your corner.'

Harry tilted his head slightly, studying the older man intently. 'You're more...different now, Professor.'

Snape's mouth twitched. 'Don't you mean more tolerant, Mr Potter.' He drawled, the trademark eyebrow raised.

Harry gave him a wane smile. 'Maybe.'

'Not having your life threatened on a daily basis tends do to that to you.' Snape said quietly. 'And we have you to thank for that.'

Harry's eyes became distant and Snape could almost see the very memories of that day flashing in the man's expressive green eyes. 'Do you think what I did was wrong?' He asked softly.

Snape well remembered the week before the final battle. The Boy-Who-Lived had been snatched from off the Quidditch Pitch of all places. Portkeyed away the moment he caught the snitch in spite of the wards around the school. In the week that followed he had been subjected to every type of torture possible. Snape knew it would have killed anyone else, but by the time the potions master managed to sneak the boy's wand to him it was almost too late and Harry had snapped; turning into the soldier of war he had been trained to be; destroying the Dark Lord and every single Death Eater in less than an hour. It had been a one sided slaughter. Snape, in fact, had been the only one left standing, and it had been him who had delivered the practically comatose twenty year old to the headmaster before the Aurors could arrive and seize him.

Snape shook his head. 'No, Harry. I think you did what you needed to do. None were innocent that day and the wizarding world is better for it. I don't think what you did was wrong.' He finished quietly.

Harry seemed to slump slightly at his words. His eyes searched the empty office, looking at the snoozing portraits before landing on the large mahogany desk. 'I don't think I can do this, Professor.' He whispered.

'Harry, you have to. There is no one else who can.'

The Boy-Who-Lived sighed heavily. 'Why does it always come down to that?'

'Come down to what?'

'Come down to the fact that just because I can do something others can't, I am under an obligation to do so.' Harry replied waspishly.

Snape's mouth twitched again. 'Because with greatness comes responsibility, dear boy.'

Harry glanced over at the dour looking man in silence for several momoents before snorting softly. 'You're as bad as he was.' He said fondly as he remembered the many times he had been called exactly that.

'Repeat that and you'll find out just how different I am.' Snape scolded but there was surprisingly no heat behind it.

A knock interrupted them and Harry cast a panicked glance at the door.

'Relax, Harry.' Snape said softly. 'It's just the rest of the staff. The will want to know what's going to happen.'

'What is going to happen?'

Snape gave the younger man a wicked smirk. 'You're the headmaster. You tell me.' he snorted.

Harry glared at him. 'Bastard.' He muttered.

Snape gave him one last smirk before his face evolved into its usual glare as he crossed to open the door.

Harry moved back behind the desk but couldn't yet bring himself to sit in Dumbledore's chair so he just looked at the Professors as they filed in one after the other. He quickly conjured enough chairs and some tea as he surreptitiously rubbed at his cheeks to remove the tracks he knew were still visible.

'Good morning, Professors.' Harry said politely as he poured the tea.

'Good morning, Headmaster.' McGonagall replied curtly causing Harry to knock the teapot against the teacup loudly.

Harry quickly placed the teapot down as most of the staff took a cup; Harry thought it was most probably so that they could do something with their hands.

Harry himself wished he could do something with his hands without looking nervous. He glanced once more around the room and started slightly as he felt Snape place a hand on his shoulder and push him down into the chair as he reached past him to pick up a cup of tea.

'It is your chair now.' He murmured.

Harry nodded and settled himself, closing his eyes as the smells that he associated with Albus enveloped him.

'Mr Potter.' McGonagall spoke again, however it was slightly more gentle this time.

Harry blinked. 'Sorry.' He muttered. 'I'm going to allow you free reign this morning to ask what ever questions you wish. This is a one time offer that will not be repeated, so I'd recommend taking advantage of it.'

Most of the staff just glanced at each other before Flitwick spoke up. 'Where have you been?'The diminutive wizard asked hesitantly.

'In the United States. North Carolina to be exact.' Harry replied, taking a sip of the tea Snape had placed in front of him.

'How long has Albus known where you were?' This question came from Poppy.

Harry glanced back at Snape before answering. 'Albus knew from the beginning.' He said quietly. 'He's the one that took me there. Got me out of England and looked after me.'

'Albus has known where you were for ten years?' Hooch burst out. 'When the Ministry and the Aurors were looking for you?'

'Yes.'

'Why would Albus do that?' Sinistra asked.

Harry closed his eyes and took a deep breath letting the familiar smell wash over him once more. 'Because he believed in me.' Harry whispered.

'How often did you see, Albus, Mr Potter?'

Harry opened his eyes and those in the room couldn't help but see the pain and grief still shining in the green eyes. 'All the time. He'd come for dinner every week and he spent at least a month of the holidays with me.' Harry replied.

'So when he was supposedly in Spain visiting his niece...'

'He was in the States with me.' Harry finished for his old professor.

'Hmph, I knew he was sneaky but...'

Harry's fond grin said it all. 'We always underestimated his sneakiness.' He murmured, the tone full of affection.

'Why did you come back, Mr Potter? The future does not bode well for you here.' Sybil Trelawney's hollow voice echoed around the room.

Harry restrained from rolling his eyes at the prediction. 'I returned because he was asking for me.' He said simply. 'He had done so much for me, I couldn't refuse him.'

'Why did he give you the wards? Why did he choose you?' McGonagall placed her now empty teacup down on the desk.

Harry shook his head. 'He didn't choose me.' He corrected. 'Apparently Hogwarts did.'

'Hogwarts?'

Harry sighed, running a hand tiredly over his face. 'Look, I don't know exactly how it works. All I know is that he asked me to come and I did. He pushed the wards onto me and now I have to stay here until such time as I can dismantle enough of them to be able to pass them on to someone else.'

'You don't plan on staying?'

'Only as long as I have to.' Harry confirmed standing up. 'I know when I'm not wanted. I didn't ask for this position, but I will fulfill it to the best of my abilities until such time that I can return to my peaceful life far, far away from here.'

This small speech stunned the entire room and Harry took the opportunity to get down to it. 'I've notice we're missing several Professors. Perhaps someone could fill me in on who's missing.'

McGonagall coughed politely. 'Hagrid is still a little overwhelmed. I'm sure he will be up to see you later. Amelia Vector has been called away unexpectedly. I'm not actually sure she is aware that Albus has passed.' The transfiguration professor explained.

Harry nodded. 'And what of Defence? Which complete twat happens to be teaching it this year?'

There were several nervous shifts around the room and a soft growl from his right elbow. 'The complete twat you so graciously speak of, Potter, would be me.' Snape sneered.

Harry's eyes widened and he blushed. 'Sorry Professor.' He said sheepishly. 'Have you been in the position long?'

Snape raised an eyebrow. 'Five years. I'm surprised Albus never mentioned it.'

Harry glanced away. 'We never spoke of Hogwarts.' He murmured. Suddenly he looked back, a curious expression on his face. 'Hang on, if you're teaching Defence, who teaching potions?'

'I am.' Came a familiar voice from the still open door.