Harry Potter stood in the doorway of Severus Snape's spare room, listening to the Professor tell his daughter they could 'help' him. They couldn't. No one could. He was beyond help, a useless waste of space. His aunt and uncle always told him so, for as long as he could remember. A burden, pathetic, worthless little freak. Harry didn't want anyone to try and help him, it would be pointless and they'd just end up hating him in the end. It would be easier for everyone if he wasn't here. Except perhaps Dumbledore, he alone would miss Harry. Not because he cared, oh no, no one truly cared, but because he wouldn't be there to kill Voldemort for him, as clearly that was the headmasters intended purpose. Well screw him! The old wizard would just have to finish the dark Lord off himself! Harry was done being used, he was done with everything. He was exhausted with everything. All he wanted to do was rest, once and for all finally get some peace. He made his way into the little bathroom and turned on the shower. Snape had told him to come down for lunch? Why? To parade him in front of Safira like some little project they could work on together before they inevitably got bored and cast him aside like everyone else. Even his beautiful snowy owl, Hedwig, had abandoned him.

He stepped into the shower and turned the heat up as far as it would go. The boiling water immediately turned the back of his neck red as it scalded his skin. He welcomed the pain, pain was his only friend now. He reached for the bottle of shampoo on a shelf to the right of the taps, but it was empty. 'Just like me' he muttered to himself.

Where would Snape keep shampoo? He doubted the potions master actually topped up things like that, though he suspected Kali would, she seemed to like organisation.

Looking around the small room, Harry noticed a little cabinet just under the sink, he could reach it from the shower cubicle without getting too much water on the floor, so leaned over to open the door. There it was, shampoo. He paused as he went to pick it up, for next to it lay a simple, black razor. He took it in his hands and gently ran a finger over the blade. Maybe he could stop it all, maybe he could finally get that bit of peace?

Kali was bustling around the kitchen, laying pates of delicious treats on the table. A feast worthy of Hogwarts, yet on a far smaller scale. There was a steak and kidney pie, chips, jelly, chocolate cake and fruit salad among other enticing dishes.

'Wow Kali this looks amazing, though I doubt we will be able to eat it all before the end of summer' Safira said excitedly, 'surely this isn't all because of me?'

'Yes… and no… to be honest I'm hoping master Harry will take a shine to something, anything.' Kali responded, a little reluctantly.

'Harry? What's going on with him?' The girl was confused. Harry Potter had always been some guy at school that everyone fawned over. He seemed a nice enough boy, but she had never really had a proper conversation with him. She wasn't really a conversation type of girl.

Safira was different to most girls at school. She didn't fall over herself talking to boys, bury her head in her studies or hang around with giggling girlfriends. She got on well with most people, she even counted some of them as friends. But she preferred her own company. She would spend hours on end out in the Hogwarts grounds, sketching, talking to the animals or just walking. She liked it most when she was alone with the world, just enjoying being in it.

She was a very pretty girl, average height for her age, long, auburn hair hung down to her slim waist a slight curl in the bottom of the shimmering locks. She was curvy yet not overweight, and walked with a confidence one could only possess by knowing oneself completely. Or at least until now, she thought she did.

Something strange was going on, and she was determined to get to the bottom of it!

'I'm just going to go freshen up while you finish off' she said to the house elf as she slipped out of the kitchen. Her father had gone to his study to check on some potion or another. Silently she creeped up the stairs. Where was Harry? She heard the shower running. Perfect! He wouldn't be able to run off! He was absolutely going to answer her questions! This was HER dads house!

'Oi! Potter! What the actual fuck are you doing at my dads house? No one is telling me anything and I have a right to know!' She called through the door. No one answered.

'Hey! Are you listening to me cloth ears? I asked you a question!'

Again no response. She was beginning to get a little irritated now!

'Harry for god sake just tell me what's going on!'

A small trickle of water began to seep out from under the door. It had a slight pinkish tinge.

'What the hell?' Safira whispered to herself.

'Harry? Are you alright?' She called again, softer now, she was beginning to have a bad feeling about this. 'Harry if you don't respond to me I'm going to open the door'.

Nothing.

Gingerly, the girl turned the handle and stepped into the bathroom, keeping her eyes cast down in case the boy wasn't dressed. The floor was soaked, the shower water was overflowing from its tray. It was mixed with blood. She snapped up her head and gasped. Harry Potter was slumped in the shower cubicle, his foot wedged into the drain, causing the water to cascade out into the bathroom. In his right hand he held a razor, his left… his left was cut to ribbons and crimson blood gushed from it.

'DAD! KALI!' Safira screamed as she ran over to the boy, grabbing a towel and pressing down hard upon his wrist. 'DAD! HELP! QUICKLY! Harry it's ok, it will be ok, stay awake, please don't be dead!'

There was a slight groan from him as she pressed her entire weight onto his wound, tears streaming down her face as she tried to fight the flow of blood. 'HELP!'

Snape and Kali burst into the bathroom.

'NO!' Yelled the professor, pulling out his wand and immediately casting healing spells over the limp body of the teenager. Kali pulled Safira to the side and put her arms around her as she sobbed.

'There, there miss. It's ok now, let master sort it out, all will be well' she said soothingly as she stroked the girls hair, though her eyes were wide and terrified as she looked upon the horror before her.

Snape chanted again and again, and slowly, painstakingly slowly, the cut on Harry's wrist began to close, the blood flow stopping. He flicked his wand towards the shower, it turned off with a jolt as he pulled down a clean towel and wrapped it around the frail body beside him. Carefully he pulled Harry once again into his arms and moved him to his bedroom, where he lay him gently on the bed. Kali and Safira followed behind him nervously.

'Kali please attend to the bathroom, Safira can you hand me Harry's pyjamas?' He said softly, not taking his eyes from the boy before him.

'Of course sir' Kali muttered and quickly ran back to the bathroom to clean up. Safira looked around the room and saw some pyjama pants draped over the back of the armchair. She quickly grabbed them and passed them to her father.

'Will he be ok?' She asked tentatively.

'Yes, I think so, physically anyway' he replied looking sad.

'Is it really bad, dad? What happened to him?'

'Yes' the professor said simply as silent tears began to fall down his daughter cheeks.