Harry Potter hadn't fully comprehended the burden he'd inherited from his parents and godfather, or the cumbersome job being a 'boyfriend' could be, until one day, he did.

The green-eyed Gryffindor narrowed his eyes tiredly as he copied a sentence he didn't fully understand out of the book in front of him. He was sitting under a torch, in front of a window, in the Restricted Section, trying to find something that would help him. He was alone. Even if Neville could have been here to cling to his side, Harry doubted he would have been. They'd had their first fight, if you could call it that. Harry had snapped at his fellow Gryffindor about his constant need for attention, and Neville had walked away, pretending he wasn't crying. Harry felt no guilt, though. He'd grown tired of the fact that 'boyfriend' had somehow begun to translate as 'chief attention-giver and clinging post'. Sometimes, he just needed his space. Hell, most of the time he needed his space. It was like being a couple meant he had to give up being who he was, and for someone who valued being private and solitary, that was troubling. When he'd gotten a letter from the bank that required an immediate reply and Neville had tried to pressure him into sharing it's contents, it had all become just a little too much. It wasn't even like the other boy could help, since his grandmother handled their fortune, he'd just been being nosy. Harry refused to accept that dating someone meant he had to share everything, especially his private financial business.

The owl had arrived with the morning post, and it hadn't taken much to convince McGonagall to give him permission to spend his Saturday in the furthest stacks of the Library. Pelish had sent him some papers he had to sign, some forwarded requests for charity, and several investment suggestions that would protect and strengthen his inheritance. The Goblin had said he needed a reply as soon as possible, which is what had led Harry to the Restricted Section. Pince had informed him, when he'd come to her seeking histories on the listed companies, that the financial section of her library was off limits to students without permission. Merlin knew why the books had somehow fallen in with the most dangerous spells and potions you could find in the library, but they were. Harry suspected that it was because most students didn't need them, and the Faculty who did would relish the solitude of the Restricted Section. Unfortunately, after five hours of looking through company histories, he was no closer to finding the answers he needed. He barely understood the statistics about their investment histories, and there was nothing about their company ethics, something he felt should inform his decision.

Harry started when a mug of coffee was placed by his elbow. He looked up, half-expecting Pince telling him he had to leave, and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Snape standing above him. He took the coffee and sipped at it before turning back to his books and parchment.

"Food and drink aren't allowed in the Library," Harry pointed out as Snape sat across the table with his own coffee, sitting sideways so he was facing the stacks. He glanced up to see a smirk.

"There are exceptions for professors. If you don't want it, however…"

"I didn't say that," Harry said quickly.

"Where is your leech?"

Harry gave a breathy snort. "Pouting. We sort of had a fight. He isn't allowed back here, anyway. I only got permission because I needed it."

"Ah," Snape said.

They descended into silence as Harry resumed his work. The scratch of his quill was the only sound for an untold amount of time. Then Snape began to rhythmically stutter his fingertips upon the wooden tabletop. After several minutes of this, Harry looked up.

"Was there something you needed?"

Snape smirked as he sipped his coffee. "Not particularly."

Harry glowered. "Then could you stop that? It's distracting, and I'm nervous enough."

Snape turned his head to the side to face him. "Do I make you nervous, Mister Potter?"

Harry couldn't help a smirk of his own. "You wish. No, I've got this financial whose-it-whats-it to deal with, and I'm terrified I'm going to make a mistake and choose the wrong investments. So, if you don't mind?"

Snape shrugged and turned back to watching the empty stacks. Again, the scratching of Harry's quill was the only sound between them. After a time, Harry looked up again. He thought about asking why Snape was here, but decided against it. Chances were good that he wouldn't get any sort of answer, and that Snape would leave, taking the coffee with him.

"What do you know about these companies?" He asked finally, passing over the list that Pelish had sent.

Snape shifted in his chair and picked up the list. "Corrupt, mostly, why?"

"My estate manager wants me to choose investments for some of my money," Harry explained, rubbing his eyes under his glasses. "According to what I've found, the ones I've circled will show the largest return on my investment, but I want to know about their practices. I don't want to be handing money over to some goon who steps all over his employees and pockets half of the profits. I only know for sure that I can invest in Weasley Wizard Wheezes, because I trust the proprietors and know they have a legitimate, ethical business model."

"Understandable that this would concern you," Snape said, turning his chair to face the table and setting his coffee aside. "If I may?"

Harry handed over his quill. "Please," He invited. "I've done what I can, and I feel like I'm drowning in numbers."

Snape grunted noncommittally and dipped the quill into Harry's inkwell. He placed an 'x' beside some of the circled company names, and two that were unmarked. "These few meet your standards, and I can recommend a few others that, while not as profitable, are consistent. You wouldn't have to worry about the company going bankrupt and losing your investment."

Harry took the list back. "I'm open to suggestions," He admitted. "I haven't found much on most of these companies, but I've found enough that some of them worry me. This one, for instance," He pointed to a name halfway down the list. "Their profit margin the last few years has been insanely high for the amount of product they move. I'd guess that they've either raised prices or they have a crooked accountant. Neither is a sustainable business model."

"Why circle it, then?"

"Because the circle isn't a final decision," Harry said. "Like I said, I only circled the ones that had the highest profitability. I'm still reviewing the profit histories to decide where I have the best chance for return without too much risk. It would help if I knew what the hell I was looking for."

Snape hummed, shifting his chair around so that he was settled facing the Gryffindor. "If you are amenable, I might be able to offer some assistance. Over the years I have done some minor investing, as well as listened to Lucius Malfoy prattle on about it, and I can at least offer my understanding of the system."

Harry smiled gratefully. "I welcome whatever you can offer. It's certainly better than having to go to my friends, who probably know about as much as I do on the subject."

The Potions Master gave a stiff nod and launched into an explanation. Harry listened raptly, only remembering to take notes when a long finger tapped his parchment during a particularly important point. When Harry was fairly certain he knew what he was supposed to be looking for, he began asking questions that, for once, he was confident made some modicum of sense. They discussed his options until the sky began to darken, and, by the time they needed to go to dinner, Harry had a list all his own of investments he wanted to pursue. He returned to Gryffindor Tower and sent the list, which included the Apothecary and Madame Malkin's in Diagon Alley, on it's way with Hedwig.

When he joined his friends at dinner, Harry had forgotten entirely about his pseudo-fight with his boyfriend. That was, until he saw the heartbroken look on the round face as Neville picked at his food, and the disapproving glares from his friends. He mustered enough sympathy to manage a half-sincere apology, for snapping if not necessarily for what he'd said, and the other boy brightened instantly. It was a struggle, when Neville immediately kissed his cheek and grabbed his hand, not to draw away. A day spent away from the cloying behavior had made him realize just how tiresome it all was, but Harry saw no point in disabusing his boyfriend of his need for contact. It was, after all, such a small thing.

-Break-

A few days later, Harry heard again from his estate manager. When he read the response to his hard work, he wasn't sure if he wanted to laugh or beat his head into a wall. Apparently, when Pelish had said that he needed to hear back 'as soon as possible', he had been expecting to receive a reply sometime in the week. He was very apologetic that Harry had apparently misunderstood his urgency, and promised to keep his inquiries under slightly more relaxed terms in the future unless it really was urgent.

Hermione and the others were still angry at him about his fight with Neville, who had in no way taken Harry's biting comments seriously. As a result of their 'first official fight', Longbottom had begun deepening the kisses he now instigated every moment they had alone. In view of others, he was still holding Harry's hand at every possible moment, and had begun kissing his cheek much more often. Harry tried to put a stop to both, only to discover that his boyfriend, nervous as he was, was surprisingly insistent and manipulative. In the end, he folded under pressure from his fellow Gryffindor and their friends.

Occasionally, Harry would manage an escape from the boy who was quickly integrating himself into every facet of his life. Even studying in his dorm had been interrupted, as Neville began joining him. Soon, even that lost its innocence, as Neville would at some point try to snog him. Whenever Harry tired of his clingy boyfriend, or the approving stares of his friends, he vanished from Gryffindor with the use of his father's cloak and map. There were a number of disused corridors that students passed without really seeing, and he adopted one of these as his own. Sometimes, Snape would find him here, and would listen in silence while Harry aired the woes of being a Seventh Year in a relationship. It was surprisingly hard, keeping up with the demands of a cloying boyfriend while studying to take a series of tests that would decide the rest of his life.

On top of his regular studies, Ailin Achesan had apparently taken notice of Harry since his display of magic in Hogsmeade. Almost covertly, she began assigning him research essays that varied greatly from the normal coursework. This became almost a secondary reprieve, as the papers generally landed him in the Restricted Section, where his friends and boyfriend couldn't follow. When his research left him studying for hours, and especially when he was deterred from meals by interest and fascination with his essay, Snape would join him. Mostly he offered silent support that Harry valued, reading one tome or other while the Gryffindor worked, but this was usually accompanied by a bottomless cup of coffee, and occasionally a sandwich from the kitchens. Harry, too busy to care, never questioned Snape's sudden appearance, either in the corridor or the library. If the man wanted to waste his valuable time sitting with his least liked student, who was Harry to argue? It was just one of those little nonsense things that didn't have to make sense.