A/N: I'm glad to announce that Shadow has found my dear readers benevolence! He and Ayda won't become major players, though, they will only reappear now and then to add important knowledge about Harry.

Now, before you read the new chapter, a short question: How long do you want this to be? Should I keep it nice and short, with a possible prequel, or do you want a full scale epic tale?

Tell me! I'll try to oblige...

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Homewards

Snape floated Potter out of the vampire inn and beyond its gate before he lowered him to the earth and applied a quick Enervate.

"Come on, Potter, we have to leave," He commanded as the man groaned and slowly opened his eyes, but though Potter looked quite unable to move on his own, he complied silently and without hesitation, and once more Snape was surprised by the Gryffindor's resilience.

Killing Dark Lords and living with vampires probably did that to you, he mused quietly.

Snape led the way with a light glowing from his wand, expecting Potter to ask about Shadow and why they had left without a goodbye, but the young man kept his silence.

"What did you do while I was out?" Potter finally inquired as the inn vanished in the darkness behind them.

"I got myself one of these flashy tattoos," Snape grumbled, raising his hair to show the golden sign. "Your friends really are full of surprises, Potter."

Despite the tiredness that must weary his bones, Potter laughed one of his open, warm laughs that showed nothing of the hardships he had gone through.

"I have no idea what you are talking about," He protested mockingly.

"They are all mad, Potter. And they seem to suffer from the severe misconception that you respect me."

"But I do, Professor," The answer was as simple and sincere as most of Potter's statements these days, and probably as useless to question or doubt. Snape just raised an eyebrow, and Potter grinned at him, probably knowing exactly what his old Professor was thinking.

As impossible as it had become to read Potter, the man seemed to have no difficulty to see through other people's thoughts and feelings.

"That vampire seemed to be quite protective of you," Snape tried again to produce a reaction in the other man, but Potter just snorted.

"Shadow´s read to much Charles Dickens," He answered lightly. "The moment I even scratch my knee, he goes all Oliver Twist with me. Poor little boy that never had a real home, yada, yada. Vampires are terribly sentimental. That's why they overreact whenever they befriend a human. Our mortality frightens them."

"From what he told me, he had good reason to be frightened for you," Snape commented quietly, and had the satisfaction to see Potter falter in mid step.

"So he told you," The young man said calmly after nearly a minute's silence. "Well. I suppose you had a right to know it. I just don't like to talk about it."

Now it was Snape's time to snort. "I know the feeling," He told Potter, wondering at the same time what had gotten into him.

But instead of curious questions or snide remarks, Potter just nodded solemnly. "I know you do," He answered. "That was one of the reasons why I chose you instead of Dumbledore."

"Dumbledore would have understood you much better, Potter," Snape said calmly. "He is a Gryffindor, too, you know, and has much more patience with fools."

"You mean he prefers fools to those who think for themselves," Potter retorted, just as calmly. "Because they are easier prompted to do his bidding."

Snape frowned while they entered the forest and finally reached their disapparation point. There it was again, that slight tension in Potter's tone whenever Dumbledore was mentioned. Not enough to be called aggressiveness, but with Potter's general serenity, it was the equivalent of an emotional outburst.

Snape remembered Potter's behaviour towards the Headmaster now, during the first minutes of his return. He had seemed on his guard, slightly nervous, but also resigned, as if he looked on his Headmaster as something unavoidable, like a natural force of twinkliness and lemon drops.

And that strange comment about forgiving him…

"What is it with you and the Headmaster, Potter," Snape finally asked as they had apparated back into Potter's living room and Potter had moved into the kitchen to fix a pot of tea.

"You seemed all happiness and grandfather-son harmony while you were at Hogwarts."

"Only until I grew old enough to know better," Potter commented calmly from the kitchen, reappearing after a moment with a teapot in his left and two mugs in his right hand. "Which happened some time during my fifth year. Unfortunately, I was too Gryffindor to understand what was going on, and to react accordingly."

"Now don't tell me that Slytherin would have been the better choice for you, Potter," Snape mocked. Albus had told him about the Sorting Hat's words, probably in an attempt to improve the relationship between Potter and his Potions Master. The attempt had backfired rather spectacularly, and ended with an irate Head of Slytherin threatening the Hat with doom and damnation if he ever even considered a stunt like that again.

Afterwards, he had felt rather foolish. Threatening a hat. Now really.

"In some ways, it would have been, Professor," Harry answered thoughtfully, ignoring Snape's sarcastic tone as he chose to do so often these days. "In other ways, it would have been disastrous."

Snape nodded, shuddering in horror at the thought. "Some people would have died a premature and rather painful death," He commented at the thought of Malfoy and Potter sharing a dormitory. He chose to ignore the idea of himself having to console a teenage Potter.

"On the contrary, Professor," Harry smiled slightly and offered his former teacher a cup of tea. "Many people would have stayed alive. Including Voldemort, I fear. As a Slytherin, I would never have dreamed of committing all those idiocies that I miraculously survived. I would have stayed in the safety of my dormitory and waited for the right time to come. Which never would have happened, of course."

"Why not?"

But Potter just smiled silently and sipped his honey flavoured tea, and suddenly, Snape realized that the brat had actually managed to change the topic without him noticing anything. Talking of Slytherins, were they?

"You and the Headmaster, Potter," Snape reminded him and had the satisfaction to see the smile die somewhere between two sips of tea.

"I'm afraid it isn't my place to tell you."

"Oh really," Snape very nearly purred. "And here I thought you were the expert on your life!"

Whatever reaction he had expected from Potter to that smug reminder, it wasn't the open, amused smile that lightened the other man's face in answer.

"That one goes to you, Professor," He chuckled and again, Snape could have slapped everything and anybody in reach.

"But I really think you should talk to Dumbledore about that," Potter continued, turning serious again. "It is in the past, and for him to tell."

"I will find out anyway from your memories, Potter," Snape reminded him. "And it would be easier if I had some information beforehand. That Dursley guesswork was not exactly to my liking."

"Of course. I expect it was a rather unpleasant experience, Professor," Potter agreed heartily as if it hadn't been much more unpleasant to live through all that and then experience a replay many years later. "But would you have believed me if I had told you about it beforehand?"

Potter's question was met by silence. No, Snape wouldn't have believed a word, preferring to think that the boy was just heartily spoiled and too used to exaggerations. But he certainly wasn't going to admit that to him.

"I mean," Potter continued, curling his hands around the warmth of his cup. "If I tell you now that Dumbledore withheld important information from me, you will argue that it was his good right to do so. If I complain that he didn't keep me and my friends save from danger, you would say that it was impossible to keep someone as intent on mischief as myself from anything I wanted to get my fingers on, and you would probably be right."

He smiled slightly, and Snape hastily hid his astonished expression behind another cup of tea.

"If I told you that Dumbledore was manipulative and willing to risk more than just my life, you would answer that it was impossible to reason with me, as I possessed the mental capacity of a rubber duck, and – apart from the know-it-all Granger, who had a book instead of a head – the rest of Gryffindor possessed not an inch of brain more.

"I then would conclude with the complaint that Dumbledore didn't prepare me sufficiently for the tasks he set me, you would finish the match with a reminder of my Occlumency lessons, which ended due to my own foolishness, and would lean back in satisfaction."

But the only one who leaned back in satisfaction was Potter, again smiling gently, while Snape occupied himself with seriously considering a surgical fixing of his jaw. It tended to drop dangerously often in the presence of Potter.

"You see, Professor," Said nuisance added pleasantly and refilled his tea cup. "The discussion would be rather fruitless, at least on such an abstract level, and again I'm refusing to tell you Dumbledore's secrets. Ask me anything you want, but not that."

Snape opened his mouth for a cascade of scathing comments, and closed it again. So Potter thought him that easy to see through? He had probably held mental discussions with him for years to be that good in imitating Snape.

Snape shuddered at the thought.

But the last remark had been a bit too smug, and who was he to let a good chance pass? Ask him anything he wanted, indeed.

"Why did you vanish like that after you defeated the Dark Lord?" Snape inquired in a mild tone, and Potter very nearly dropped the teapot.

Hah, that had got him right were it hurt, Snape glowered, but Potter's reaction wiped the satisfaction from his mind.

A shudder went through the man, and suddenly Snape expected another seizure. Snape cursed silently. What had he thought he was doing? This wasn't one of their merry shouting matches, but a patient-healer relationship, and he knew well enough not to agitate the brat!

Luckily, the symptoms disappeared as fast as they had come, and Potter resumed his usual calmness in a heartbeat. The only indication of his emotional state was the mug in his hands that trembled slightly in Potter's hard, nervous grip.

Snape hadn't expected a reply, but obviously, Potter had been serious about this "ask me any question" thing, and was getting ready to answer him. For a moment, Snape considered stopping him, worried that it might be too much, but then his curiosity took over.

"After… I killed him," Potter began slowly, averting his eyes, "I was… in quite a bad state. My magic was nearly spent and I knew I wouldn't have the strength for any further apparitions. The idea of returning to Hogwarts, of them fussing all over me, the press and the noise and the publicity… was quite revolting at the time."

He paused for a moment, and his eyes grew dark, not the pale colour of anger, but the green of moss still moist from the morning dew.

"I couldn't bear to tell everyone what had happened in that throne room, to myself, and to Hermione and Ron. And Shadow… He needed to get out before you all arrived. So I went down and freed him, not thinking much at all. I mean, who would expect the Prince of Vampires to take a mortal wizard with him and nurse him back to health? I didn't, certainly."

Snape silently pictured the imposing Shadow in his mind, carrying a protesting Potter in his arms, who complained loudly that this "wasn't fair" and "completely uncalled for", and had to suppress an amused snort.

If anybody had told him before tonight that he would ever pity the Prince of Vampires, he would have laughed. Now, he felt too deep a pity to express in words. Shadow had probably never realized what had hit him.

"But in hindsight," Potter continued, clearly returning to his former serenity. "It was the best thing I could have done. I would never have found the strength to leave for good if I had returned to Hogwarts that day, and though Shadow prevented my… primary plans for my future, he allowed me to build an entirely different one for myself, one that was better than the Boy Who Lived could have ever expected in the wizarding world."

"If this future is so perfect for you, Potter, why then are you so intent on dying?" Snape asked sceptically.

Potter just shrugged in that annoying way of his, ignoring all attempts of provocation. "My time has come, Professor," he answered simply. "I should have died so many times before, and I was forced to fight so many battles against my will, why shouldn't I decide to accept my fate and go in peace?"

"So this whole thing isn't what Shadow called a "suicide attempt", is it, Potter," Snape inquired carefully, hiding the worry that lay behind his words. His work was difficult enough as it was. He didn't need Potter to secretly counteract his efforts.

"Good God, Professor, of course not," Potter protested, this time with real shock in his voice. "Though you never believed me capable of it, I can indeed differentiate between my own wishes and the needs of the many. As long as my illness endangers other people, I will have it treated."

He smirked, as if suddenly an idea had entered his head. "Besides," He added. "I would never dare to cause you unnecessary work. For that I just respect you too much, Professor."

"Good to know you haven't lost your happy-Gryffindor approach to the world, Potter," Snape bit out in annoyance.

"Oh, but I did lose it, Professor," Potter answered seriously, his face a little sad as if he remembered a dead pet, not a bunch of suicide attempts. "For quite a few years, in fact. It's due to Shadow, Ayda and a few other people you do not know yet that I got it back."

Severus sighed, resignedly, doing his best not to think about the „yet" in Potter's words. If they were only a bit like his other friends, he hoped fervently to never meet hese „few other people", thank you very much.

„Well, at least I know now that you were not always so unbearably calm," He tried to stir them back to safer waters.

Potter chuckled. „I would take good care if I were you, Professor," He warned Snape. „You wouldn't wish to turn into an optimist!"

„With you around, Potter, I believe that is not an option available to me," Snape grumbled.

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A/N: Review? Pretty please?

Next chapter has Potter-the-child starting his first year at Hogwarts, and Severus writing a letter with unexpected results...