Author's Notes: Having Salazar Slytherin show up was fun. He'll show up more, too. Also, I do not claim to be awesome at foreign languages so if you find something that is incorrect, let me know. Sorry for the late update. I was feeling a bit unwell yesterday.
It turned out that Prefect Dedworth was an anorak of languages, rumored to know at least thirty in all, including basic non-human ones and others without native speakers like Latin and Vedic Sanskrit. So of course she would have a Wizarding French-English dictionary and an attendant primer, lying about.
"Thank you," he told her, when she handed them to him after stepping off the steps to the girls' dormitory.
"Don't mention it, but if I might ask why the sudden interest in French?"
"I thought it might be useful if I ever move out of country. I heard it can be unpleasant if you leave without the common courtesy of knowing the basic phrases and words."
"Ah..." She paused for a moment, "Yes, national pride makes people a bit too shirty over the silliest things. Are you planning to visit France this summer?"
Harry shrugged. "I don't know. It's a nice thought. I've never been out of country before."
"Well, if you need any help, just ask."
He smiled at her and then he went back to his room. Theodore was hard at work at his desk, while Crabbe and Goyle were playing Exploding Snap.
"Where have you been?!" Draco asked stalking towards him. He shook a folded letter at him. "My father sent me this an hour ago."
Setting the books into his trunk, Harry raised his eyebrows.
"The hearing's been cancelled and the charges against the hippogriff have been dropped," Draco said very proudly.
"That's brilliant! You can have an extra favor on top of the others you've gotten for that."
Draco's lips curled in pleasure. "Might I be allowed to use your Firebolt for the remainder of the school year?"
"Done," Harry said, "So long as you take good care of it."
"Naturally."
"What else?"
"I want a birthday gift this year. For your information, it is June the Fifth."
Harry blinked because the thought of giving birthday gifts hadn't occurred to him until then. "Done. Any others?"
"Yes, I need the use of a certain curse word back."
"What do you need that for?" Harry said heatedly.
"My father is under the mistaken impression that it would be the first thing I ask for from you, and there are… situations where using it is imperative," Draco answered
Harry nearly retorted, but when he looked to Draco and saw how serious he was he relented. "Fine," Harry said flatly. "But if you ever use it around me or Hermione, I'll hex you."
"Your cautionary counsel will be taken into consideration."
"Exactly how many more does he owe you, Draco?" Theodore asked, having turned in his chair with an amused expression.
"Two others," he boasted, acting like a cat playing with a mouse.
"You completely took advantage of him."
"The chicken is saved, and I am at the mercy of my father once again." He turned to Harry at that. "By the way you wouldn't happen to be claustrophobic, would you?"
Harry let out an exasperated noise, and Switched into his night clothes. "You lot have fun. I'm going to bed."
His roommates bid him good night, and after taking off his Glaxxes, Harry closed the curtains and crawled under the covers. To their hushed voices, he fell asleep.
There was something silvery-white winding its ways through the trees ahead, and he could only catch glimpses of it between the leaves. Anxious to catch up with it, he mounted his broom, but as he moved faster so did his quarry.
He heard a woman's warm laugh. "Oh, Harry! Leave Fringle alone."
Not allowing himself to be distracted, Harry leaned forward into the broom and the trees blurred past him. Ahead of him he heard hooves gathering speed.
"Good boy!" Came a man's proud voice.
Harry jolted, head swinging toward where the voice might have come from and nearly slammed into a tree by accident. He looked over his shoulder as he came to a hovering stop. The air was devoid of any voices now. There was a clearing where a lake reflected the full moon. The apparition he'd been chasing was his Patronus, a stag, pawing the ground of the shore across from him. Numbness settled into him as Harry's breath suddenly grew misty in front of him and icy coldness gripped his chest; the dementors were coming for him! He raised his wand and—
"Wake up! We've been ordered downstairs to the common room," Draco told him, shoving his glasses into his hands.
Harry rubbed his eyes and sat up, putting them on. Unsteadily he rose from the bed and followed the rest of the Slytherins to the common room. The entire house spilled into the space murmuring amongst each other, curious as to why they had been summoned so urgently..
"Sirius Black entered Gryffindor Tower this evening and threatened a student in the dormitory with a knife," Snape said, drawing numerous gasps from the gathered crowd.
"How could that happen?" A girl cried out.
"Is there any chance he could get in here?" Another called out.
"Doubtful. An extremely foolish Gryffindor wrote down the week's passwords and subsequently lost said list." His black eyes raked over them, especially the first years. "I do not believe any of you are so dull-witted as to do the same."
Silence gripped them. Harry wondered if withholding the fact he had a magic map from Theodore had been a mistake... It'd be easier to watch it for a name with two sets of eyes.
"The castle is being searched once again, but Black will not likely get caught."
"He didn't take a wand, did he?" Theodore asked.
"Thankfully, he did not. All wands have been accounted for," their Head of House replied. "Obviously the wizard is dangerously deranged. Do not attempt to engage him should he approach you." This time Snape looked directly at Harry.
"Sir, I'm not mad enough to try," Harry said.
The Slytherins around him laughed nervously.
"Did I say something funny?"
"I doubt that you won't somehow manage to become embroiled in a heroic showdown with Black even if I managed to lock you in a trunk," Snape stated.
Second years and older laughed much harder this time as Harry's face burned in anger and embarrassment. "Aren't you describing yourself, sir?" They both knew that Harry hadn't been the one foolhardy enough to slay a basilisk. The room fell silent.
Snape's lips thinned. "Prefects, I will return before dawn. Everyone is to return to their rooms. No one is to leave from here, especially Potter." With that, Snape headed up the stairs towards the exit, black robes billowing behind him as usual.
Harry wanted to hex him. Under his breath, he said, "That greasy—"
"Temper. Mind that you keep that in check, Potter," Snape's voice echoed from the portrait hole. Harry bit down the rest of his insult, his body vibrating in place. Theodore tapped his shoulder once and that seemed to help some.
"How peculiar. Why's my godfather—" Draco murmured, looking between Harry and where Snape had left. He lifted his eyebrows. "Oh. I see."
"See what?" Harry said crankily, turning to go to their dormitory.
"It's not important."
Harry ground his jaw and returned to his room. Of course it was important. Draco just didn't want to tell him. That's fine. It wasn't as if Harry was completely honest about important things either.
The next day, Harry discovered that Sirius Black had not yet been caught. Throughout the day, everywhere they went they saw signs of tighter security; Professor Flitwick could be seen teaching the front doors to recognize a large picture of Sirius Black; Filch was constantly bustling up and down the corridors, filling in the cracks and crevices with a putty-like substance; not only were they escorted from class to class, but the prefects were much more alert than usual, snapping at anyone who stepped a toe out of line.
Harry thought it was interesting that Black could sneak around the passageways without the Wards barring him in his Animagus form... As he stepped into the Great Hall, Harry noticed right away that Ron Weasley's voice was proudly lifting from the center of a group of students.
"I was asleep, and I heard this ripping noise, and I thought it was in my dream, you know? But then there was this draft… I woke up to see one side of my hangings had been pulled down and there he was standing over me… like a skeleton with loads of filthy hair… holding this great long knife, must've been twelve inches... and he looked at me, and I looked at him, and then I yelled, and he scampered."
"You mean you bellowed out a hair-raising scream," Zabini corrected.
"Yeah," Neville added tremulously, "Just about scared the pants off of me."
"And whose fault was it that Black was in Gryffindor Tower in the first place?" Ron sounded rather outraged. Well, that would lower Neville's credibility if he tried to talk about Black being an Animagus.
"Oh, stop," Hermione said. "He's already lost his Hogsmeade privileges and gotten a detention. Leave him alone."
"That's rich, considering your furry pig murdered Scabbers!"
"Crookshanks didn't before and isn't responsible now!" Hermione yelled back. "Your rat was already sick; it could have coughed up the blood found on your sheets and then ran away! Some animals do that when they're about to die."
The two Gryffindors continued to scream at each other. At the touch on his shoulder, Harry looked beside him. "What?"
Theodore gestured to their House table. "Everyone's waiting for us."
Harry obediently sat with his Slytherin year-mates and ate breakfast, while Ron and Hermione continued their loud quarrel.
Monday came, and they went to breakfast in the Great Hall again. The school owls swooped into the Great Hall carrying the mail as usual. Harry caught the letter that Hedwig dropped for him, and she landed on his shoulder and nuzzled his ear with her beak. Harry tore it open and read. Hagrid's letter was spotted with tears, but Harry realized they were happy ones. As Draco had promised, Buckbeak's hearing, which was due to be Friday, had suddenly been called off without explanation.
"NEVILLE LAWRENCE LONGBOTTOM, HOW DARE YOU DEFEAT HOGWARTS' SECURITY MEASURES BY WRITING DOWN PASSWORDS!" An old woman's voice screeched from the entrance hall.
"AFTER I HAVE PAID A GREAT SUM FOR YOU TO BE TAUGHT AT THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS SCHOOL IN EUROPE YOU HAVE BROUGHT SHAME TO THE LONGBOTTOM FAMILY. YOU HAVE BROUGHT SHAME TO YOUR PARENTS AND THEIR SACRIFICE!" The voice boomed a hundred times greater in volume than normal. "YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO THE LONGBOTTOM NAME. IF I HEAR ANOTHER WORD OF YOU ENDANGERING OTHERS, YOU WILL BE REMOVED FROM HOGWARTS AND HOME-SCHOOLED! DO NOT WRITE ANOTHER WORD OF YOUR FANCIFUL IMAGININGS OF BLACK'S ESCAPE! YOUR MARKS ARE ABYSMAL. FOCUS YOUR ATTENTIONS ON SCHOOLWORK INSTEAD OF FAR-FETCHED THEORIES! Worried about you, Gran."
Even though it was much shorter than Ron Weasley's Howler, Harry felt rather sorry for Neville. Being left with his grandmother year-round would be excruciating.
Nothing especially thrilling happened during the week, other than just three things: First thing was Draco's excitement when he came back upstairs after Quidditch practice. "This broom turns at the lightest touch and goes so fast that everything else is a blur! It was so easy catching the Snitch! If only I'd gotten this last month so I could have creamed the Ravenclaws!"
Even without meaning to, a light smile had touched Harry's face. At least someone was getting to enjoy the Firebolt's performance.
Second thing was that Harry had finally managed a dim Patronus in the presence of a dementor-boggart with his lessons with Professor Lupin.
The final thing was that another Hogsmeade weekend was coming up. Harry was itching to sneak out of Hogwarts using the Marauder's Map. He hadn't figured out a way to get past the Whomping Willow yet, but he couldn't stand to stay behind again while his entire year left him behind.
It was almost Easter break and he was absolutely stir-crazy. Besides Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology, Harry hadn't gotten out much, not even to go for a walk to try a few things on the Whomping Willow. Even sending a few letters to Hermione ranting about the unfairness of it all didn't do anything for his mood. Being overprotective was something Harry could understand if Snape was being hounded by the headmaster to keep Harry safe, but the Death Eater had taken it to new levels that Harry hadn't seen since he became a first year. It was getting to be ridiculous.
Classes were nothing special. Just the usual learning and assignments to complete. Then, Saturday morning arrived. After breakfast, Harry had a couple of second-year girls, Astoria Greengrass—Daphne's younger sister—and her friends Lucretia Moss and Bridget Carpenter with him. Harry waved goodbye to his friends leaving Hogwarts grounds, some who called farewell to him. They all waved. Turning, Harry re-entered the castle.
Ginny had approached him afterwards, and they'd had an awkward conversation surrounded by three giggling second years. The Gryffindor excused herself not long after, looking annoyed.
Harry led the chatty girls into the dungeons and to the Thin Lady. "Privilege," he told her. The portrait swung open, and they entered.
"Thanks for walking with us, Potter," Astoria said shyly. Moss giggled, and Carpenter shushed her.
He nodded to them courteously, and they ran up the stairs to the girls' dormitories. Seeing that only two other second years were whispering to one another over what appeared to be an essay, Harry turned towards the window which showed the green murky depths of Hogwarts Lake. For a moment he missed his mermaid friend. He wondered how she was faring since he last saw her.
He carefully pulled out the parchment and drew his wand, tapping it. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."
Immediately he saw that Snape was in a room, labeled Slytherin's Chambers. Keeping the map concealed from anyone else in the common room simply by keeping his back towards them, he looked at where the door should be. There was nothing but blank stones between two pillars. Harry suspected it was a barrier like the one on Platform Nine-and-three-quarters. He watched the map as he moved. He circled the entire common room once and found no other secret doors or hidden entrances, and Snape hadn't moved from his spot on the map…
"What you've got there?" Jerome Stahl, one of the second years who'd been working, asked curiously.
Harry shoved it into his robes. "Just a spare bit of parchment," he told the two second years who looked at him with slightly adoring eyes. "You know, I just remembered I've left something in the library. If Snape asks for me, tell him I'm there."
"But you're not allowed to go by yourself," Peter Reinhardt said.
"Do you really think I need two second years to protect me?"
They averted their eyes looking cowed.
"I'll be back before you know it." Harry left the common room and entered the dungeon corridors. Knowing that the Death Eater would be notified, Harry hurried up to the third floor. As soon as he could, he stepped into a shadow and checked the map. No one was near, and he wasn't far off from the passageway he wanted to use.
Shoving it back into his robes, he hurried. He stopped at a statue of the One-Eyed witch. Taking his wand, he tapped it. Nothing happened. He opened the map and noticed the password was 'Dissendium' and then subsequently saw Neville Longbottom was right around the corner. He stuffed the map into its pouch.
"Harry! I forgot you weren't going to Hogsmeade either!"
"Hi, Neville," Harry said with a smile. "What are you up to?"
"Nothing," he responded with a shrug. "Want to play a game of Exploding Snap?"
"That sounds like fun, but I had some things I needed to get done first."
"What things? Can I help? I know I'm not very good at homework—" He broke off with a small gasp, gazing past Harry's shoulder.
Harry turned. It was Snape. Neville took a step behind Harry. How did the adult always manage to find him? He glanced at the walls and didn't see any portraits in this corridor...
"And what are you two doing here?" The Potions Master said slowly as he looked from one to the other. "An odd place to meet—"
To Harry's immense disquiet, Snape's black eyes flicked to the doorways on either side of them, and then settled for longer than necessary on the statue of the witch.
"We're not—We just happened upon each other here," Harry said, catching himself before he outright lied, "Right, Neville?"
Neville let out a squeak that could have been a yes.
"Indeed?" Snape glanced at them again with narrowed eyes. "You are very rarely in an unexpected place for no good reason, Potter… I suggest the pair of you return to your House common rooms."
Harry nodded. "Yes, sir."
Neville followed him. "Wait, Harry!"
"Longbottom, Gryffindor Tower is in the opposite direction," came the growl. Snape didn't follow him as Harry expected.
As Harry looked back when he turned the corner he saw that Snape was running a hand over the witch's head, examining it closely. Several doors and turns later, Harry stepped into a niche and pulled out the map. Snape was already heading back to the dungeons. As fast as he could, Harry ran back to the statue, tapped it, and said the password. At once, the statue's hump opened wide enough to admit a fairly thin person. Harry perched on the edge of the hole and slid down feet-first on what felt like a stone slide. Then, he landed on cold, damp earth. Above him, the little light that came down through the hole disappeared and Harry was thrust in pitch blackness. He raised his wand, "Lumos!" He was in what appeared to be a low-ceilinged, narrow passageway framed by hard clay on each side.
He used Scarpin's Revealspell, a handy spell he'd only just managed to cast correctly the previous weekend. A spell glowed momentarily, flickering in a telltale pattern. Harry wracked his brain about what it was and when it came to him it wasn't with surprise. It was a blanketing Alerting Spell. Theodore's information must be correct... But then that meant the headmaster had gone down the slide to get here... Harry had the funny image of Professor Dumbledore letting out a shout of glee on the trip down here. Harry grinned to himself and rushed forward through it, knowing that even if he disabled it, chances were high that the headmaster would still be notified.
Following the twists and turns of the passageway, Harry stumbled now and then on the uneven floor with his wand out in front of him. Time passed, and then the passage rose into uneven steps. After he'd climbed what felt like a hundred worn, stone steps, he stopped to catch his breath. He pulled out his still-active map.
Harry had disappeared off the map of Hogwarts. Snape appeared to be heading to the Headmaster's Office, probably to warn the headmaster of Harry's disappearance even when the headmaster would know. He didn't worry whether Professor Dumbledore would tell Snape where he was or not. "Mischief Managed," he said, tapping it. The map blanked out, and he shoved it back into his pouch.
At the very top of the stairs was a heavy oak trapdoor. Harry stood there, listening for a moment. He couldn't hear anything. "Nox," He whispered and then very slowly opened the trapdoor and peered over the edge.
He was in a cellar, which was full of wooden crates and boxes. Deciding that no one was in the room, he climbed out and pushed the trapdoor back down—it blended so perfectly with the dusty floor that it was impossible to tell it was there. Harry crept slowly toward the wooden staircase that led upstairs. Now he could definitely hear voices. He could also hear tinkle of a bell and the opening and shutting of a door. Footsteps creaked on the floor above him—
"Harry Potter!" Herman Honeyduke said eagerly, startling Harry who'd thought he was alone. "Those Weasley boys told me to expect you, but I didn't think you actually would take them up on the offer."
Harry smiled. "I haven't been able to get off of Hogwarts grounds all year."
"Oh, dear boy. Shall I cast a Disillusionment charm on you?" He lifted a rosewood wand.
"Yes, please do. Could you escort me afterwards so I don't bump into your customers?"
"Of course, of course."
Harry waited very patiently as Mr. Honeduke appraised him for a long moment and then flicked the tip of his wand against his forehead. It was like Mr. Honeyduke had cracked an egg right on his forehead and its contents were trickling down Harry's body from that point.
"Best one yet, if I do say so myself," the adult said.
Looking down at himself, Harry saw that he was not invisible. His body had simply taken on the exact color and texture of his surroundings, like a human chameleon.
"Well then, ready to go?"
"Yes." Harry followed Mr. Honeyduke up the wooden stairs leading out the cellar.
Mrs. Honeyduke was selling candy like mad as their store was packed with Hogwarts students. "Where're the Jelly Slugs?"
"Oh, I'll get them in a bit," he said to her as Harry kept in step behind him as close to the wall as he could manage.
A few more steps later, Mr. Honeyduke opened the door as if he meant to peer outside and let Harry pass by him.
Harry took in a deep breath of early April air. His small bit of stolen freedom was such a wonderful feeling.
"Want ta go see the Shrieking Shack again?" Finnigan was saying to Thomas.
"Yeah."
Curious about this building he'd heard so much about, Harry followed them past the Three Broomsticks, up the slope and through a small copse of trees. A dilapidated shack stood a little way above the hill away from the rest of the village. Even in daylight, the shack looked creepy. Straight away, Harry noticed the protective amulets hanging from the barbed-wire fence at the base of it. He wondered if Theodore had sold a few of them.
"Even the Hogwarts ghosts avoid it," Thomas said, "I asked Nearly Headless Nick… he says he's heard a very rough crowd lives up there. No one's ever been able to get inside."
"Well, well, look who's here," Draco's voice sneered. "You two shopping for your new dream home? Bit grand for you, isn't it, Tommy? Doesn't your family live on the streets?"
"Shut yer mouth, Malfoy," Finnigan said.
"Oo, not very friendly," Draco said. "Not very smart to mouth off to me, Sir Faff-igan."
"Locomotor Wibbly!" The Gryffindor screamed out.
"Protego!" The Jelly-Leg Curse harmlessly splattered against the Shield Charm. "Langlock!"
Suddenly, Finnigan mouthed the air but could only grunt. His face was taking on the red color of angry embarrassment.
"Finite Incantatem!" Thomas cast. When nothing happened, he tried again, but whatever Draco had used wasn't removed.
Draco tsked. "Sir Faff-igan, are you hurt? You want to run to your mum to have her kiss it better? Oh, sorry. She's too busy selling herself for a living." Goyle and Crabbe guffawed. "Maybe next time you'll listen when I warn you not to bully someone."
Finnigan lurched forward, but Thomas grabbed him by his robes. "Let's get out of here, Seamus, before he ruins your Da's business too."
"What running away, Tommy? I never took you for a coward."
Thomas stopped, and Finnigan turned his burning eyes to Draco. "You know, Malfoy... You may say you're protecting your own, but you're not. You're too much of a self-important twonk. You only wanted an excuse to bully"
"So?" There came a snort. "I think you just can't stomach the fact that the Boy-Who-Lived is my friend."
"It's obvious he only pretends to. You have too much power. No one would be willing to get close to you."
"You might be surprised," Harry said, ducking behind a tree so they couldn't pick him out.
There was silence for a moment.
"Did you hear that, Seamus? Sounded like Pot—"
"Could be a poltergeist, you ninny," Draco said with an air of someone commenting on the weather.
Thomas cast a general Cancelling spell, and Harry discovered that trees didn't prevent said spell from counteracting the effects of a Disillusionment Charm. He was a sitting exposed, Harry spelled a slight variation to the Stickfast Hex and scrambled up the tree to the branches where the new foliage had begun to grow.
"I heard him. He's somewhere over here!" Thomas' voice drifted upwards. Neither of them bothered to look up.
"Stupefy!" Bark exploded next to them.
"We're telling!" Thomas shrieked at Draco.
"Run, you cowards!" Draco spat out as the two teens ran back down the hill to Hogsmeade.
Seeing that the way was clear, Harry slid down the tree's trunk and turned to see Draco staring in his direction, Crabbe and Goyle gawping. "I'm liable to get detention for that, so you owe me." The blond smirked. "And, we saw nothing, but a certain wayward poltergeist should head back to Hogwarts… Thomas is bound to tell the first teacher he sees…"
Tearing down the path towards Hogsmeade, Harry didn't have to wait long for the door to Honeydukes to open so he could duck in. Bumping into someone only once as he sidestepped a few students, he went behind the counter startling Mrs. Honeyduke. Taking the cellar steps down, Harry saw Mr. Honeyduke. "I've got to get back. Sorry! I'll chat later." He didn't give the startled man time to respond as he ripped open the trapdoor and lit up the way with his wand. He ran down the stairs, across the earthen passage.
Thomas and Finnigan would make it back before him; there was no doubt about that. As he ran, muscles burning and lungs breathing deeply, he formulated what he was going to say to Snape. At the end of the passageway, Harry took out the map and tapped it, whispering the phrase needed for the map to awaken. No one was by the exit and Snape was in the dungeons in his office. Harry had only moments to get out. Deactivating the map, Harry shoved it back into his pouch, which he tied to the side of his belt, and braced his arms and knees against the insides of the stone slide. He rather quickly ascended, amazed that his physical stamina was even better than last year.
Once at the witch's hump, which didn't immediately open for him, he tapped it with his wand and it sprung open. He quickly hoisted himself out and the hump closed behind him. He cast a Cleaning Charm to remove any trace of dust or mud from his robes, shoes, and skin and a Refreshening Charm to get rid of any telltale smells he might have picked up. He quickly headed down the stairs, slowing at the entrance hall.
"Harry Potter?" A heavily accented man said behind him.
Harry turned and nearly started when he saw Salazar Slytherin standing in what was normally an empty still-life of a study room. "Er, I'm sorry. Can't talk right now."
From behind him, Harry heard quick footsteps approaching and robes swishing. Giving the stern-looking Salazar Slytherin a polite bow of farewell, Harry faced Snape who held a suppressed look of triumph about him.
"Did you need something, sir?" Harry presented a completely innocent air about him.
"Come with me, Potter," Snape said.
Harry followed him downstairs and into the bastard's office.
"Sit."
Calmly, Harry did so as his Head of House moved to stand by the large window behind his desk that looked over the shore of the lake. Movement caught the side of Harry's eye and he saw that Salazar Slytherin was peering out of a large painting on the side of the wall.
"Your voice was heard in Hogsmeade," Snape began neutrally.
Harry didn't say anything.
"You are not allowed beyond Hogwarts grounds. To be in Hogsmeade is a flagrant transgression on the rules laid out to you."
"Maybe whoever heard me should go to Madam Pomfrey," Harry said, feeling unafraid by the line of questioning. He'd been in the library after all. "Hearing voices is nothing to be trifled with—"
"Neither Thomas nor Finnigan are suffering from auditory hallucinations," Snape snarled, and he bent over, a hand on each arm of Harry's chair, so that their faces were barely a foot apart. "If your voice was in Hogsmeade, then the rest of you was there as well."
"I was in the library, sir," Harry said, full of honesty.
"Can anyone confirm your statement? No?" Snape's lips curled into a horrible smile. "How extraordinarily like your father you are. He too was exceedingly arrogant. His head was so swollen with pride he believed the only thing he needed to keep the Dark Lord at bay was a Fidelius charm easily broken when the wizard he put his trust in betrayed—"
The pleading screams of his mother were filling Harry's mind, unbearably reminding him of that night. "SHUT UP!" Rage such as he had not felt since Neville had informed him of Sirius Black's betrayal coursed through him. Harry belatedly came to awareness. He was on his feet, wand pointed at Snape's nose. He didn't care that Snape's face had gone rigid, his black eyes flashing dangerously. "You, shut up about my parents!" Harry shouted, thoughts pouring from his brain to his mouth faster than he could think, "It must kill you that James got my mum and not you!"
"What did you say to me, Potter?"
Harry took a deep breath and lowered the wand before he was made to. "I told you to shut up!"
A terrible grin twisted Snape's face. "Turn out your pockets, Potter," he spat out.
Harry didn't move.
"Turn out your pockets, or we go straight to the headmaster."
He wasn't afraid of the headmaster.
"Ah, but he has agreed with great regrets that your great-aunt would create a better learning environment since you have time and again recklessly defeated the measures to ensure your safety."
Harry scowled. "Your measures mean that I don't have a moment to myself."
"Turn out your pockets."
He pulled the empty pockets of his trousers and outer robe inside-out. He made a show of checking the pockets of his inner robe too.
Snape narrowed his eyes. Moving faster than Harry could react, he tore the pouch off of Harry's belt and opened it. He pulled out the large, unwieldy folded parchment from within. "What is this?"
"Spare bit of parchment," Harry said with a flippant shrug. "In case, I wanted to write something down."
The greasy-haired bastard held the pouch upside-down and shook it as if expecting something else to come out. "With no quill and ink?"
"It's magic, professor," Harry said with an annoyed tone.
"Open it," Snape said, offering the parchment to him.
Harry took it and opened the blank pages, not seeing any harm in it.
Snape drew his wand and precisely placed it at the middle the parchment. For a moment, Harry panicked. What if the professor was Moony, Wormtail, Prongs, or Padfoot?
"Reveal your secrets!"
Harry blinked. That wasn't a spell… but something began to appear faintly, very faintly. Nothing that Harry could read at any rate. Harry clenched his hands around the parchment to keep them from shaking.
"Professor Severus Snape, Potions Master of this school, commands you to yield the information you conceal!" The git said, tapping the map sharply.
As though an invisible hand were writing upon it, the faint lines grew fat and black.
"Read it," He commanded, giving Harry a nasty look.
Harry stared at the message and hesitated for a moment. "Mr. Moony presents his compliments to Professor Snape, and begs him to keep his abnormally large nose out of other people's business."
Snape stared coolly at Harry, who took a careful breath and stilled his thoughts so as not to go to pieces. "Go on," the professor said flicking his wand at the parchment.
"Mr. Prongs agrees with Mr. Moony and would like to add that Professor Snape is an ugly git." Harry would have found the messages terribly funny if he wasn't right in front of the ruddy git. He continued, "Mr. Padfoot would like to register his astonishment that an idiot like that ever became a professor." Harry closed his eyes, trying to calm his mirth and peeked with one eye to read the rest. "And Mr. Wormtail bids Professor Snape good day, and advises him to wash his hair, the slimeball." Taking a tight breath, Harry waited for the blow to fall.
"Why you insolent little prat!"
Eyes open now, Harry's mouth was too dry to respond because he'd said that he'd kept the parchment to write on. Snape would say these were imaginary characters that Harry had crafted to insult the Potions Master.
Snape strode to the fireplace which had a roaring fire and seized a fistful of glittering powder from a jar on the mantle above it tossing the handful into the flames. "Lupin! I want a word!"
Utterly bewildered, Harry stared at the fire. A large shape had appeared in it, revolving very fast. Snape stood back and seconds later Professor Lupin was clambering out of the fireplace, brushing ash off his shabby robes. "You called, Severus?" Lupin murmured mildly.
"I certainly did." Snape said, still spitting-mad. The DADA professor turned as if he hadn't expected to see Harry.
"Harry, are you all right?" Lupin asked him gently.
"That—" Snape snatched the map from Harry's lax fingers. "Remains to be seen." The bastard offered the parchment to Lupin. "I have now just confiscated a rather curious artifact from Mr. Potter." Snape glanced towards Harry with a sneer. "Take a look."
Professor Lupin accepted it.
"This is your area of expertise. Clearly, it is full of Dark magic," Snape said lowly, pointing his wand at it as if the map were something very dangerous.
Harry swallowed again, wishing his mind were cunning enough to come up with some excuse to wiggle out of trouble.
An odd, closed expression appeared on Professor Lupin's face before he chuckled. "I seriously doubt it, Severus." The professor gave Harry the merest half-glance, warning him not to interrupt. "Full of Dark magic? Do you really think so? It looks as though it's a parchment design to insult any who tries to read it. Childish, but surely not dangerous? I suspect it's a Zonko product that someone must've given to him."
"From a joke shop? No, I think it's more likely that he received it directly from the manufacturers." Snape made a move to grab it, but Professor Lupin pulled it out of the way.
Harry wasn't exactly sure what Snape was talking about, but Professor Lupin didn't disagree.
"Nevertheless, I shall investigate any hidden qualities it possesses." The grey-eyed man folded up the parchment like he'd done so all his life. Harry frowned at that… and suddenly realized he was probably never going to see the Marauder's Map again. Harry would never live that down with the Weasley twins.
There was a knock on the office door.
Snape shot an irritated look at Professor Lupin. "Come in."
Draco appeared in the doorway. "Professors," he nodded politely. "I heard that rumor about Harry being in Hogsmeade?"
The git's face went blank. "And?"
"Astoria said Harry was in the library with her."
Into the room shuffled the second year, looking terrified and wide-eyed.
"Is this true, Miss Greengrass?"
She nodded. "He couldn't've been in Hogsmeade, sir. He was with me working on his essay on vampires."
"You may go," Snape told her sharply. Draco and Greengrass exited quickly. Harry wondered how they had gotten away with it. "Potter, take better care not to leave your stray hairs about to prevent illegal impersonation."
This left Harry mildly confused. Couldn't he tell that she was lying? He narrowed his eyes at his Head of House, suspicious. If the bastard could read minds—use Legilimency—then he knew that Harry knew Astoria was lying. Snape's cheek twitched into a lopsided smirk before his expression became blank once more.
What was he up to?
"Well!" Professor Lupin said clapping his hands together and looking at them cheerfully. "Now that's taken care of. Harry, would you come with me please? I need to clarify a few expectations on that essay on vampires… Severus, excuse us."
Harry didn't dare look at Snape as they left from his office into the dungeon corridor. Once they'd made it up the stairs to the third floor room that Professor Lupin used as an office, Harry turned to him. "Professor, I—"
"I don't want to hear explanations." Professor Lupin glanced about the empty corridor before pulling the door shut. He tapped the door with his wand. "I happen to know this was a map confiscated by Filch many years ago."
Professor Lupin did handle it with strong familiarity. "Did you make it, sir?"
The professor chuckled. "Very astute, Harry. I was Moony, a nickname of sorts… I am, however," He shot Harry a very stern look. "Astounded that you didn't hand it in. Did it never occur to you that this in the hands of Sirius Black is a map to you?"
Harry nodded his head because it had occurred to him.
"Yes?" Professor Lupin prodded.
"Yes, sir, it had," Harry said.
"You know, your father never set much store by the rules either. But he and your mother gave their lives to save yours. Gambling their sacrifice by sneaking out of Hogwarts unprotected with a killer on the loose seems a poor way to repay them!" The tendons in Professor Lupin's neck were corded and his neutral expression emanated anger.
How had he known that Harry had, in fact, left Hogwarts? Did Harry smell like the passageway? Harry took a careful breath, deciding it was better not to speak. Even unChanged and with regular doses of Wolfsbane Potion, werewolves were notorious for their tempers.
Professor Lupin snorted at Harry's arrested expression, and the tension faded with the next words. "You and your friends may have duped Professor Snape, but not me." He tapped his nose. "I can sniff out a lie, and you dear Harry are drenched with them." He breathed out and said more quietly, "Now, I will not remain quiet a second time should this happen again. Do you understand?"
"Yes, sir," Harry whispered and looked at the floor.
"I want you to return to the Slytherin Dungeons and stay there."
Harry nodded and turned to leave.
"And don't take any detours. If you do, I shall know," Professor Lupin said, tapping the map with a finger.
As the door opened to let him out, Harry stopped. "Professor?"
"Yes?"
"Just so you know… I think the charms are beginning to wear off on the map."
"Oh?" He said looking down at the map with interest.
"Some nights ago… It showed someone in the castle. Someone who we both know to be dead."
"And who might that be?"
"Peter Pettigrew," Harry said solemnly. When Professor Lupin's face twisted partly in dismay and partly in disbelief, Harry continued hurriedly, "That's why I think it doesn't quite work. It's impossible, I know… I'll see you at class next week." As Harry left, the DADA professor clutched the deactivated map.
Harry felt worse than he did in Snape's office, but not because Professor Lupin was upset that he'd left the safety of Hogwarts Castle. No, it was because Harry had mentioned Peter Pettigrew. The wizard was dead and likely had been in the same circle of friends as Professor Lupin, Sirius Black, and Harry's parents. Bringing that up to Professor Lupin had been unnecessarily cruel.
Hermione and Sally-Anne were waiting in the Entrance Hall as if expecting Harry to show. Their faces lit up when they saw him; Hermione's especially.
He stopped, looking between the two of them. "What is it?"
"I know I haven't been a good friend this year, but when Hagrid said the hearing was called off I thought it was just a stroke of luck. The man was nearly beside himself. He built Buckbeak a more permanent nesting structure!" She glanced to Sally-Anne. "I only found out today that you'd lobbied Draco to change his father's mind. Why didn't you say anything?"
"Well, when Theodore said that finding cases that would prevent his execution was impossible—"
Under Sally-Anne's amused eyes, Hermione flung her arms about Harry's neck tightly like she had last year, except now she felt softer, less bony. He very awkwardly patted her back. He was never going to get used to being hugged.
"Thank you, thank you, Harry. Hagrid's invited Neville and me for tea the evening after our Herbology exam, but I want you to come. He'll be so happy to see you." Her voice faltered as her arms tightened around him. "If... If only you could find Scabbers too, so Ron would start talking to me again…" She sounded as if she'd been caught underwater and then she began to cry.
Harry shot a bewildered look at Sally-Anne, who mimed rubbing Hermione's back and mouthed 'It's okay.'
"It's okay, Hermione. I'm sure the rat'll turn up; Snape's probably caught him again…" Harry said awkwardly rubbing her back.
Eventually she calmed enough to tearfully thank him again, and Harry was allowed to return to the dungeons with Sally-Anne.