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Snarry fans, please do no panic with the next few paragraphs, you'll see why! Stay with me here :)

xxx

Harry was walking down the stairs; at this time of night they seemed endless and he could hardly see the steps in front of him but he kept going. He wasn't sure why he was here, but he knew that there must be a reason why he was in the dungeons and so late at night. Soon enough, his feet came to a stop and he knocked on the wooden door, he stood there for a while but there was no answer so shrugging he walked back down the corridor.

"Harry?" Blaise called out.

Harry looked in front of him and there was a distant light that was coming towards him, a smile spreading across his face as the Slytherin approached him. Nothing else was said in the next few minutes as they just stood there looking at each other but soon Blaise walked towards him, Harry backing up until he felt the cold stone behind him and was pinned between it and Blaise with warm hands finding his chest. He felt the warm breath of the Slytherin on his neck as Blaise looked at him with pure lust as he leaned towards him. Harry's heart was almost thumping out of his chest, he knew what was coming but couldn't pull away and after a second it was too late as he felt the warm lips on his own and the heat from his body pressing him into the cold stone.

Suddenly there was a blinding light and Harry pushed Blaise away from him suddenly terrified as he stared into the dark eyes of Snape who stared at Harry in disbelief. Harry let himself fall down the wall as if he'd been hit in the stomach and he couldn't breath. His lungs were tight and his throat felt like it was closing up. There was the sudden urge to vomit and Blaise was trying to get to Harry so he could comfort him but he couldn't get past some invisible barrier. Harry screamed at him, told him to leave, to leave him alone and to never talk to him again. Harry was scared and he crawled over to Snape, hugging his legs as he tried to find comfort but he was kicked away and Snape sneered at him before turning around.

"Professor?" He cried but the man kept walking.

"Sir?" He said again, tears welling in his eyes.

"Severus!" He cried one last time before he screamed and woke up sitting bolt upright in his bed.

He was panting and could feel sweat dripping down his forehead and back. These dreams over the past two months were becoming a regular occurrence and it was messing with his head. Blaise and he were getting on great and they spent most of their time studying together in the library, sometimes with Hermione and other times just by themselves. Harry had really come to like Blaise, but he still couldn't find it in him to open up and explain his past with his relatives. He doubted that he ever would, and that's where the problem lay, the reason why he was having these dreams, he needed Snape. He needed to have his trust, comfort and loyalty. Something that Harry knew was not going to happen and it was starting to depress him, especially on days when he woke up from dreams like these.

He wiped his forehead with his duvet and rolled onto his side with the intention of getting some more sleep but he soon found this was going to be a fruitless task and he sighed before sitting up and padding through the room towards the bathroom. He knew it was early, but the sun was starting to rise over the mountains so he wasn't too concerned as he stepped into the shower. The hot water felt good on his tense muscles and he felt himself relaxing.

It was a Friday and he was looking forward to the weekend, as it was a Hogsmead weekend. He still hadn't obtained permission to go on these weekends, but with his Invisibility cloak it made it an easy endeavor to head out with his friends. He wondered though how he was going to get this past Blaise as no one apart from Hermione and Ron knew that he had the cloak. He guessed he could always tell Blaise he'd meet him there, but with the way the boy was clinging to him lately, he doubted that would happen.

It was clear that Blaise was wanting to go further with than just friendship, of course he had mentioned it previously that he liked Harry in that way, and Harry liked him as well. But there was always one thing stopping him, well, one person stopping him and he couldn't work out why he was feeling this way now and the man certainly hadn't improved with his behaviour towards him. If he was honest, the man had gotten worse and was starting to dish out more detentions, he'd actually had one that night where he had to write lines. He couldn't understand why McGonagall couldn't supervise these.

Stepping out of the shower, he quickly dressed and with his bag in hand he made his way down for breakfast. He was way too early though but he decided was going to sit there and think about things and have some time to himself before everyone came in.

He was right, there was no one about when he arrived and he breathed a sigh of relief as he sat a couple of spots away from the end of the Gryffindor table by where the teachers sat. He put both elbows on the table and supported his head as he let himself get carried away with his thoughts on the actions of certain people and hadn't even realized the Headmaster had walked in until he came to sit in front of him and tried talking to him.

"Oh, good morning, Headmaster." Harry said apologetically but the man simply smiled.

"You must have something important on your mind this morning, Harry. Is everything all right?" He asked curiously and Harry nodded.

"Yeah, I just had another nightmare last night and I'm trying to sort it out." He said honestly and Dumbledore nodded.

"You know what I find useful?" He tapped the side of his head with his wand.

"Sorting information into piles and discarding the non-important ones so I can think more clearly. Less clutter." He said knowingly and Harry nodded.

"Thank you, sir. I'll bear that in mind." He smiled and Dumbledore stood.

He had a point, but the trouble was, what was important and what wasn't? That was the question, but just then breakfast appeared in front of him and minutes later some students started to wander in so he pushed all thoughts aside. He felt tired this morning, his eyes felt heavy and he couldn't stop yawning, it was not getting off to a good start.

"Morning, Harry." Hermione said as she sidled up next to him.

"Hey." He said through a yawn and then muttered an apology.

"Dreams again?"

"Yeah, although they're more like nightmares." He replied.

He had told Hermione a month after the dreams had started because he was finding it difficult to concentrate on some days and she had been getting concerned because he wasn't eating properly. He didn't tell her what exactly he'd been dreaming about but said it had something to do with Blaise and stress over homework and she had empathized with him about still being a little confused.

A few minutes later and Blaise came to sit in front of them and he said a cheery good morning.

"Yeah, morning." Harry said tiredly, not even looking up and missed the look that Blaise had given him.

Another few minutes and Snape walked into the room and Harry couldn't help but look up and gaze at him through dream filled eyes as he walked past. He hadn't even realized he'd done it until the man looked back at him and he blushed before looking down at his plate. Busted, he thought and blushed further.

"You alright, Harry?" Blaise interrupted his thoughts and went to reach for his hand but Harry pulled his hand away suddenly and went to stand.

"Harry? Where are you going?" Blaise said concerned and Harry turned back.

"Anywhere." He replied vaguely and turned to keep walking out of the hall.

"What's his deal?" Blaise asked Hermione, but she shrugged and said he probably had a bad sleep, well, it wasn't too far from the truth.

Snape was suddenly very interested in this and aside from the fact he was still worried about the health of Harry, the fact that he had ignored Blaise made him extremely happy. He had been getting rather frustrated lately and he felt terrible for taking it out on Harry but he wanted to see him. That's where all the detentions had come from, because Harry no longer came to see him, neither in the evenings or the weekends like he had when school first came back. He realized that he'd told Harry multiple times that he couldn't be there, but he noticed the loss of not seeing him and it was starting to irritate him. So much so that he was starting to constantly think about Harry and he'd finally convinced himself that there was more to it than just wanting to have Harry's company. He wanted Harry.

Harry moped round for the whole day and before long Potions came round and Harry was sitting at the front staring out into space. He almost felt numb and emotionless, as if the dream he'd had had sucked all the joy out of him. He'd come to realize through Transfiguration that Blaise really wasn't the one he wanted, it was Snape but he knew that because he was his teacher that he would never be able to have him. This was what was currently depressing him at the moment and he couldn't see his mood improving any time soon, even though he was letting himself get wrapped up in the man's voice as he stood at the front speaking to them all. He frowned slightly though, the voice had suddenly stopped and there was a face coming close towards him, just like in some of his dreams and he sighed closing his eyes before he realized what was really happening and he jolted, falling backwards off his seat and onto the hard, cold floor.

"I see, Mr. Potter has finally decided to join us. Congratulations, you have lost ten points. Now, as I was saying…" Harry didn't listen to the rest as he got back onto his seat and he stared down at his open Potions book trying to control his blush.

Harry felt as if he was on autopilot and he found himself going through the motions with his potion that he was brewing. As it neared the end of the class, he looked at his potion and was surprised to see that it looked good, he dared to dream that it was perfect even but he didn't think anything of it and when he finished he bottled his potion and set it aside to begin cleaning down his station.

Throughout the entire process, Snape was watching Harry and it concerned him to see Harry so lost in himself. He hadn't even acknowledged the man as he walked past and when he inspected Harry's potion he was surprised to see that he'd even surpassed Hermione. He didn't think Harry even noticed though as he cleaned down his station. He hadn't even realized how far ahead of the other students he was either. He continued to watch him as he came to sit back down at his desk with the vial in front of him and staring just past his head, to the wall behind him.

"Potter!" He barked and the boy's eyes regained focus and looked at him as if he was uninterested.

"If you have finished you may begin on the homework." He continued as he pointed to the board and he frowned when Harry leaned down, picked up his book and started writing down the instructions instantly.

Something wasn't right.

Another ten minutes later and the rest of the students were finishing up and packing away their things. Harry wasn't really paying attention though but recognized when the man said that the class was dismissed and he packed away his book and slung it over his shoulder.

"Mr. Potter, may I have a word?" Snape said and Harry turned around and walked over to Snape's desk, standing in front of it and looking at the ground.

"I'll see you outside, Harry." Blaise said but Harry only nodded, not even turning around.

Snape looked past Harry and saw Hermione grab Blaise's arm and pull him out of the room, he looked concerned, but Hermione less so. She probably knew what was going on, which was odd because Snape thought that he and Harry were getting along just fine. Perhaps he has not divulged all his details, he thought briefly before noting that the last student had left and he shut the door with the flick of his wand.

"Is there something on your mind, Mr. Potter?" He said as he leaned back into his chair.

Harry sighed, looked up at the man and nodded before looking down at the vials lined up in front of Snape's desk.

"Do you want to share?" He tried but Harry didn't say anything.

He stood and made his way around to the front of his desk, there was a foot distance between their feet as Snape leaned back on the edge of his desk, his arms coming to cross his chest as he regarded Harry. Harry shook his head and moved his gaze to Snape's chest just out of convenience for that was where his eyes decided to lay.

"Harry?" He tried again but he still didn't look up.

Snape pushed himself off the desk and came to stand directly in front of Harry, moving his hand and pulling Harry's head up so he was looking at him.

"Please tell me what's wrong." He said finally and Harry actually met his gaze before speaking softly.

"Dreams, sir."

"Dreams? As in nightmares or…" He trailed off to prompt Harry into speaking.

"Recurring dreams of… people." Harry stumbled and then moved his chin out of Snape's grip and looked down.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Snape tried, he was getting frustrated because it was like trying to extract blood from a stone, and he didn't like this despondent Harry. It was weird.

"They're about you." Harry didn't hesitate with his answer and then turned to walk away but Snape reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Snap out of this, Harry. Tell me what's going on!" He ground out and tried to look into Harry's eyes.

"I just want to be alone, sir." Harry said sadly as he met Snape's eye and he felt him let go and Snape took a step back and gave a curt nod.

"See you at dinner, sir." He said quietly and walked out of the room, the door slowly slipped shut behind him.

Snape stood there and watched the door for at least five minutes before he blinked, trying to assess what just happened and decided that he was most certainly concerned about him now. He was interested beyond belief now as well after Harry said he was having dreams about him and his mind started coming up with multiple scenarios. No, it's an innocent dream, nothing, nothing happened. He had to know what was in those dreams though, but he had to doubt them and say that it was most likely well planned out ways to slowly kill him. He shook his head briefly to stop his rampant thoughts and schooled his features before gathering his things and heading to his office for marking. However, Harry never strayed far from his mind.

Harry on the other hand had gone back to the Tower, transformed and was now walking through the common room when he was picked up and he hissed, just about to claw at whoever it was when he saw Hermione and she looked at him pointedly. She walked out of the Tower with him firmly in her hands and she walked them to a secluded part of the fourth floor and placed him on the bench that she was sitting on.

"Blaise is upset, but I can see you are as well and it's more so than usual. What's going on?" She asked politely but Harry shook his head and hopped off the bench only to be picked up again and placed beside her.

"I mean it, Harry. Tell me what's wrong. You've had these dreams before but never reacted this way, so tell me. What's wrong?"

He looked around to check no one was coming and then transformed as tears fell from his face and he turned away from her. He would never divulge what truly happened in his dreams he just couldn't do it, not for himself, but for Snape. He wiped the tears away harshly with the back of his hand and leant over the windowsill and looked down at the ground far below them.

"I don't like, Blaise. Not like he feels for me." He blurted out and hoped that Hermione didn't judge him.

"Is that it?" She said somewhat amused and he nodded, not turning to face her.

"Yeah… that's all."

"Then why are you crying? Is there someone else?" She questioned coming to stand next to him and regarding his expressions.

"I just feel confused. Just ignore me." He said solemnly and she put a hand on his shoulder.

"Okay… Is there anything I can do?" She said hopefully and he looked at her and smiled sadly.

"Hold me close?" He said and when she leaned forward he shrunk into Jade and put a paw on her foot.

He giggled a little and then picked him up, holding him close and stroking his head. She asked if he wanted to go back to the common room whilst she read for a little and he nodded, so off she went and soon enough they were tucked up on the couch with Hermione deep into a book she'd started reading and Harry curled up on her lap with his eyes closed as he disappeared for the remainder of the afternoon.

At dinner, Harry was still as spaced out and Blaise didn't even bother sitting with him this time. He did feel a little guilty and was going to make it up to him, just not today as he didn't really feel like he deserved to be around anyone. This feeling was worse than what had happened at the beginning of the school term and the end of the summer holidays, and he almost preferred the heartbreak over Tony to what he was feeling now. He was just so unsure about everything, not confused, just unsure.

Again, as if he was on autopilot, he found himself looking up at the head table and locked eyes with Snape. He hadn't realized he done it until he regained focus and the man was looking at him with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. Harry looked away quickly and ducked his head as he blushed. If the man didn't already know he was almost infatuated with him, he sure would now if he wasn't careful where his gaze landed. He hadn't eaten anything, but now he just wasn't hungry and he pushed his plate away before standing and leaving without a word. As he did so, he missed the concerned looks from Snape, Hermione and Blaise, and Ron looked up in interest as he walked past looking pained.

Being so wrapped up in his thoughts, his feet, like in his dreams took him down towards the dungeons and it wasn't until he was looking at Salazar, the portrait guarding Snape's quarters that he'd realized his mistake. He didn't really acknowledge this fact however and he turned into Jade and waited patiently for Snape to arrive back at his quarters.

He hadn't realized he'd dozed off until he felt himself being lifted and he tensed, looking behind him to see who the perpetrator was only to find Snape carrying him inside. The man placed him on the black fur rug as if nothing was wrong and without a word he produced a bowl of freshly cooked chicken pieces and some water in another placing them just off the rug and walked away. Harry meowed as a thank you and walked up to the food, wolfing it down and licking the bowl clean before having a quick drink and settling himself onto the rug, stretching out and soaking up the warmth from the fire.

As this was happening, Snape got himself a book and perched himself on his armchair as Harry lay on the carpet. He let a little smile pull at the corners of his mouth. This is what he'd been missing, and he wasn't about to kick Harry out.

Not tonight.