CH.3 - A dificult decision

The next morning, Harry was rudely awakened by an owl pecking at the window. Every peck annoyingly echoed in his head, and he tried pulling his pillow over his head, but couldn't locate it.

Finally giving up when the owl gave a particularly loud screech, Harry groggily pushed himself up on his bed. Attempting to swing his legs over the edge, the tangled sheets made him lose his balance, causing him to fall indignantly face down onto the cold stone floor.

Cursing while rubbing his head, he slowly got to his feet when the incessant owl continued pecking at the glass.

"Alright, alright! I'm coming."

Pushing the window open, he allowed the small tawny owl entry inside. The bird ruffled its feathers, and outstretched its right leg. Harry gingerly untied the plain envelope with the Hogwarts wax seal on it, and caraded his finger through the owl's feathers. It hooted happily, leaning into the touch.

Leaving the owl to fly back out the window, Harry walked back to his bed and groped around in the tangled sheets for his glasses, remembering that he'd fallen asleep wearing them.

Having found them, he shoved them on, and carefully opened the envelope. He immediately recognized McGonagal's handwriting on the letter inside.

Mr. Potter,

Please see yourself to my office at half past eleven.

Sincerely, Minerva M.

Harry reread the short sentence several times, thinking he'd missed something. He wondered what could have happened. Could it have something to do with the Death Eaters? Unease settled in his stomach at the thought.

Dropping the letter on his night table, he quickly made his bed and chose clean clothes. He wanted to shower before going down to have a late breakfast, since the grandfather clock in the corner read just a little past 9:30.

Feeling refreshed after the shower, Harry settled for having his breakfast in the kitchens instead of the Great Hall. He often liked the company of the House Elves.

Finding his way through the castle to the cellars, and through the portrait of the Pear, Harry was immediately greeted by a plethora of House Elves jumping up and down, offering him everything ranging from cinnamon rolls to eggs and bacon.

When Harry had his fill, he checked the time with a Tempus and saw that it was 10:15. The head-office was a bit further from the kitchens than it was from Gryffindor Tower, so Harry bid the elves goodbye.

Having given the stone gargoyle the password that McGonagall had given him earlier, he waited for the spiral staircase to take him to the top. When Harry arrived, however, he paused outside the door. From within the office raised voices sounded.

" — idea is utterly ludicrous, Minerva —! "

"Oh, hush with you, Severus! It will only be for a little while, and only if Potter agrees - "

"And what, pray tell, gave you the notion that he will be amenable?"

Curiosity eating at him, Harry pushed the door open. Inside the circular office, silence fell immediately between the three people in it, and all heads turned him.

Standing behind her desk was McGonagall, leaning forward on her palms. In front of her was Snape, who appeared to have stopped pacing when Harry had entered. Sitting in one of the plush armchairs was the Minister, Kingsley Shaklebolt.

"Ah, Mr. Potter. Right on time, I see," McGonagall greeted him, gesturing with one hand for Harry to take a seat. Trying to avoid eye contact with the Slytherin in the room, Harry plopped himself in the plush seat next to Kingsley's.

"Mr. Potter," the Minister reached for his hand, shaking it, "It's good to see you again." With a small chuckle, he added, "Thankfully still in one piece."

Somewhere in the background, Snape snorted. Harry ignored him. "Nice to see you too, sir," he said with a smile.

Clearing her throat lightly, McGonagall took a seat. "Mr. Potter, you are surely wondering why you are here. I'm afraid the news isn't as light-hearted as one would have hoped." She turned to the Minister, indicating with her head for him to take over.

"I'm afraid an Auror party has recently uncovered potential Death Eater plans to make a move on you and Severus," Kingsley said grimly, looking at Harry. "We also suspect that a handful of them are under Polyjuice, posing as Ministry officials. As of now, we do not know whom to trust."

For some reason, this didn't take Harry by surprise. He had known about the Death Eaters, who had fled after the battle, for a while now. shrugged.

"Isn't there a way to flush them out?" Harry asked.

Kingsley was about to respond, but Snape beat him to it. "Honestly, Mr. Potter, I had thought that after having brewed Polyjuice in your second year, you would possess the knowledge of a Potions Master on the topic," he drawled sarcastically.

"Severus!" McGonagall snapped. Snape ignored her, and Harry ignored Snape.

Trying to diffuse the tense air, Kingsley cleared his throat. "I'm afraid not, Mr. Potter. Polyjuice is undetectable unless it wears off on its own. There are no spells to detect any kind of potion, either."

Harry crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, looking from McGonagall to Kingsley. "Right, so, what do we do, then?"

"We, Mr. Potter?"

Harry's brows furrowed. "Well, yeah! I want to help; that's why I was called here, isn't it?"

The witch and wizard shared a glance, before Kingsley nodded. "As a matter of fact, there is a way you can help. We believe it best for you and Severus to go into hiding indefinitely, at least until the situation is more under control and sorted out."

Tense silence filled the circular office for a few moments, all eyes resting on Harry.

"I'm not hiding anywhere!" he protested, his voice hard but controlled. His knuckles were slowly turning white from gripping the armrests. He'd had enough of running and hiding for a lifetime. If anything, he wanted to help fight, track down, uncover the Deatheaters, not hide from them.

"Besides, I'm safe here, aren't I? And Snape— Snape can stay here as well."

McGonagall sighed and looked at Harry wearily. "Mr. Potter, loathe as I to say this, your head is the Death Eaters' number one objective. Even the wards around Hogwarts could prove insufficient. Severus Snape, a traitor to them, is also on their target list, and I daresay that they want him almost as much as they want you; perhaps even more so. Aside from that, he is also a wanted Death Eater by the Aurors, and it would be pointless for us to attempt to prove his innocence at such a time."

"Well, that's something new, isn't it?" Harry scoffed sarcastically, addressing himself being a target. He'd survived seven years of either creatures or other wizards trying to kill him, hadn't he? It wasn't big news that the leftovers of Voldemort's army wanted him dead.

"Mr. Potter, this is different. Without a leader, the Death Eaters are quite unhinged. If you recall, they had been under strict orders from You-Know-Who to bring you to him in one piece. There is nothing holding them back now." Kingsley spoke in his deep, resonant, calm voice, for which Harry was grateful.

"You would be putting all of Hogwarts under threat by remaining here, and any other place that is already known to either them or the Ministry." He crossed one leg over the other, and neatly but firmly interlocked his fingers, waiting for Harry's response.

Harry didn't know how to reply to this. He couldn't bear the thought of putting other people in danger. They had already lost too many people because of the war. But he also didn't want to be locked away somewhere safe while the Death Eaters were busy hunting him down, hurting innocent witches and wizards in the process.

But the facts were staring him in the face: if he remained here, or anywhere else, it would likely cause more death and destruction.

The Gryffindor was playing with the hem of his shirt, lost in thoughts, when McGonagall's small cough brought him back. He gave himself a mental shake before looking up at Dumbledore's sleeping portrait.

"Fine," Harry acquiesced, keeping his eyes fixed on the oil portrait. In his peripheral vision, he could see the surprised but relieved looks on the others' faces.

After a moment, Harry spoke again, his voice even. "Where would I be staying?" He knew that the Burrow and Grimmauld Place weren't viable options.

Harry finally turned to McGonagall, who had her lips pursed, before turning them into a straight line. She looked at Snape, then Kingsley, who decided to take over.

"The place of temporary residence has to be remote, undetectable, and under the Fidelius Charm," Kingsley began carefully. "That does not leave us with many options. Most wizarding family estates are registered within the Ministry. However, One old family in particular had an manor that evaded being registered because of its powerful and ancient wards. It is under the Family name of Prince."

It took Harry a moment to register the name. He then sharply twisted in his chair to stare at Snape, who was standing off to the side with a deadpanned look on his face. " But that's Snape's mother's maiden name, isn't it?"

Snape nodded in confirmation. "yes, another mystery solved; well done, Mr. Potter," he remarked dryly.

Before Harry could retort, McGonagall cut in. "The Prince Manor will prove sufficient in providing both you and Severus— "

"Wait! You mean you want me to stay with him!?" Harry cut across indignantly, straightning up in his armchair, nails digging into the armrests. "Aren't there any other options?" he asked desperately.

Somewhere behind him, he heard a scoff. "I assure you, Mr. Potter, I want this no more than you do, however, our options are very limited. I didn't just spend seven years of my life spying, putting my life on the line, and protecting you- for your Gryffindor head to throw all of it away! I will not leave business unfinished, and if that means housing you indefinitely, then so be it." His tone was harsh, but Harry could hear the sincerity in it.

Harry glared at him, and then turned to McGonagall, still sat behind her desk. "Professor, how do you expect— I mean, we can't even have a civil conversation without being at each other's throats! How— How long do you think this 'indefinitely' will last?"

Harry was starting to get irritated. He was a fully grown wizard, for Merlin's sake, and almost an adult in the muggle world! His word should be final in this conversation, not theirs!

But something was holding Harry back from lashing out on their idea. He hated the idea of putting more people in danger; Fred, Lupin, Tonks, and the falen fifty-four were enough.

The headmistress sighed. She gingerly took off her rectangular lenses and began wiping them with the edge of her sleeve.

"As I am well aware." She fixed both Harry and Snape with a pointed look. "However, seeing as you are no longer professor and pupil, I see no harm in you attempting to find a common ground. This isn't about some school grudge, but about your safety and well-being. You are both adults, so I suggest you sort this little dispute out. We are sadly out of options."

The small childish part of Harry beamed at McGonagall's calling of him an adult. He didn't let it show, however.

Expelling a deep sigh, Harry shrugged in response. Snape's being on the brink of death hadn't exactly changed anything between them, and there was still a lot of water under that bridge. Harry was certain that Snape still hated him all the same, but he knew he didn't hate him.

At least, not anymore. How could he, after all that Snape had risked and done for the light side — him — to win? He had been best friends with Lily Potter once, and despite their falling out in fifth year, Harry knew that Snape had been trying his best to make it up to her all this time. This alone made it hard to hate the wizard.

In a way, Snape was Harry's last link to his mother, and Harry didn't quite want to lose that.

It was at that moment when Harry realized he'd spaced out and everyone was staring at him. Blinking himself back to reality, Harry raised both arms before dropping them back on the armrests in a defeated gesture. "Alright, fine."

McGonagall flashed him a brief, tight smile, though one of relief, and Kingsley simply nodded his .

The headmistress smiled at him. This was going to be an interesting summer.