A/N: I can't believe I'm back already but I just felt so inspired and I wanted to continue writing. And so, here we are! Thank you to everyone who reviewed and I hope you'll enjoy this slightly longer than usual chapter.

There lay that store I counted best

Chapter 26

"So…" Harry said, meandering lazily next to his not-quite-so-dreadful Potions Professor. "About that tunnel…"

Snape sighed. He was walking at a brisque pace that Harry had just this morning not believed the man to be capable of. But he had recovered rather quickly. It was as if the side effects of the spell were something to wear off and that it could happen rather suddenly.

Harry's leg felt absolutely fine by now and he had been happy to report to Pomfrey that he was feeling as well as an airborne gryphon. It hadn't been a lie, even. Whatever the Medi witch and Snape had been doing to him – though unconventional and perhaps a bit cruel – it had really been helping. He'd never quite noticed before that simply walking pained him every now and then. But now that that pain was gone, he couldn't believe just how easily he could move around.

He glanced up at Snape, not being able to quite quell the gratitude he was starting to feel for the man. Even if he could still be a right git from time to time.

"Sir?" Harry tried again. "Come on, I know you want to!"

Snape snorted. "Mr Potter," he said in a dull voice. "You couldn't possibly belesscunning at this moment. Have you learned nothing from your housemates?"

"Why would I need to be cunning?" Harry asked. "I already know you're curious."

"I am not curious," Snape replied evenly, keeping his expression devoid of any emotion. "And even if I were, I would not endanger a student who has only recently been released from the infirmary."

"Come on," Harry urged. "I wasn't in there because I was hurt or anything and you know it! I got the all clear."

"Are you truly that eager to encounter another basilisk?" Snape asked. "Should I ask Professor Dumbledore if we could borrow Fawkes, perhaps?"

"Professor, could you stop walking so quickly?" Harry then asked and Snape stopped completely, raising one sardonic eyebrow as he took in the boy's quickened breathing.

"You need not keep up with me," Snape told him easily. "I am merely retreating to my office. You may be heading in the same direction but that does not mean we are forced to engage in pointless conversation."

Harry noticed that the man seemed to be losing his patience with him for some reason and thought to mend the situation quickly. "I er… it doesn't have to be today," he then said. "If you're still not feeling up to it, I mean."

Because that might be it, Harry supposed. The man might have been released from the infirmary but that didn't mean that he was feeling ready to tackle unknown dungeons and passageways just yet. And for all Harry knew, there really could be another basilisk down there. Or maybe something worse! What would be worse than a basilisk? Was there some kind of snake even bigger than that? Perhaps a wyrm or a wyvern.

Snape just started walking again and by the time Harry noticed it, he was already several steps ahead so Harry jogged a bit to catch up. "Hey!"

"By all means, Mr Potter," Snape said silkily. "Lose yourself in your thoughts again. It makes for a much quieter walk."

"Tomorrow," Harry proposed, ignoring Snape's rather light jab. "Can we go tomorrow?"

Snape seemed to mull that over for a moment. "Perhaps," he finally said. "But only if you promise to take it easy for the rest of the day. Do not go gallivanting around the castle or the grounds. See to it that you work on your assignments and take plenty of rest."

Harry frowned at the man. "You're being Slytherin, aren't you?"

"Perhaps," Snape replied. "You may very well refuse, of course."

Harry sighed. He didn't like being outplayed by the Slytherin but he supposed that that was unavoidable when dealing with the snake's head of house. And he really, really wanted to go explore what lay behind that fireplace. The annoying thing was that he justknewthat Snape also wanted that. So how washethe one making demands now?

"I could just go in by myself, of course," Harry half-joked, trying to regain the upper hand. "And I could just sell whatever I find down there to the highest bidder."

Snape stopped walking again and narrowed his eyes at Harry. "Careful", he said in a soft voice that made Harry's hair stand on end. "I have allowed you certain liberties during these holidays but if you don't choose your words more cautiously, I might just think twice about what sort of allowances I can afford to trust you with. It would do you well to learn the difference between cunning and a blatant threat."

Harry swallowed thickly. He had overplayed his hand. "I'm sorry, sir," he said. "Er… tomorrow sounds good, if you still want to."

Snape sniffed. "See to it that you conform to the stipulations I set earlier, Mr Potter," Snape said, his voice thankfully back to its normal cadence. "And then tomorrow, we shall see."

Well, it wasn't a yes but it was not a no either.

"I will," Harry said. "Oh, but can Hermione still come over?"

"She may," Snape said, waving his hand as if to indicate that that was a given. "As long as she goes back to Ravenclaw tower by curfew."

Harry grinned, nodded at Snape and then ran ahead towards the Slytherin common rooms.

Snape was left behind, shaking his head at the rambunctious boy. He took a moment to collect himself, ghosting one hand over the wall to his left. Should he lose his balance, he could still catch himself. But then he momentarily closed his eyes to get rid of the dizziness. When that seemed all but gone again, he continued the trek to his chambers. A glass or two of fire whiskey should do the trick.

Harry was busying himself by aimlessly throwing a miniature bouncy quaffle against the wall above the fireplace, deftly catching it each time it returned when the door to the common room opened.

He turned his head to look at his new companion and sat up straight when he saw it was Hermione. "I was wondering where you were!" he exclaimed.

But his excited smile faltered when he noticed that Hermione's arms were full of books and parchments. Harry groaned his disagreement before she could open her mouth to speak.

"Oh, please," Hermione scolded him. "You're not going to tell me that you already completed all of your assignments, are you?"

"No," Harry agreed. "Butyoucan't tell me that you haven't." The less than subtle colouration on her cheeks attested to the truth of that statement. "And besides," Harry continued. "There is no way that we need all of the books you're carrying. Honestly, Hermione, haven't you ever heard of a hover charm?"

Hermione huffed. "I don't use hover charms on my books anymore," she said. "Not after Peeves stole them out of thin air, just to chuck them into the lake."

Harry picked up one of the books and scanned the title. 'Deceiving and Protecting the mind', it said. "I know for sure that we don't need this one," he mumbled cautiously after which he glanced at 'Unusual potions across the ages'. "Hermione…"

"I'm just going to do some light reading," Hermione said softly. "Nothing out of the ordinary."

Harry snorted as he looked at the cover of 'Extraordinary measures and wards'. "Right," he said. "I'm sorry but I can't quite believe that.

"Well, what am I supposed to fill my time with, then?" Hermione snapped at him. "I'm not about to hop on a broomstick, alright? It hurts!"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Only because you're not mounting your broom properly," he said. When Hermione didn't reply, he watched her as she carefully made several stacks with the books she brought. The blank parchment, she placed on the table in front of the hearth.

"Snape and I are going to go into the secret passage tomorrow," Harry offered, trying to ignore the feeling of anxiety that was bubbling up in his chest. "You can come with us, if you'd like."

"Oh, Professor Snape is coming with you?" Hermione asked, a flicker of something in her eyes that was gone too quickly for Harry to analyse. "That's really great, Harry. I'm sure that he'll keep you safe."

"Us both," Harry offered. "If you'll come."

Hermione sighed heavily. "I don't know," she said. "It sounds kind of dangerous and I'd really rather not get into that kind of thing this year." She smiled tentatively at Harry. "I wanted to come with you when you were about to go in there by yourself but if Professor Snape is with you, I don't need to worry about that, do I?"

"Come on," Harry urged. "I'll be fun! And you're really not supposed to be reading this much anymore."

Hermione glared at Harry and put her hands on her hips. "Harry James Potter," she scolded. "You can't tell me what I can and can't do. I have agreed on certain limitations with my acting head of house and I am following every rule he gave me. So don't worry about it. Reading books is how I relax."

"Don't be daft," Harry retorted, feeling a bit angry at his friend. "Not those kind of books! Honestly, it kind of looks as if you've raided the forbidden section or something. This is hardly Dickens!" As if to emphasize his point, Harry picked up a large, thick book titled, 'Mangled limbs and constricted hearts'. "I could always tell Snape and I know he'll have you put them back."

"For your information," Hermione spat angrily. "These are mine! I did not take anything from the forbidden section but there are no rules against ordering whatever you want by means of owl order."

That took Harry aback and he looked at the large piles of books again with widened eyes. "All of these?" he asked. "Are you saying that you bought all of these books? That must have cost a fortune!"

"I've had plenty of birthday money saved up," Hermione told him icily. "And since it is my own money, I can do whatever I want with it! Why are you being so difficult?!"

"I'm worried about you!" Harry exclaimed. Merlin, but Snape had been right. Hermione was far from recovered from her own problems and seemed to be spiralling. Hard. "Hermione, you're falling for the same traps you fell for earlier. You can't keep doing this to yourself!"

Hermione huffed. "That's rich coming from someone who hid his abuse his entire life!" As soon as she said that, she clapped her hands in front of her mouth in regret. "Oh, Harry," she said. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it like that."

But the damage was done. As soon as that horribly hurtful phrase had left Hermione's mouth, Harry felt thunderstruck. "You think it's my own fault, don't you?" he asked softly. "That I deserve all of this for keeping quiet for so long?" He couldn't even look at his friend right now. His gaze stayed transfixed on the floor.

"No," Hermione denied, her tone sincere but her voice wavering. "I don't. I didn't mean… Harry, I'm so sorry."

"Just get out," Harry told her, his voice now decidedly bland and devoid of all emotion. "Go, do whatever the hell you want. Just… do it somewhere else. I won't watch you destroy yourself."

He turned around and left her in the common room, eager to just retreat to his bed in the dormitory. He knew that she hadn't meant it like that. Of course not. She just lashed out at him because he was touching a nerve. But that didn't mean that he couldn't feel hurt about it. Rational thought and his emotions did not want to cooperate right now and so he would do what he did best when he was hurt. He hid.

Angrily, he crawled into his bed, covering his head with the covers. It was ridiculous, really. How she had been able to rile him up with such a small statement. But – he realised – there might be some truth to it. Because who was he to tell her to stop hiding her discomfort and struggles when he had done the same thing for his entire life. Wasn't that just the most hypocrite thing he could have said?

Confused about his own emotions that seemed to waver between anger and guilt, he closed his eyes and drifted quickly into a restless sleep.

When Harry had checked the common room a little while later, Hermione had indeed left, not leaving a trace of her presence behind. For the rest of the evening, she hadn't returned and Harry had spent the evening in relative peace, his stomach churning with a speckle of guilt on a low fire because he still believed that Hermione had seriously crossed the line herself, no matter her own issues.

Having eaten his breakfast the next morning, he couldn't help but wonder if Hermione would join him on his little excursion with Snape. Though he wasn't really sure whether or not he wanted her there in the first place.

Staring into the dying embers of the flames he had purposefully left alone, he looked up quickly once the door to the common room opened up and Snape stepped in. Alright, so he definitely had hoped that Hermione would join them if his disappointment was anything to go by. His emotions was clearly written all over his face because Snape quirked that eyebrow of his, watching him with slight ridicule. "Not who you were hoping to see?" he sneered.

Harry shook his head. "That's not…" he sighed. "It doesn't really matter. It's fine."

Snape just watched him with his arms crossed.

"Hermione and I kind of had a row, yesterday," Harry explained, not sure why he did so without prompting. "I was hoping that she would come as well."

"I do believe that it would be prudent not to put too many students at risk here," Snape said evenly. "Do you not?"

Harry kept himself from rolling his eyes but it took a great deal of effort. Instead, he rapped his fingers on the arm of his chair. "I'm sure it'll be fine," he said.

"Ah, my apologies," came Snape's sardonic reply. "I was unaware to be in the presence of an expert in regards to Salazar Slytherin."

"Will you stop?" Harry half chuckled, trying his best to ignore the mood the man seemed to be in. "I'm just trying to stay positive, that's all."

"And I'm merely trying to stay alive," Snape countered easily. "But since I know you will venture in here with or without my assistance, and I likely need a parselmouth to uncover any and all secrets, dangerous or not… well, I'm not left with a whole lot of options."

"And you're dying of curiosity," Harry mumbled under his breath, not at all impressed by the man's attempted deflections.

A quirk of the corners of Snape's mouth was the only indication that he heard that but he made no further comment. Instead, he sat down in the unoccupied chair in front of the fireplace, right next to Harry and regarded him expectantly. "Go on, then," he said. "You may proceed."

Harry watched Snape carefully for a moment, searching for a hint of pain or discomfort but when he found none, he was all too eager to finally get to the bottom of this. He lowered himself to the ground and sat on his hands and knees, leaning forward to get a good look at the rearing cobra at the back of the hearth. He heard Snape mutter something behind him when the last smouldering embers in the grate died. Harry coughed a little from the resulting smoke. "Hey!"

"I'd rather not explain to Professor Dumbledore a sudden combustion of that tangled mess you call hair, Mr Potter," Snape said, his voice laced with a hint of mirth.

Harry thought it was mighty rich of the man to make comments about anyone's hair but decided to hold his tongue. Instead, he focused on the snake, trying his best to pretend that it was real. He did his best to ignore the piercing gaze of the fearsome Potions Master and spoke. "Open."

He knew that he had spoken Parseltongue as soon as the wall fell back and slid sidewards to reveal that same winding passageway. On closer inspection, it was hardly high enough for Harry to stand up straight let alone for Snape to do so.

"Merlin's beard," Snape whispered behind him, clearly taken aback.

Harry looked at him, slightly puzzled. "What?" he asked. "Didn't you believe me or something?"

"I believed you," Snape said, his gaze transfixed on the opening. "But it is one thing to believe something rather unlikely and another entirely to witness it firsthand."

"Let's go," Harry said. Snape didn't even try to object.

"I will go first," he said, much to Harry's consternation but he supposed that the man was simply trying his best to keep Harry safe from whatever manner of beast could lie in wait for them. Either way, there was nothing Harry could have done to stop him anyway.

As soon as they both entered the passageway, the wall shifted and closed behind them, leaving them in complete darkness. "Lumos," mumbled Snape, not perturbed in the slightest.

The passageway was cramped and cold. The moisture of the ages clung to every stone and Harry shivered not only because of the falling temperatures but also because he became increasingly aware of a dark and foreboding aura he couldn't quite place. Snape's Lumos lit up the walls against which countless snake carvings stood out. They were meticulous, as if the curse of time had done nothing to dull their features.

"Wow," Harry whispered in awe. The time it must have taken to carve out each tiny intricate snake. Even with magic. How had anyone been able to do this in secret?

"If you are quite done gawking, I'd very much like to venture forth," Snape said. His voice was even but Harry imagined that it wasn't very comfortable for the man to stand there, hunched forward.

"One second," Harry said. These snakes had to be there for a reason. Why else were they spelled to withstand the hands of time? And why else were there so many?

"Show ussss the way," Harry spoke. This time, he got it right in one. His eyes widened in wonder as first one, but then more and more snakes started to illuminate with green light. But it wasn't the emerald green most often associated with Slytherin. It was the gentle, warm green from a blade of grass, shining in the rays of the summer sun.

Soon, every single little snake was burning brightly with that same warm glow, their slithering bodies moving playfully in every which direction as if the two wizards had found themselves in a snake's nest.

"This is marvellous," Snape said. He had kneeled now, so he could take a better look at his surroundings. The snakes even lit up the ceiling above them. And as they illuminated every crack and crevice, the dark and foreboding feeling from before vanished. "The raw power it must have taken to spell all of these carvings," Snape said in awe, though Harry had the feeling that the man was talking to himself more than he was to him. "The finesse to have them work as one. I could never have guessed…"

Harry chuckled lightly. "It is quite beautiful," he agreed.

"I'll say," Snape said, still admiring the scene. Then, he seemed to regain his sense of purpose and glanced at Harry. "I suppose we would do well to make haste. There's no telling just how deep these corridors could venture."

Harry simply nodded. Snape noxed his wand since there was no need for it any longer and led the way.

"If it makes you feel any better, I don't think a basilisk would fit through here," Harry said after a couple of minutes of silence. "Except maybe if it was a baby basilisk, of course. How big is a baby basilisk?"

"You would need to ask Hagrid," Snape told him. He kept carefully scanning the walls as they walked. He seemed to feel out every stone before they stepped on one. It made this entire journey agonisingly slow.

"I would not think to do all that," Harry told Snape as he tapped one of the stones with his wand.

Snape glanced at him for a moment before moving another step forward. "And what – pray tell – would your modus operandi be?"

"My what?" Harry asked.

Snape sighed. A long-suffering one. And Harry couldn't help but roll his eyes. Surely, the man was not out of it enough to think that most people shared his kind of vocabulary.

"Modus operandi," Snape repeated. "A particular way or method of doing something."

"Ah," Harry said. "I guess I wouldn't really have one. I'd just – you know – go."

"You'd just… go," Snape repeated. "With not a singular thought for your own well-being, I suppose. I should have known."

Harry snorted. "It's not as if your er… mode of upper… something has done all that much, though." Harry pointed out. "I'm telling you, there are no traps."

"I'd rather be wrong and have been overly cautious," Snape replied evenly. "Than for you to be wrong without sparing a moment of thought."

Harry inched forward another bit, staying close to Snape as he seemed to be checking out every inch of this damp, musty tunnel. It seemed much larger for it.

"If I may inquire," Snape suddenly said while Harry was playfully chasing one of the wriggling snakes with his index finger. "What was your altercation with Ms Granger about?"

Harry sighed. "I think you were right," he said sullenly. "She's studying way too much again. She even went out of her way to buy the books she would not be allowed to borrow from the forbidden section."

"A foolish notion," Snape said. "She ought to realise that there's a reason for these restrictions. No matter how intelligent she believes herself to be."

"You don't need to tell me," Harry said. "I said she was acting a bit bonkers – nicer than that, of course – but she lashed out at me."

When Harry was no longer forthcoming after that, Snape stopped and glanced at him again. "You seem perturbed," he said evenly.

Harry shrugged, though he imagined that Snape hadn't seen it. "A bit," he said. He didn't really want to talk about it and Snape seemed to sense that since he didn't press the issue.

"I shall have another talk with Professor Flitwick," he told Harry instead. "Her problems are not of the sort that you can simply solve with…the power offriendship." The derision in his voice was clear but Harry knew he was trying to be friendly so he didn't comment on it. "If her troubles persist, it might be prudent to summon a mind healer."

Harry felt somewhat shook when Snape said that. "A mind healer?" he repeated needlessly. "Do you really think that's necessary? Is it really that bad?"

"Things do not need to be dire for a mind healer to be necessary, Mr Potter," Snape told him softly. "It is not a last resort nor is it a resource for only the worst cases. And it should not be treated as such."

Harry shrugged again, for no other reason but to ground himself. What Snape said was nonsense, though. The Dursleys had always told Dudley just how ridiculous shrinks were and that people who needed them were weak. They had even mocked one of their close neighbours ruthlessly at the dinner table after finding out they she had sent her son to one after being bullied. "He just needs to toughen up," Vernon had said. "If he doesn't, life will chew him up and spit him out. Not like Dudley here, no sir. Now, this is what a strong boy looks like."

He supposed that it might have seemed rather thick to believe anything that came out of the mouths of his spiteful relatives but they always had Dudley's best interest at heart. So if they told their precious son just how much they were against any sort of psychiatrist or the likes, they must have really believed it. And they had always told Harry not to cry. That that was for weaklings. That he needed to pull himself together. Theywereright about all of that… right?

Harry had been lost in his thoughts and memories for so long that he barely noticed it when the cramped hallway finally opened up into a large chamber that was vastly different from the claustrophobic passageway. The ceiling arched high above, the very top completely lost in shadows and the entire structure was supported by stately white pillars that were covered in runes from top to bottom. The room itself was circular and the dark walls seemed to be pulsating with magic that seemed to reach out with wispy tendrils, invisible to the naked eye but prominent enough to give Harry goosebumps. The magic seemed to have been waiting for them. It was welcoming them.

At the centre of the chamber rested a raised platform and atop of it waited a cauldron. It was made of dark iron but its surface was gleaming with a silvery, almost liquid sheen that shifted and throbbed as if the cauldron itself was alive.

Snape stepped out of the passageway and into the room, momentarily forgetting all of the safeguards he had been adamant on preserving. Harry thankfully emerged right behind him, happy to be able to stretch his back and looked around the room in awe. As soon as they stepped inside, a multitude of torches that lined the wall, set themselves ablaze. A warm, blazing light soon filled the chamber as the two wizards explored the bowels of Slytherin house.

"Stay here," Snape instructed Harry, waving his hand at him as if to emphasize that command. But his gaze was transfixed on the cauldron and he was hardly watching his own step anymore. Not that Harry minded. He was sure that there were no traps for them here. Everything was too… inviting.

He also refused to listen to Snape. No way was he staying back while Snape snagged whatever treasure it was they found here. Harry wanted to at least be present for this. Even if this was all just about a silly cauldron he didn't know what to do with. Snape must have known Harry was not staying put but he also didn't tell him to anymore. So they both carefully approached the cauldron.

Now that they were closer, Harry could see that its rim was etched with several Celtic symbols that were glowing faintly. Above the cauldron swirled a wispy, ghostly mist in a vortex of energy. It seemed to practically be begging to be used. It felt as if they were intruding into something ancient. Something primal. Harry still wasn't sure what they were looking at when Snape whispered, "Cerridwen's cauldron of inspiration."

Harry was just about to ask for clarification when a large bang suddenly shook the entire chamber. Dust fell from the ceiling and several loose stones fell to the floor.

"What was that?" Harry asked.

Snape frowned and looked up, as if the ceiling would give him the answers. "I'm not certain," he said. "But I believe that it might not have originated in these chambers." After a moment of contemplation, he grabbed the cauldron and motioned for Harry to follow him. "Whatever the case, I must find out what is amiss. Come with me, Potter."

Much quicker than they had come in, they made their way out, past the illuminated snakes and narrow winding passageways. Another loud bang froze them in their tracks. Harry could have sworn that sounded like an explosion. After the dust settled again, Snape swore under his breath and continued crawling with Harry on his heels. He could only hope that everyone was ok.

A/N: Oh my, what is going on? Please don't hesitate to review! It's my only payment.