As Christmas rapidly approached, the mood in the castle rose, despite the dropping temperatures, with Gryffindor destroying Slytherin in the first Quidditch match of the season, further inflating both Thomas' and James' egos to new peaks. Luckily for Harry, James Potter had seemingly forgotten the corridor incident after the match and had switched from taking points of Slytherin to giving Gryffindors points for the smallest things, such as "travelling through the corridor in an organised and diligent manner", much to the disgust of the Slytherins, and the delight of Thomas. He had been so confident that he decided that attacking Harry from behind in the hallway was a good idea. Needless to say, it had ended poorly for him as he ended up with numerous ailments and injuries. Unfortunately Dumbledore had heard of the incident and proclaimed to the school that aurors had the power to interrogate or search students if they travelled alone before breakfast or after dinner. Sirius Black had looked positively gleeful at that and sneered at Harry pointedly.
His joy was short-lived however, as Harry had taken to using his map extensively, and taken up learning numerous methods of stealth and concealment in his travels around the school. Apparently his lack of success had forced him to be more direct in his ventures.
It was a Tuesday afternoon and Harry was carefully measuring out the powder of crushed salamander scales in the back corner of the potions lab when Sirius Black walked in, a confident look on his face and walked up to Snape's desk.
Snape looked up and sneered and the other man,
"Well, well, well, look what the mutt dragged in. What are you doing, disturbing my class like this, black?"
"Well, Snivellus, I have permission from Dumbledore to remove one of your precious students." He flourished a piece of rolled parchment in the face of Snape, who snatched it out of his grasp and quickly read it.
His eyes flicked briefly to Harry, who sighed and started packing his equipment away.
"Can't fight your own battles Black? I would have thought that an auror would be able to find a student in a school without help. Obviously not in your case. Now get out of my class." Turning away from the bristling man he turned to Harry,
"Evans! Mr. Black here seems to wish to have a polite conversation with you. I'm sure you won't deny him this."
"Of course Sir."
Slowly packing away his books he turned to the auror.
"Hurry up you brat, I don't have all day."
"Careful Auror Black, I would hate to see you in front of an inquiry facing allegations of bullying and intimidating students. We couldn't have your reputation at stake now, could we?"
Annoyed by the taunting tone Sirius shoved the boy forward and pointed his wand at him as the boy turned to face him.
"And what do you think the ministry will do to you if they found out that you had attacked an auror? My word against yours boy, and must I remind you that I am a highly decorated auror, a pillar of this community."
"And how did you get those medals Black? If memory serves me right you received at least three Ministerial commendations for sucking Fudge's arse the past few years."
Harry let the backhand hit him, and fell back, a wry smile upon his face as a bit of blood trickled out of his mouth.
"Oh my, what have you done?"
Sirius' eyes widened as he realised the power he had just given Harry.
"Nothing that cannot be fixed, I am sure Mr Potter. After all, you provoked our resident auror, did you not?"
Harry's smile disappeared as the Headmaster appeared and he spat out the blood, glaring at the man.
"A Headmaster has a duty of care to protect their students do they not? I wonder how the Governors will take the news that a severe incident is being swept under the rug."
"I am sure that the governors need not be informed my boy."
"I am not, your boy, Dumbledore, you best remember that." Harry turned to fully face Dumbledore, "And I am sure that they would be more than willing to hear a case like this."
"Well, you see Mr Potter, the governors signed a waiver giving aurors full operational power during their time of service at the school. Including the right to discretion during an investigation. Now I think it in your best interests to not mention this, as Mr Black would be forced to apprehend you for interfering with an open Ministry operation."
"That's fucking hippogriff shit Dumbledore, and you know it. You're lucky that Madame Bones is dead, as she would have your head if you tried to pull this shit through her office with her still there. I thought that this imbeciles' appointment was too convenient."
"30 points from Slytherin for unsavoury language Mr Potter", Dumbledore gave his trademark disappointed look, to which Harry snarled, "regardless of your opinion of Mr Black and his appointment I specifically told the entire student contingent to give our visitors the respect they deserve. Now, onto more serious business."
Dumbledore gestured to an empty classroom on his right and Harry slowly walked in and stood by the far wall, watching as Dumbledore conjured a squishy chair to sit and Sirius leaned against the opposing wall, looking smug.
"Now Mr Potter", Dumbledore leaned forward, "I have heard some very disturbing news that you violently attacked your brother. Naturally I am deeply concerned for both his health and yours. Brothers should not attack each other, rather they should be protecting and loving each other. The viciousness of this attack was particularly brutal and I am afraid there will have to be reparations."
Harry looked at Dumbledore and spoke angrily, "You obviously need to listen more carefully then, Headmaster, as I only responded to a cowardly attack from that arsehole. No doubt he was taught that by his father. I merely responded with equal force. It is not my fault that the arrogant shit is overly optimistic about his magical ability. I fail to see how I am the one who is facing punishment in this instant."
"But surely my boy. He is your brother, I am sure he meant it as nothing more than a light joke. Would it not be better to let it go and forgive him?"
"I am not, your boy, Dumbledore, next time you call me that I will burn off your beard. And as for your light joke, Thomas tried to hit me in the lower back with a rather powerful variant of a muscle contracting hex, one which would have caused extreme pain, loss of mobility and lots of treatment to fully repair. What I did in response pales to that of which Thomas intended to do. Where is his punishment for his involvement in this, might I ask?"
"I happen to agree with Mr Potter Headmaster, why is only one participant being punishment. Surely this seems rather unjust."
Snape strode through the doorway, his cloak billowing as usual, causing Sirius to jump up and exclaim,
"What are you doing here Snivellus?"
Snape gave a condescending look,
"I have a right to be here, as Head of House, Black."
"Regardless Severus, I believe that this is a private discussion between Mr Potter, Auror Black and I." Dumbledore gave Snape a small smile.
"I disagree, I wish for Professor Snape to remain."
Dumbledore gave Harry a look but didn't comment
"So Headmaster", Snape continued, "Why is it that I find my student being harassed for an incident of self-defence whilst the perpetrator remains unpunished?"
"Now Severus, the other Mr Potter is already serving detentions with me for his involvement in this incident."
Harry snorted loudly, "You mean, he is getting useless lessons from you whilst you try to teach the pathetic fool occlumency."
Dumbledore's eyes widened at that, and Sirius leapt forward, his wand rising
"How did you know that, Mr Potter?" Dumbledore's voice became sharp.
"There is no need to teach him occlumency, anyone who wanted to learn what is on his mind would simply need to listen to the idiot. Your precious Chosen One needs to learn how to shut his mouth before he can learn to shut his mind."
"Am I to understand that you yourself know and utilise occlumency?"
Alarm bells started ringing in Harry's head but he couldn't see a way out of the hole he dug without giving Dumbledore an answer, so he tried to stall,
"What is it to you Headmaster? Surprised that I can do something my dearest, immensely talented and incredibly gifted brother cannot?"
"Your brother is ten times the wizard you are you little shit!" Sirius made himself known again, before being shut down by Dumbledore's glare. Turning his eyes to Harry Dumbledore spoke again, not rising to the bait as Harry hoped he would.
"And where did you learn such a difficult and specialised art such as occlumency?"
"I read." Dumbledore looked over to Snape who had a neutral expression, obviously not believing Harry's answer, but he miraculously let it slide.
"Regardless of this, we seem to have drifted from the topic of your punishment. I do believe that a week's worth of detentions with Professor McGonagall shall suffice."
"Headmaster, I must protest th-"
"That will be all Severus" Dumbledore cut in, "Now, Mr Potter, I do believe that you need to return your belongings to your dorm room before dinner is served."
Harry stood and nodded to Snape as he left, trying to figure out how to avoid the probing that he knew Dumbledore would be sending his way.
The weeks continued to fly past and the teacher continued to pile work upon the 7th years, as they struggled to keep up. All the students in 3rd year and above were dismayed when the first Hogsmead weekend was cancelled due to a Death Eater threat. Thomas had managed to convince other students to take sneaky pot shots at Harry between classes, more often than not missing the nimble and alert Slytherin and hitting fellow Gryffindors as their jinxes, hexes and curses were battered away. Unjustly this led to Harry receiving copious amounts of detentions and loss of points, no matter how hard he and Snape venomously protested. It was reflecting on this that had led Alisha to taking to walk with Harry as much as she could, not that she believed that he needed aid, but because Thomas Potter had seemingly made an effort to win her over, and refused to attack whilst she was there.
And so Alisha met Harry outside the Great Hall after lunch., they had double potions to finish the day together and she was sick of Granger constantly lecturing everyone to do their homework and to study more. How anyone, much less Thomas and Ron, two incredibly impatient and irritable people, managed to deal with Granger was beyond her. She resolved to not think of her fellow Gryffindors as she saw Harry walking out with the slightest of limps, so slight that she only noticed it because she was watching him so intently, not that she would say that out loud.
"What happened? You're limping." She instantly hounded Harry as she matched his pace, "And don't tell me it's nothing because I know that it isn't"
She was surprised when he actually answered, growling out "Malfoy", before reaching into his robe pocket for a small vial, which he unstoppered and knocked back quickly.
"Our illustrious Slytherin arsehole decided that my friendship with you was another example of my lack of Slytherin-ness, and that the time was ripe for me to be removed from our house. When he failed to get enough support from the house he tried to force me out with a duel, and being the coward he is, he had Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, Parkinson and three fourth years that I can't even remembering existing until now, attack me. Fortunately for me, they all assumed that I would stay in one spot and allow myself to get hit, and when that tactic fails, that dark curses are always the best options, despite being slow and difficult to articulate, easy to block if identified, and most of all, completely expected. Crabbe and Goyle have concussions, Nott and Parkinson are completely covered in boils and have an extreme tickling jinx, I'm rather proud of that combination, and Malfoy is in the Hospital wing with his joints inverted. He isn't going to be moving for a while."
"Jesus Fucking Christ Harry! Bit over the top much! Did you have to go that hard?"
He seemed hurt at her words before schooling his face into a blankness,
"It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both" *
"Where on earth did you get that from?"
Harry smirked, "You tell me, besides, after that display the rest of Slytherin will back off, Malfoy will be ought of action for a while, and when he does return he will have lost most of his rep, and I'm sure that work will trickle around to Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. I'm covered for the foreseeable future on those fronts."
Still not looking happy, Alisha moved onto the topic that had been knowing at her since the start of their discussion,
"So what about me? You said Malfoy tried to use me against you?" She tried to ignore how desperate she sounded,
Harry shook his head, "Malfoy would have found something to use against me, It was nothing against you personally. Besides I'm not going to stop seeing you just because some pampered arrogant arsehole says its against his personal ideas of a prefect Slytherin."
She felt infinitely better at his words.
By that time they had reached the dungeons and arrived at the potion lab's doors just as Snape flung them open, Harry grabbed her elbow and gently guided her to the table where he normally sat with Blaise, who simply raised an eyebrow and sat next to Tracy Davis without a word. Ron and Thomas gave her filthy looks as they went to their desk but didn't press the issue, wary of Snape's wrath.
"You have exactly ten minutes to collect and prepare your ingredients for the hydration draught and the blood replenishing potion. Both are written on the board. Begin."
As everyone rushed around Harry signalled for Alisha to get all the equipment out while he collected the ingredients needed.
They started preparing, with Alisha cutting and crushing the ingredients for the hydration draught, whilst Harry carefully sliced and diced the ingredients for the much more volatile blood replenishing potion.
"Potter, what is this? Tell me, what do the instructions on the board say about salamander blood? No answer? No doubt this will not penetrate your enormous head, but It does indeed say dried salamander blood. You will write me six inches on why you would use dried blood. It is due tomorrow, if you do not complete it, you will have detention with Filch."
Alisha looked up to watch the usual display of Snape insulting Potter, who could do nothing but gnash his teeth and go redder in the face. She felt however a nudge at her side and went back to preparing her ingredients. Due to Harry's particularly skilful hands and potions expertise, they were the first to start their potions, with Draco and Pansy, as well as Blaise and Tracy Davis being the only other pairs who started before their set time period ended, with all the Gryffindors losing points due to, "deliberately wasting a professor's valuable time".
Curiously Snape seemed to ignore Alisha's existence, and when she tried to ask Harry about it he shook his head and kept working. Under Harry's sharp eye and careful guidance, not only did they finish their hydration draught and finish their blood replenisher up to the resting stage, they finished well before the lesson ended, and matched perfectly by the examples in the textbook. Snape glided over to examine their potion before nodding, the ghost of a smile on his lips,
"15 points to Slytherin for a perfectly pair of potions, Evans, and another 5 for managing an incompetent brewer in the process."
Alisha went to speak, only to feel Harry's shoe nudge her ankle, and she stopped.
"Thank you sir."
Snape nodded and dismissed the two, before turning to yell at Longbottom, who had yet again managed to melt another cauldron.
"So why is it that Snape calls you Evans?"
Harry turned to look at her as they climbed the stairs together, Harry leading the way as per normal.
"Snape and I have… well let's just say an unusual relationship… Snape was in love with Lily Evans, not to be confused with Lily Potter, as they are completely different women. When he was at school, he was relentlessly hounded and bullied by James Potter and Sirius Black, supported somewhat by Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. He and Lily Evans were friends before Hogwarts and remained friends until fifth year, when Snape made a lapse in judgement under stress from Potter and Black. He called Lily Evans a "mudblood." That was the end of that relationship, and possibly the starting point of my parents."
As usual Harry said parents as if he had bitten something extremely bitter,
"And now Lily Potter is an airheaded, prejudiced, spineless dimwit, whose only function in life is spoiling her precious boy, giving interviews and posing for pictures. Snape calls me Evans because he refuses to have a Potter in Slytherin, and because I remind him of Lily Evans, before she became Lily Potter. I take it as quite a complement, although James Potter, and such Thomas Potter, believe it is simply a sign that Snape "lusts" after Lily Potter." Harry finished, shaking his head, amused at the stupidity of the two.
"That's… weird I guess… the fact that a professor was in love with your mother, before she was your mother, and not quite the same woman as your mother, so he calls you by her maiden name to honour your-not-quite-mother's memory and complement you." Alisha looked lost by her train of thought and Harry laughed, directing her to a painting of a fruit bowl and tickled a pear, revealing a room full of bustling house elves.
"So this is the kitchens hey? How long have you been coming here to eat?"
"Oh about first year, when I realised that it might be safer to sometimes eat out of sight."
She gave him a sharp look but couldn't say anything further as he was suddenly swarmed by a squealing mass of small bodies. Apparently the Hogwarts house elves had become extremely attached to Harry and before she could say anything she was situated at a table with a wealth of delicious looking food in front of her.
"Wow, they must really love you." Alisha started to look through the abundance of food, trying to decide what she wanted to sample, as Harry simply took small bits of everything.
"Well they do have they're uses. Amazingly handy, and incredibly useful. Willing to do almost anything."
The house elves beamed at Harry and rushed off to continue their dinner preparation.
After both students were full Harry whispered in the ear of a house elf, who rushed off and brought him a small burlap sack, and he thanked them before moving off.
"I have to do something, I'll see you later."
Before Alisha could say anything Harry was out a service door that she hadn't even noticed, the door swinging shut behind him.
Alisha looked up at the clock above Professor Vector, and back down at her paper. Despite it being the very last class before the end of term the class had been set a test for them to complete, as to "assess their progress." Currently she was stuck on the final section, an especially devious set of interdependent questions that as far as she could tell, only Harry could figure out. Most of the class was sitting at their desks with varying levels of confusion and distress. Granger had snapped three quills, and was constantly scribbling something before crossing it out, throwing heated glares at Harry in between, who was quite happily working away.
Realising that she could do no-more Alisha slowly gave her previous work a cursory look-over to make sure that she had done nothing obviously wrong, and settled for staring at the wall.
She was jerked awake by Professor Vector calling to put quills down, which was met with grumbles about the test. Professor Vector merely smiled and waved her wand at the cupboard at the back of the room, which opened to reveal a barrel of butter beer with a collection of glasses beneath.
"I know that the test was difficult, and I do know how hard you have all worked, so I think you've all earnt a little party."
Alisha laughed as she saw Granger bemoaning the loss of class time and was still laughing at the girl when Harry pulled up next to her with two tankards of warm butterbeer.
"What's so funny?"
"Granger", Alisha pointed at the girl in question who fumed when she saw Alisha openly mocking her, causing Alisha to snort loudly and laugh harder.
Shaking his head at both Gryffindor girls, Harry pushed a butterbeer into Alisha's hand and pulled her towards the window, where a table had been pushed back, giving the pair a perfect place to sit comfortably and watch the snow fall, away from the others.
"Hey Harry, what are you doing for Christmas?"
"Staying at Hogwarts, nowhere else I can go is there?"
"You could come and stay with me you know."
Harry shook his head and Alisha was glad that he was looking away,
"No, Christmas is a time for family. I couldn't intrude."
"But they wouldn't min…"
"No. Like I said, you go and enjoy time with your family. I'm sure they miss seeing you."
"Wait hold on, you said that Christmas was a time for family, are you going to be with your parents and Thomas?"
"No."
"But you said…"
"I know what I said." Harry looked down at his hands, which were white from clutching the tankard. "Christmas is a time for family, and they've made that very clear. They will enjoy their precious family, same as every year."
Alisha looked away, embarrassed and knowing that Harry would only get moodier if she gave off any indication of pity. After a long silence between the pair, they both jumped when music suddenly blared out of someone's radio, with Celestina Warbeck filling the room. Harry gave a slightly bitter laugh and sipped his nearly empty tankard.
"So what are you going to do at Hogwarts while everyone else is gone?"
Harry shrugged,
"Hang around with Blaise, play cards, do the holiday work, murder some muggleborns, you know, the usual."
She punched his arm,
"You know I don't like those kind of jokes you arsehole."
He gave a wry smile and jostled her slightly before raising his tankard, indicating he was off to get a refill, and set off, collecting her tankard as well.
Alisha sat back and watched Susan Bones dancing slowly with Justin Finch-Fletchley and sighed, sitting back, 'why couldn't she find someone who would dance with her, and hold her that tenderly, and look at her like that.'
Alisha was brought of her thoughts by an angry looking Granger,
"Sorry what was that?"
Alisha's response only seemed to infuriate Hermione more, as she went red, huffed and looked like she wanted to explode, before taking a few deep breaths and looking coolly at Alisha,
"What?"
"I thought I told you to stay away from Harry Potter, obviously you've chosen to ignore me."
The other girl's poor attempt at sounding threatening was more amusing than effective, but Alisha didn't comment on it,
"I don't think you really have a right to tell me who I have as my friends, thank you very much."
"And I don't think you really have a right to be friends with him."
"Excuse me? Who do you think you are?"
"Someone who knows much more than you."
"Really"
"Yes really." Granger leaned in, "You don't understand. Harry Potter is toxic, he's a parselmouth, he fraternises with the children of Death Eaters, he knows more dark magic than anyone else at this school, he obviously cheats in exams, and he attacks his brother, The Boy-Who-Lived. No normal person attacks their own brother, much less a brother who saved the wizarding world. If you hang around with Harry Potter, you're going to get dragged down with him. You're obviously smart enough Hillman, open your eyes, and start thinking for yourself."
"Well then, Miss I-Know-What-Is-Best-For-Everyone, I've got news for you. I am going to be friends with whoever the fuck I like. I don't give a damn what you think about Harry, and I am definitely not picking Thomas' side in their stupid fights, because I have heard all about what he and his parents have done to him."
"And who told you that? Huh? Harry? Ever think he's just manipulating you? Poor sob story to rationalize what he does?"
"And do you ever think that Thomas has done the same to you."
The two girls were glowering at each other, less than an inch apart.
"Well isn't this cozy? I apologise Granger, I didn't get you a drink, how rude of me."
The smile on Harry's face didn't reach his eyes.
"I don't want anything from you." Granger sneered, turning to face Alisha she gave a condescending look before stalking off.
"What was that all about?"
Alisha took her tankard from Harry and tipped her head back to have a long draught.
"Nothing Harry, absolutely nothing at all."