AN: Wow! It's been such a long time! This chapter is the only thing I've written all year :( I've been in such a slump and couldn't figure out how to get out of it. I wasn't sure about this chapter in the beginning, and to be honest, the first couple scenes were written more from a place of "I just want something done" but the last couple days it really started to feel like it was coming together and I think I really like how it ended up! I hope you do too! As always, thank you to everyone who continues to read this story, and for all the likes and favs and reviews! I almost always update late at night so that I can go to bed and wake up to new comments and reviews lol So if you don't mind, I'd love it if you could take a minute and let me know what you think!


"What in Merlin's name is going on?" Snape shouted.

Harry turned steely eyes towards him. "I told you!" He stepped aside as Snape crossed the hallway and said, "He's got the door locked."

Snape waved his wand at the door and it unlocked before swinging open to reveal Draco standing in the middle of his room, shaking the muggle radio Snape had tweaked so he could pick up wizarding stations.

Draco looked up, shock covering his face as he thrust the radio out for Snape to take. "It won't turn off!" he exclaimed. "I didn't do it!"

Snape tapped the radio with his wand and immediately the room fell silent. He took a moment to look around, noticing at once that the room was far messier than it had been the night before when Snape had said goodnight to the teen.

Clothes, both clean and dirty, were thrown haphazardly around as if Draco had tossed them out of his closet without caring where they landed. Books and papers were scattered about on the desk and floor, and an ink pot had been overturned on the bedside table. Draco's new broom lay carelessly on the couch and his skateboard sat upside down in the corner of the room.

"What happened in here?" Snape asked in confusion.

Draco looked around before glancing back to Snape with wide eyes. "What?" he asked innocently.

"When did your room become such a mess?" Snape put the radio back on the shelf where it normally sat, and gestured around the room with his right hand. "It didn't look anything like this a few hours ago when you went to bed."

Draco shrugged his shoulders and turned away from him. "What's the big deal?" he asked. "Jenka will clean it up."

Snape felt his temper rising as he stood up straight and crossed his arms over his chest. He caught sight of Harry leaning against the doorway, out of the corner of his eye, his brows raised so high they disappeared beneath his fringe.

"That is not how things work here, young man, and you know it," Snape said, sternly. "You will clean up your own room."

"Whatever," Draco muttered, keeping his head turned away from Snape.

"Jenka?" Snape said, summoning the small elf who appeared with a 'pop.'

"Yes, Master Snape, sir?" Jenka asked, barely getting the words out before Rook barreled over to her. The dog began to lick her face, wagging his tail in excitement at seeing her.

Jenka smiled, reaching up to pet him effectionately.

"Rook," Snape scolded, getting the dogs attention. "Leave her alone."

Rook sat back on his haunches, though it was clear he'd rather keep visiting with his friend.

"Jenka, I don't want you to clean Draco's bedroom."

Jenka's eyes widened. "Jenka is not to clean, sir? But Jenka is—"

Snape held up his hand. "I know, but that's an order. Draco is to clean his own room until he learns to treat everyone with respect and not take advantage of you."

Behind him, Draco scowled. "But that's—"

"I mean it, Jenka," Snape went on as if Draco hadn't spoken. "You will not clean Draco's room."

Jenka nodded immediately. "Yes, Master Snape, sir. Jenka understands."

"Alright then. You may go."

Jenka disappeared with another 'pop,' and Snape turned to face Draco once more.

Draco's arms were crossed over his chest as he stared angrily down at the floor.

Snape sighed. It was far too early for this. "I want you both in bed now. There's still a few more hours til breakfast, and I for one could use a bit more sleep."

Harry gave Snape a pointed look, though he went without complaint, calling Rook to his side as they left the room.

A second later, Snape heard his bedroom door shut.

"Is there something going on, Draco?" Snape asked softly. "Anything you'd like to talk about?"

Draco stubbornly shook his head. "I'm not a child, Uncle Severus. You don't have to coddle me like one."

Snape didn't miss the fact that he'd called him 'Severus,' instead of 'Sev,' which he'd recently started using more often. It seemed as if Draco was trying to put space between them. Perhaps Harry had been on to something after all.

Well, that simply would not do.

"Alright then," he said sternly, "you're notachild, but you aremychild, and you are going to get yourself into bed this instant, young man, before this attitude of yours gets you into trouble." Snape pointed to the bed and Draco wisely sat down. "You are going to get some sleep, and then tomorrow you will be cleaning this room right after breakfast."

"Is that all?" Draco asked, his tone still sharp.

Snape raised a challenging brow. "That depends entirely on you."

Draco looked as if he'd like to say more, but Snape only pointed to the bed again, and Draco let himself fall back against the pillows.

After putting out the lights, Snape walked out of the room and softly closed the door behind him.

He really hoped that Draco was in a better mood tomorrow. For both their sakes.

Snape didn't go back to sleep. He tried, but only tossed and turned for the next couple of hours before giving up and going downstairs. He tapped the table in the kitchen and a mug of steaming coffee appeared alongside the morning addition of the Daily Prophet. Snape sat down and opened the paper, scanning the headlines on the front page.

Not surprisingly, a photo of the Dark Mark high in the sky above the campsites after the Death Eater attack at the World Cup was on page one. The article didn't give any information that Snape didn't already have so he turned the page with a sigh.

A little while later, the sound of shuffling feet caught his attention and Snape looked up to see Harry walking into the kitchen, Rook, as always, right on his heels.

"Good morning, Harry," Snape said, watching as Harry moved around the table toward the back door, letting Rook out into the backyard.

"Morning," Harry replied around a yawn. He pulled out his usual chair beside Snape and dropped heavily into it.

"How did you sleep?" The scowl he got in response was all the answer he needed. "Right," he said. "And where is Draco?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "His Highness has been in the bathroom for almost an hour. No doubt taking all the hot water. The git."

Snape sighed. He'd been prepared to deal with an attitude from Draco this morning, but he hadn't counted on one from Harry as well. In an effort to cut his bad mood off at the pass, Snape said, "Why don't you use my bathroom? It's not time for breakfast yet, anyway."

Harry sent him an incredulous look. "Why should I have to? It's not my fault Draco's taking so long."

Snape resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Because I said so," he snapped. It was hardly a reason, but Snape was tired, too. He took a breath and let it out slowly. "Harry, just go take a shower. It will likely make you feel better anyway, and then afterwards, we'll have breakfast before you floo to Uncle Remus's for your session."

Harry groaned but said nothing as he got up and stalked out of the room.

A few moments later, Snape heard the door to his bathroom shut with just enough forcefullness that it showed Snape he was angry about being sent away, but not enough to be considered slamming.

Snape felt like banging his head against the table.

Instead, he reached for his coffee and downed the rest of it in one go.

Breakfast was a quiet affair.

Draco and Harry had come downstairs at the same time, pointedly ignorning each other as they sat down.

Snape tapped the table and their food appeared, and though Harry ate, he did so silently. Draco stabbed at his own food, as if it had done something to personally offend him, and only spoke in terse, one word sentences when Snape spoke to him first.

As soon as Harry's plate was clear, he stood up and pushed his chair in before turning to leave the room.

"I'm going to Remus's," he said.

Snape tossed his napkin down beside his plate as he, too, stood up. "Stay here," he murmured to Draco as he followed Harry into the living room.

Harry was already holding a handful of floo powder when Snape caught up to him.

"Harry James, what has gotten into you?" he demanded.

"What?" Harry asked innocently.

Snape crossed his arms over his chest as he glared down at the teen. "What, indeed. Are you trying to get yourself into trouble as well?"

"No. You told me to go to Uncle Remus's. I'm just doing what you said."

"Apparently with every ounce of attitude you can muster." Snape found himself taking another deep breath. "I know you're tired, we all are—"

"Because of Draco," Harry interrupted. "That radio didn't just magically turn itself on and you know it."

Snape sighed. "And I'm going to talk to him about it, but it doesn't give you the right to stomp around act like a brat either."

Harry dropped his gaze to the floor as he nodded.

Snape studied him for a few seconds before closing the distance between them and pulling Harry in close, his hand cradling his head against his chest. He felt as some of the tension left Harry's body and he relaxed the slightest bit.

"I really ought to send you straight back to bed," he said softly. "We both know how you get when you haven't had enough sleep."

"I'm fine," Harry insisted, pulling away. "Honest."

Snape nodded. "Alright, then. Off with you. But as soon as you're done, you're to come straight back. No hanging out just for the fun of it. You're still grounded, remember."

Harry rolled his eyes again, though there was no attitude in it now. "How could I forget?"

"Only two more weeks," Snape reminded him.

"Might as well be two more years," he grumbled as he stepped into the fireplace. Before Snape could say anything else, Harry dropped the powder and said, "Remus Lupin's study."

Snape watched as Harry disappeared in the green flames before he reluctantly returned to the kitchen where Draco still sat scowling at his breakfast.

"Are you going to finish your food or just glare at it?"

Draco let his fork clang loudly against the plate before he sat back in his chair and crossed his arms.

Snape took that for the answer it was and tapped the table, clearing it before he leaned his hip against it. He took in the way Draco sat, back ramrod straight and jaw set. His steely grey eyes narrowed as he stared down at the table.

"Would you like to talk about what's bothering you?" Snape asked.

"Nothing's bothering me," he said, unconvincingly. "You're the one who's mad at me for no reason."

Snape's eyebrows shot up. "No reason?"

"Yes. You're blaming me for the radio last night, even though I told you it just started on it's own, and you're mad that my bedroom doesn't meet your standard of perfection. So you're making me clean it up like a house elf."

"Is that so?" Snape asked, his voice taking on that deathly calm tone that sent seventh years running for the hills. "Remind me, Draco. When did I say you were to blame for the radio that mysteriously came on at full volume at half past four this morning?"

Draco opened his mouth to answer, but then promptly shut it.

"That's right," Snape said, "because I didn't. However, if there is anything concerning the radio that you'd like to admit to, I'm all ears."

Draco turned his head to glare at the opposite wall.

"As for the state of your bedroom, I simply find it odd that it was clean when you went to bed, but in total disaray when a mere few hours later. Especially since you were asleep. Tell me, did the room make a mess of itself?"

Draco ground out a terse, "No," without looking up.

"Then you can imagine why I would expect you to clean it up."

"But—"

"And if you say one word about it being Jenka's job, I will personally see to it that you take over all of her cleaning duties for the next week."

Draco snapped his mouth shut once again.

"Yes, Jenka is a house elf, and yes, this manor would fall completely apart without her, but she is not, and I repeat,nottobe taken advantage of or mistreated. I know there are other wizards who disagree as to how they should be treated, it is not up for discussion here. I will not tolerate you or anyone else treating her with anything less than the utmost respect. Is that understood?"

Draco sighed but reluctantly nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Good." Just as he had with Harry, Snape stepped forward and pulled Draco from the chair and into a hug. He wasn't quite sure why he'd done it, other than he was going completely soft, but when Draco leaned into the embrace just as Harry had, he knew he'd made the right choice. "Are you sure you don't want to talk about what's going on? I know something is bothering you and you'll make it a lot easier on both of us if you just talk to me."

Draco shook his head, though he tightened his hold around Snape's waist.

They stood that way for another moment before Snape said, "Then off to your room. I don't want you out until it's clean." When Draco looked as if he might argue, Snape held up his hand. "If you just get started on it, I'm sure you'll be done in no time. Now go."

"Fine," Draco replied, sullenly, as he turned and left the room.

Snape pinched the bridge of his nose before heading to the back door to let Rook inside. It was going to be a long day.

"And then what happened?" Remus asked gently.

Harry huffed from his place on Remus's couch. He sat with his back against the arm and his legs tucked up to his chest. Harry kept his gaze lowered, focusing on the pattern of the couch as he said, "You know what happened. Why do I have to say it?"

"It won't help you to avoid it." Remus sat in the armchair across from Harry and waited patiently for him to reply.

"He put me in my room."

"The cupboard?"

Harry's eyes narrowed but he didn't confirm Remus's suspicion. He didn't need to.

"Did he lock you in that time?" He asked instead.

"I wasn't supposed to be on the roof," Harry said in answer.

Remus showed no outward emotion to that statement, though inside he was seething. Harry had just finished telling him how he had ended up on the roof of the school after his cousin and his gang of friends were chasing him. He had accidentally used magic to get away, and had been severly beaten for it when Vernon Dursley had gotten him home.

"It was an accident," Remus said. "Was it an appropriate or deserved punishment?"

This question always annoyed Harry, but Remus asked it anytime Harry defended the actions of the Dursleys. It was important for Harry to realize he had never deserved their abuse and neglect.

Harry picked at the frayed edge of the hem of his jeans. He took a steadying breath and let it out slowly before he finally answered. "No."

Remus gave a soft smile. Then he asked the hard question. "What was it then?"

Harry looked up at him, green eyes bright as he bit his bottom lip and shook his head.

Remus only waited.

Harry swallowed hard around the lump in his throat. "It was abuse," he admitted so softly that Remus would have missed it if it weren't for his enhanced hearing.

Remus felt an enormous amount of pride well up in him. It usually took a lot longer to get Harry to this point.

"I'm very proud of you, Cub," Remus told him.

Harry beamed at the praise.

Remus glanced at his watch. There wasn't a time limit with Harry, but Remus didn't want to push him too much in one day. It was clear that Harry was tired and had reached his limit.

"How have you slept this week? Any nightmares?"

Harry shrugged. "A few dreams, I guess, but not really nightmares."

"About anything in particular?" If Harry was being truthful, this would be the first nightmare-free week he'd had since he'd stopped taking Dreamless Sleep.

Harry turned so that one leg hung off the couch and he clasped his hands in his lap. "Mostly about the night of the World Cup. I keep seeing Dark Mark in the sky, and there's a man holding his wand up towards it while laughing."

Remus nodded. After hearing about the Death Eater attack on the muggles, he wouldn't be surprised if other kids weren't also having nightmares about it. Adults, too, for that matter.

"That symbol strikes fear in wizards everywhere. He would cast it above homes of people who were murdered to let everyone know he'd been there."

"That's awful," whispered Harry. "Have you seen it? In person?"

Remus was quiet for a long moment, lost in dark memories from the first war. Eventually, he nodded slowly. "More times than I'd care to admit."

When Harry stepped out of the floo and into the living room of the manor, he found Snape sitting in his chair with a book in his hand and Rook sleeping by his feet.

Harry grinned as he dropped down onto the couch. "Too bad I don't have Collin's camera," he said. "This would make a great picture."

Snape scowled and closed his book before placing it on the table beside him. "Don't get any ideas."

Harry smirked and turned his head toward the doorway that lead to the stairs. "So where's Draco?" he asked.

"Still in his room. Why don't you go let him know it's time for lunch."

"Okay," Harry said, hopping off the couch. When he got to the doorway he called up the stairs, "Draco! Lunch!"

"That is not what I meant," Snape said flatly.

Harry simply shrugged innocently, but when neither of them heard anything to signal Draco had even heard, Snape pointed up the stairs and said, "Go tell him."

Not willing to truly push Snape, Harry climbed the steps to the second floor. He knocked on Draco's bedroom door and said, "Draco, Dad says to come down for lunch."

When he still got no response, Harry turned the handle and the door opened to reveal an empty room. Everything was exactly as it had been that morning, except Draco was no where to be seen.

"Draco?" He got no answer, though he hadn't expected one.

The bathroom door was open and Harry could see he wasn't in there either, so he crossed through to his own bedroom. Finding it empty as well, Harry left and walked back to the stairs and called down. "He's not up here!"

Snape appeared almost instantly at the bottom of the stairs. "What do you mean he's not up there?"

"He's not in either of our rooms."

Snape murmured something Harry was certain he wouldn't be allowed to repeat before storming up. Harry followed him back to Draco's room where he looked around, eyes landing on the desk where Draco's wand sat. Wherever Draco was, he didn't have his wand with him.

He went to his own room, calling Draco's name along the way, but when it was clear that he wasn't anywhere to be found, he walked back into the hallway.

"What about that room?" Harry asked, pointing to the room at the end of the hall that Harry had never been inside.

Snape shook his head. "He's not in there."

"How do you know?" Harry moved toward the door but Snape called him back.

"Noone can enter that room except for me. It's spelled to only open to me. Draco's not in there."

Snape didn't wait around for Harry to ask questions, and Harry followed him back downstairs.

"Maybe he went to Mageport," he offered, though he sincerely hoped he hadn't. That would bring Draco more trouble than whatever game he was play was worth. They'd both learned there lesson after the concert.

"He's still on the property."

Harry rolled his eyes. "How do you know?" he asked again, getting annoyed.

Snape turned around to face him, brows raised. "Because after the little stunt you and Mr. Weasley pulled at the beginning of summer, I added more security to the wards so that I would be alerted immediately alerted should either of you step one foot past them."

"Oh," Harry said. "Good to know."

Harry and Snape spent the next few hours searching for Draco. They searched everywhere inside and outside the manor. Harry had no idea the property was so big! They hadn't even covered half of it, and eventually Snape sent Harry back inside while he searched the woods on the far side. He didn't want to take a chance that Harry would get lost, and he wanted someone there in case Draco came back.

Harry sat in the kitchen, absently picking at a sandwich, when he heard someone come through the floo.

He bolted toward the living room to find Remus dusting soot off his coat.

"I know Severus said he couldn't get through the wards," he said with a frown, "but I've been all over, just in case. No one has seen him."

Remus sat down in the armchair opposite Snapes and immediately Rook walked over and began begging for his attention. He smiled as he scratched the dog behind the ears.

"I told dad he needed to talk to him," Harry said as he sat down on the couch.

"I tried talking to him this morning. He wasn't ready to listen."

Harry and Remus both turned to see Snape walking in from the kitchen. He held Harry's plate with the uneaten sandwich in his hand.

"You didn't eat," he said, holding it out for Harry to take. "You know I don't like you skipping meals."

Harry huffed. "Draco's skipping meals."

Snape crossed his arms and Harry took the sandwich. The bread was a bit dry now, but he ate it anyway. He wasn't interested in making Snape angry with him when he was already going to be furious with Draco.

He watched as Snape paced the floor.

"I don't understand where he could be," he said suddenly. "He took his broom, but what if he had an accident? What if he fell and is lying somewhere and needs help?"

"Sev, don't get worked up," Remus said calmly. "Wherever Draco is, I'm sure he's fine. He's frustrated and obviously dealing with things in the wrong way, but if he were hurt, don't you think he'd use the bracelet to portkey himself back home?"

"Not if he's lying on the ground knocked out somewhere!"

Remus sighed. "Well, if you're sure he can't have gotten through the wards, I might have a suggestion."

"I'm listening," Snape said.

"Sirius could find him."

Snape scowled.

"Hear me out," Remus said, not giving him a chance to protest. "It's getting later. It'll be dark soon and even if Draco's not hurt, he might get lost trying to get back. If he is hurt, he's out there all alone. With his heightened senses, Sirius can find him faster than we can, even in the dark."

That sounded like a good idea to Harry. "What about your senses?" he asked. "Are they hightened because you're a werewolf?"

Remus nodded. "Yes, but only a few days before and after the transformation. Sirius is our best option."

Snape seemed to think it over for a long moment before finally, he nodded once. "Call him."

Draco looked up through the trees to the darkening sky. He'd definitely made a mess of things this time. He had snuck out through his bedroom window and took off flying, but he hadn't planned on being gone so long.

He had landed just out of sight of the manor, thinking that when Snape came looking for him, he would just say he'd gone outside, tired of cleaning his room. But Snape hadn't even noticed he was gone, and eventually, Draco had gotten bored and started flying through the woods. It was practice, really, as he weaved through and around the trees, dodging obstacles and veering up and down as if he were racing to catch the snitch in a match.

That had been hours ago, though. Not once had he heard Snape calling for him. He probably didn't even know he was gone yet. And now it was getting dark and Draco wasn't exactly sure which was led back to the Manor.

To make matters worse, he didn't have his wand. Which, admittedly, had been part of the plan. Snape had lots of rules, and both he and Harry broke them now and then, but not the wand one. It was a non-negotiable, and they both knew it. Draco had left it on purpose knowing that if nothing else, Snape couldn't ignore that. He would have to deal with him because he couldn't let him get away with breaking such a big rule.

Draco really regretted leaving it now though. A quick "point me" spell would have been really useful for getting back. When he heard a branch breaking somewhere out of his line of sight, he suddenly thought that Lumos would be nice to have now, too.

He turned his head toward the sound and gasped when he caught a pair of bright eyes staring back at him. It was too far away for him to make out the shape of the animal, but he was sure it was big. And he was definitely sure it was walking towards him. Draco stumbled back quickly, his back hitting the solid trunk of a tree.

He gripped the handle of his broom but before he could swing his leg over, a shaggy black dog broke through the tree line and entered the small clearing where Draco stood. In the next instant, he was transforming into a figure Draco recognized.

Sirius.

"Hello, Draco," Sirius said, a hint of a smile on his face as he lit his wand so they could see. "Alright?"

Draco nodded.

Sirius conjured a patronus, a silvery dog, said, "I've got him. We're coming back."

The dog ran off and Draco sighed.

Sirius gave him a long look and said, "I'm supposed to apparate back with you, but if you'd rather, we can walk. I know the long way."

"Uncle Sev will be mad," Draco said, though the idea of putting off seeing him sounded wonderful.

Sirius shrugged. "He's already mad, but now he knows you're safe. And if he says anything, I'll tell him it was my idea," he added with a wink.

Draco only hesitated for a moment before he agreed.

The first few minutes of the walk were silent as Sirius led the way, using his wand to clear the path for them so they wouldn't trip. When Draco looked at him questioningly as he levitated a small log out of the path instead of simply crossing over it, he shrugged and said, "What's the point of being a wizard if you can't take advantage of it?"

Draco smiled, the first genuine smile he'd felt in days.

"So, running away," he said. "What's that about?"

"I wasn't running away. I was just getting out."

Sirius hummed a response. He ducked under a low-hanging branch and said, "I ran away once. Well, more than once if I'm being honest, but that's not the point."

Draco didn't need to ask why. It wouldn't be hard to guess. Sirius was his mother's cousin, and he'd heard enough stories to put the pieces together that Sirius Black was a blood traitor and might as well be dead in his family's eyes.

He supposed he was as well.

"Where did you go?" he asked.

Sirius grinned. "To James's parent's house. I was sixteen at the time and I stayed with them until I was of age. Til after, actually."

"Did you like staying there?" Draco wasn't sure what made him ask, but he suddenly needed to know about how the young Sirius Black felt back then.

"Very much so," Sirius answered immediately. "The Potter's were more of a family to me than my blood relatives ever were. They became my parents and I loved them very much."

Draco nodded, but was spared from having to think of something else to say when Sirius went on.

"Not that it was always easy, mind you. I wasn't exactly known for following the rules and I certainly wasn't used to parents who enforced them. I found myself testing them quite a bit at first."

"Testing them?" Draco asked.

Sirius moved another log. "Yeah, you know, the rules and the boundaries. Seeing how far I could push them before they'd had enough. Before they decided I wasn't worth it and they sent me away."

"Oh." Draco tried to imagine what he would do if Snape sent him away. It wasn't something he wanted to dwell on too much but he couldn't deny that he had thought about it. Honestly, he'd been thinking about it a lot lately. His own parents hadn't wanted him. Had actually sent him to Snape to be rid of him. He didn't want to believe that his Uncle Sev would do the same thing, but how would he know unless—

"It never worked, by the way."

Sirius's voice pulled him from his thoughts and he glanced back up at him. He'd stopped walking and turned back to face Draco.

"What didn't?"

"Pushing them. No matter what I did, how much trouble I got into, it didn't make a difference to them. They didn't send me away and they never got tired of me. They took care of me. Made sure I had everything I needed, even if what I needed wasn't exactly what I wanted," he added with a laugh.

Draco smiled. "Like what?"

Sirius grimaced. "Well there was a particularly memorable howler is seventh year that I still haven't gotten over."

He turned back to the path and started walking once again, Draco following closely in his footsteps.

"Anyway, you should take it from me, as someone with a lot of experience with this sort of thing, Snape's not going anywhere. So save yourself the headache and stop pushing him. You'll get the same outcome every time. You'll be in trouble and he'll still be there."

By now they'd cleared the treeline and Draco could see the lights glowing in the kitchen of the manor. Snape was pacing in front of the window, no doubt waiting for him to come inside.

Draco took a deep breath. "So what do I do now?"

Sirius looked between Draco and Snape before he closed his eyes and let out a long sigh. "It pains me to admit this, and if you tell anyone I said it, I'll personally make you regret it, but Snape is… I mean, I was…"

Draco raised an eyebrow at him and Sirius groaned.

"Snape is doing alright by you and Harry, and it's obvious that he cares about you both. Maybe you should start with an apology, and let him take it from there."

Sirius began walking toward the Manor and after a moment, Draco did as well. When they got to the back door, Sirius opened it and let Draco go ahead of him, but when Snape turned his way, he froze just inside the doorway.

Snape looked tired and suddenly Draco felt the anger and frustration he'd been holding on to over the last few days seep out of him. He swallowed hard around the lump in his throat and launched himself at Snape, who caught him easily, tucking him in close to his chest.

"M'sorry, Uncle Sev," he said brokenly.

Snape looked at Sirius over the top of Draco's head. He nodded once but Sirius didn't say anything as he eased past them in search of Harry and Remus.

Snape held Draco a little tighter and whispered, "It's alright, Draco. I've got you."