The next morning Harry was already awake when Snape called him for breakfast. He was pondering all that had happened when Snape knocked on the door. He was probably the first to show any respect for Harry's privacy. After telling him to come down within the next ten minutes, Snape left. Making his way down the steps, the aroma that assaulted his nostrils reminded Harry of just how hungry he was. Walking into the kitchen, he saw Snape sitting down at the end of the table. Seeing that the spot to the right of him had been set, Harry took a seat.

Looking at all the food, his mouth began to water. There was probably a combination of every breakfast he had ever made at the Dursley's. He started picking up quickly as though the food would disappear at any given moment, when his hand was suddenly grabbed by another. A yelp escaped him and he tried to pull his hand back. Doing this only caused Snape to tighten his grip rather painfully. Harry could feel the panic rise in him when Snape abruptly let go. He cradled his arm to his chest and tensed himself.

Snape waited for him to calm down slightly before he started talking.

"I will not have you acting like a starved three year old. You are to act your age. Do not take anything else until your are finished with what you have."

Harry nodded, and when Snape looked at him expectantly, he mumbled a yes sir. Appeased for the moment, Snape went back to eating with his normal grace. As Harry attempted to copy him, he found himself slightly shaken. His arm hurt where Snape had grabbed him but he'd had worse, so he put it into the back of his mind.

He soon realized that Snape had a point to finishing what he had on his plate first. Harry continued to eat until he could barely look at the food without throwing up. But the thought of telling Snape he couldn't finish it had even less appeal. No need to look ungrateful, especially if Snape decides to withhold meals for this, he thought. Putting his nausea aside, Harry forced another bite into his mouth. Right afterwards he knew he had made the wrong decision.

About to be sick, Harry attempted a run for the loo. He barely made it two steps before his breakfast was all over the floor.

Immediately Harry started to sputter out apologies. He grabbed onto the first cloth he saw and made an attempt to clean up the mess, actually making it worse. He didn't hear Snape telling him to stop as he continued to think about how stupid he was to have done that. He fell into the mess as he jumped away, feeling a hand on his shoulder. Now his new pajamas were soiled! He continued to back away from Snape, not comprehending the fact the Snape didn't really seem angry, just annoyed.

But then again one could never tell with that man. He suddenly felt a weird sensation and a wall appeared in front of him. Turning around, Harry realized that he must have walked through the wall somehow. Damnit, that would mean he had just performed magic. At this rate he'd be back at the Dursley's in no time. Sinking down to the floor, he waited until his emotions were under control before he looked for the door. He didn't even think to look around. He was too busy trying to not to think of how angry Snape would be.

Noticing a door, he began to walk towards it and was about to turn the knob when it opened from the other side. Seeing Snape looming over him in a room with no other exits made Harry feel uncomfortably enclosed. Only then did Harry realize that he was stuttering apologies again.

Finally Snape had enough and yelled

"POTTER!"

Harry immediately quieted and squeaked out a yes sir. If the situation weren't so frightening he would have probably laughed at the way it came out.

"Now you see the reason why I told you to finish what you had first. However, you should have not pushed yourself. From what I saw, you were not being fed properly at the Dursley's and there was no one to regulate how much you ate your short time in Hogwarts. Your stomach needs to get accustomed to food again… you do not need to worry about lack of food here…"

Snape didn't really know why he added that last part, but he could see that the boy did not believe him. He may not like the brat but he wouldn't mistreat the boy. Silently Snape hoped the boy would realize that soon. Later Snape would wonder why it even mattered to him. Despite his skepticism, Harry nodded his head quickly.

"Shall I go back and clean up the mess, sir?"

"That has already been taken care of" Snape replied.

He once again took out as wand and scourgified his charge's clothes. After that was an awkward silence that Snape seemed oblivious too.

Deciding he needed to get away from the house, Harry decided to cautiously ask Snape if he could go outside. Snape nodded his consent and told him to remember his wand.

"Yes, sir" said Harry before he made his way to his room to change.

Opening the wardrobe, he saw a rather ugly pair of muggle pants and the dark red t-shirt. On the floor of the wardrobe he noticed an envelope. Opening it he found a large sum of muggle money and a note. Reading it, Harry discovered that Dumbledore had converted some of his money for him so that he could buy his own clothes. Harry was relieved that the headmaster probably realized that he would be bad at picking out muggle clothing. Changing into the only clothes he had at the moment and pocketing the money with his wand, he made his way out of the house.

Before reaching the door, though, Snape informed him that he had no more then three hours. Harry felt annoyed at the short time limit, but squelched it before Snape decided to not to let him out at all. Stepping outside, his ears were once again assaulted by the loud music. Harry decided to sit on the porch for a few minutes before actually going somewhere and getting lost. Getting a closer look, he realized that the building where he now lived at wasn't as old as he thought it was. He also noticed a lot of the houses around him were in the same condition.

Harry sighed and placed his head in his hands. Snape still confused him more then ever, but if he were going to live with the man he'd have to get use to it. Sometimes the Potions master would blow up on him for the stupidest things. Other times he seemed a little understanding…maybe even caring. If Snape could be like that, wouldn't it be the same as sometimes saying he wouldn't hit Harry… and other times doing the opposite. Harry gulped. If that were the case then he would just have to live with it. Even if Snape were no better then the Dursleys, he could handle it.

Harry knew that Snape was a lot better then the Dursley's though. He just hoped that the Professor wouldn't change for the worse as the summer went by. Looking up, he noticed a few of the boys from the day before coming out to play football. As they split up, Harry noticed three boys on one of the teams looking at him. He saw the tallest, and probably the oldest, turn to the others and say something. Shortly afterwards the boys began to walk towards Harry. The tall one started speaking as soon as he got within hearing distance.

"Hey you wanna play soccer with us?"

Harry didn't know what to say. But he knew for a fact now that he was in America. He knew enough about muggle sports to know only Americans called it soccer. He didn't know what to say to the boy though. He didn't want to make an idiot of himself by saying that he never played before… but it would be worse if he said ok and they found out on their own.

"I've never played before."

"It's all right, we'll show you. We just need another player."

Harry agreed to this and followed the boys back to the rest of group.

"What's your name?"

Damnit…Harry hadn't thought of that. Would Snape want him to use his real name? Better safe then sorry, he thought.

"My name's Nathan….You can call me Nate." The boy nodded, and Harry relaxed his shoulders. All he had to do now was become accustomed to being called Nate.

"I'm Dylan, that's Nick, and that's Sam."

Dylan had short, pin straight, black hair, and grey-green eyes. Nick looked a lot like Dylan, only younger with more brownish hair. He looked tougher too. Sam was as tall as Nick but had brown, messy hair like Harry's, and hazel eyes.

Dylan, turning to the other team, introduced them. They looked a lot different. He remembered it like this. The tallest one was Jake. The shortest one was Mat. The dirty blonde was David, and the darkest one was Danny. Harry was bound to forget these names, but for now it didn't matter. Dylan and Jake showed him how to play, and found that it wasn't as hard as it seemed. By the end of the game, Harry…or Nate…. had scored twice. But ironically enough, the game ended in a tie when Danny was forced inside by who was probably his mom. All of them were walking when Sam turned to Harry.

"So your from England, yes? What are you doing staying with the old bat?"

Harry started to laugh hysterically…so much for not wanting to look like I was crazy, thought Harry.

"I'm sorry" Harry said, still laughing,

"it's just that at….my boarding school…. that's exactly what everyone calls him"

The boys nodded and repeated the question. Harry once again found himself in a dilemma. There was no way he would say that he was related to the Potions master and he needed to think quickly. The first thought that came to his head was what the Dursley's would tell people, so he quickly twisted it to fit the situation.

"My family..sent..me..with him..because…..because they thought my behavior was horrible. They said it was either him or Saint Brutus'."

This caught Nick's attention. He had been rather quiet until then. His voice was really deep.

"My ma wanted to send me there this year. Said that if I don't start behaving I'd go there next year…"

"Yeah it's one of the toughest in the world. I heard they were mad strict and would beat you for like….waking up a minute late.", said Mat.

Harry barely held back the flinch at the thoughts he associated with that comment. What Harry didn't notice was how Dylan had noticed and was sharing a look with the others. Before the silence became awkward, David attempted to change the subject.

"So are we going to Spiral's or Venom's?"

"What?" Harry said.

David smirked at he explained how they were two of the best fast food joints around.

"Spiral's always has rookie bands playing. They're not that bad though. At Venom's you could tell the employees to eat something, and if they do it they get paid extra. They're pretty cool."

Then Mat said, "Yeah, once I asked this lady to eat the pizza with chocolate sauce, sushi, and pickles. She did but she threw up afterwards, it was hilarious."

Harry shook his head.

"Thanks but I don't think I can go today, I don't really have the time….I have other things to take care of."

All of them nodded there heads in understanding.

"Ok so why don't we just go to the corner store to get some sodas.".. Harry agreed and they made there way to the store.

They took longer then expected when the cashier had checked to make sure they didn't steal anything before they could leave. Seeing the guy looking at Harry like he was disgusting, Harry knew he would already be considered a juvenile delinquent in the area…not like it mattered.

Looking at the times, he was startled to see that he was already twenty minutes late. He gave the guys a brisk explanation before he broke off into a run towards the house. Reaching it, he saw Snape in the front, scowling both at him and something behind him. Turning around he then realized that all of them had followed him back.

He didn't have time to say anything as his arm was grabbed roughly by Snape. That would leave a mark…. Snape didn't look back as he dragged Harry through the door, cutting them off from the staring boys.

Reaching the muggle apartment of the house, Snape laid into him immediately.

"MUST you always do the opposite of what you're told? Did you even stop to think that I might have had good reason to limit your time? As though I would WANT you in here!"

Harry winced at that, he couldn't help but feel guilty.

"Tonight is a full moon you dunderhead! Do you WANT to be torn to shreds? Or are you stupid enough to depend on the wards to prevent anything from happening?"

Harry was looking at his feet, as though he was wishing to disappear through the floor.

Next thing he knew Snape was directly in front of him. Taking a large step back, he met the wall, and felt too closed in. Hiss breath quickened and he visibly tensed. Snape, not oblivious to this, stepped back.

"Potter... just get out of my sight. I doubt you will ever learn that the purpose of restrictions is for your own safety…" When Harry didn't budge, Snape barked,

"OUT!", and Harry quickly jogged up the stairs and into Snape's guest room.

(((((((Snape's View)))))))

Snape was currently sitting at his normal place at the kitchen table. He had just told Potter to be down within the next ten minutes. That same second the boy arrived.

After a slight hesitation, he took the seat next to Snape. Right afterwards he started piling his plate high with food, as though it would be gone at any second. Knowing the boy would never be able to finish what he had on his plate, Snape, annoyed, reached out to grab the boy's wrist.

When Potter tried to escape, he only gripped tighter. Snape realized by the look on the boy's face, that his grip was tighter then intended. Abruptly he let go, before the boy went into a full-blown panic attack.

Not ten minutes later the food Potter had eaten was regurgitated. Knowing this would happen, he was caught off guard when Potter grabbed the tablecloth in a fruitless attempt to clean up the mess. After three attempts at telling the boy to stop, he grabbed Potter's shoulder, only causing him to fall back into the bile. Potter continued to stumble backwards and Snape sighed in frustration. Next thing he knew, the boy had disappeared. Accidental magic no doubt.

After cleaning up the mess, Snape decided that the best place to check was the room behind the wall that the boy had disappeared through.

He opened the door to an apologizing boy. He had to yell before Potter was able to hear him. Instead of having a fit, Snape explained why he had told Potter to stop. And, for some reason, he felt obligated to reassure the boy that he would not be deprived of food there. When the boy seemed skeptical, Snape had doubt about that being the right thing to do. The boy then asked if he should go back and clean up the mess. As if he didn't know Snape wouldn't leave his floor like that…He explained so to Potter and a silence followed. Interrupting it, Potter asked if he could go outside.

Knowing it was a good way to have some Potter-free time, he said yes without a second thought and told him to remember his wand. Only after the boy went up to his room did Snape think. The wards weren't exactly the best. Anything could happen…and he knew from experience that there were werewolves around the area.

Refusing to give up anytime he could get without Potter, he told the boy that he must be back within the next three hours. Again, Snape wondered if he had done correctly. Three hours will pass well before nightfall, and a rule breaker like Potter would have no problem "losing track of time." Well what's done is done… he thought, making his way to his lab.

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Checking the time, Snape saw that the brat was already fifteen minutes late. Anger surged through him as he made his way to the door. Not five minutes later, he saw Potter running down towards him. He probably saw me outside and attempted to fool me….acting as if he gave a damn about my rules. What annoyed him more was the boys following Potter. Of course, it was just like the brat to become friends with the worst of the neighborhood. Always making noise and such…. The second the boy was in reaching distance, Snape grabbed him by the arm and dragged him inside, not even bothering to turn back.

"MUST you always do the opposite of what you're told? Did you even stop to think that I might have had good reason to limit your time? As though I would WANT you in here!"

Snape knew that it was a low blow, but he couldn't find it in himself to care.

"Tonight is a full moon you dunderhead! Do you WANT to be torn to shreds? Or are you stupid enough to depend on the wards to prevent anything from happening?"

Next thing he knew he was directly in front of the boy, who had visibly tensed.

Stepping back, he barked at the boy to leave before his anger took control of him. When the boy didn't budge, he yelled

"OUT!"

He was glad that the boy had left that time or he would've done something that would come back to haunt him. Leaning against the wall, Snape took a deep breath. It seemed that Potter always brought out the worst in him. To make matters worse, he heard an explosion from below. Reaching the lab, the saw a green goop covering nearly everything. The potion had taken two days and plenty of expensive ingredients to brew….and all it took was an unruly boy to destroy it. He had to do something. He grabbed a glass vile and threw it against the wall.

Before he could do anything else, he got himself out and into the room Potter had been in earlier. The training room. Out of all the rooms, he had to have disappeared into that one. At least Potter didn't think to touch anything. If he had, either he would be in pieces, or the room would be. Reaching the room, he muttered a spell and the floor started moving. Targets appeared at different places and times. Snape put everything behind his spells as he attacked and defended himself from the firing targets.

No less then four hours later, and feeling dead tired, he pulled himself to his room. It felt good to be like that. Something about the house seemed to make him angry…or maybe it was just Potter. His last thought before succumbing to sleep was that Potter shouldn't have ever known about that room.

The door was hidden for a reason.

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