Glomp for lav123

[snarryglompfest]

Title: Bound to Freedom
Author: Anonymous
Word count: 11,700
Rating/Warning: NC-17
Warnings: Referal to chan;
Prompt: I would love to read a fic where Harry suddenly starts coming into a lot of new powers and has to go to Snape to learn control. However, as he learns from him, he starts to discover the real Snape and falls in love. Problem is he now has to convince Snape.

Author Notes: To my prompter: You had asked for Post-Hogwarts but that didn't want to work out, so I hope this will suffice. It was a fun prompt to work with and this fic really should have been more epic than it is.

To the Glomfest Mods: Many, many thanks for patience and understanding from a late writer.




"Potter! Detention!" Severus barked.

The young man behind the potion bench slumped slightly and sighed. He rubbed his forehead, he had a headache. "When?" he bit out.

"Tomorrow morning," Severus decided. "You will assist me in gathering potion ingredients."

"But it's Saturday morning and Quidditch tryouts!" Ron hissed behind him.

"Ron, don't make it worse!" Hermione whispered back.

Harry waved a hand behind his back that he hoped they understood. Shut up! he tried to convey.

"Immediately after breakfast," Severus said. "Be prepared to go into the Forest."

"Yes, sir," Harry said softly.

Over dinner, Ron ranted on about how unfair and arbitrary Snape was until Neville said in frustration, "Ron, stop! There's nothing you can do about it."

"But Harry's supposed to be the Captain!" Ron protested. "How can he do that if he's not there?"

"Start trials after lunch," Hermione suggested. "No big deal."

"The Slytherins have the pitch after lunch!" Ron moaned.

"Trade with them," Neville suggested.

Ron looked at Neville in horror, which Harry had to grin at. The look on Ron's face was spectacular.

"It's not funny!" Ron protested as Harry snickered.

"Your face is," Harry admitted. "Listen, it's not the end of the world. You run the try-outs, get someone else to be a backup Seeker and I'll get there when I can get there."

Ron looked pleased to be put in charge. He settled back to his dinner. "It's still not fair!" he muttered.

Harry shrugged. "It's Snape," he said. "It's never fair."

Ron was mercifully quiet that night in the common room, letting Harry do some homework while Ron played Exploding Snape with some of the fourth years. Ron wasn't studying for as many NEWTs as Harry and Hermione – well, no one was preparing for as many as Hermione, even Malfoy – so Ron had more free time than his two friends.

Harry left his room early for breakfast, hoping that, maybe if he was on time, that Snape might let him go before lunchtime. He ate oatmeal and bacon, washing it down with pumpkin juice.

He picked up the warm cloak he had brought with him. Even if was only late September, the Forest would be cool in the morning. He had already put on stout boots and a sweater before breakfast.

Standing in front of Snape's door, Harry took a deep breath. He knocked and waited.

Snape appeared in the doorway, similarly dressed and carrying a basket.

"Ready?" Snape asked.

"Yes, sir," Harry said softly.

They walked out into the Forbidden Forest in silence, Severus leading the way.

Severus stepped into a small open space in the Forest and stopped. Harry stopped just behind him.

"Bloody hell!" Harry swore.

"Bloody hell, indeed," Severus agreed.

Severus turned to face the young man. For young man he had become in the six years they had done this. At seventeen, Harry – for here it was 'Harry' and not 'Potter' – had grown taller and filled out very nicely.

In Harry's first year, Severus had instantly recognized the latent power in Harry. Dumbledore had had an inkling because he had used his position as Headmaster to have Hogwarts bind Harry's power. Voldemort had known there would be something about Harry Potter because of the thrice-damned prophesy, but Severus had ensured that Voldemort would never learn about Harry's hidden powers.

In that first year, Severus had completed a ritual which bound he and Harry together. He had taken the risk that he could protect their memories so no one would figure out what he had done until Harry was ready. The ritual had hidden Harry's power from both Dumbledore and Voldemort, and had given Harry the chance to grow up – relatively – free.

Crossing into their ritual space – the wards Severus had placed required they be there together – released the memories hidden from each of them. Severus had originally surmised that Harry would come into his powers at his magical maturation, usually about fifteen. But fifteen had come and gone with no sign of any change, and Severus had to wait. This year, it was apparent at seventeen that Harry was finally ready.

"Now what? Harry demanded.

"We have to complete the last part of the ritual," Severus replied. "There is an additional component that will release the bindings the Headmaster has on your magic and it will turn those powers over to us." He amended, "To you."

"I get a say in this?" Harry asked.

"We are partners," Severus said solemnly. His agreement with Harry from the start had been to be truthful. "And, to be honest, as you grow older, you will be more powerful and the dominant partner in our relationship. Something I outlined in the beginning but you may not have remembered."

Harry's eyes narrowed at that thought.

Severus waited. He didn't think Harry had it in him to be deliberately cruel, but he had been cruel to Harry. The nature of their public relationship had required it. Severus had hidden the bond even from himself, to better protect them both, and his natural negative reaction to James Potter's son had defined their relationship to date.

"Bugger," Harry swore softly.

"Going forward, we must continue our charade," Severus warned him. "The Dark Lord is still out there, somewhere, and there is a chance he can become powerful again." Severus held his arm out for Harry to see the Dark Mark that was there.

Harry looked carefully at the Mark then looked up at Severus. "How important is it for you to keep this?" he asked.

Severus shrugged. "Dumbledore thinks to keep me as a spy in Voldemort's camp," he admitted. "But I do not know if there is reason to…" Severus trailed off as Harry took his arm in one hand.

Harry hissed at the snake in the Mark, the snake moved and hissed back. Harry gripped Severus' arm forcefully and whipped his wand out to point at the snake. There was a sudden release as the snake on his arm suddenly broke into small, dark pieces that flew away, and the Mark disappeared.

"Better?" Harry asked, releasing his hold on Severus.

Severus flexed his arm, feeling the lightness that came over his entire body with the disappearance of the Mark.

"Much, thank you," Severus replied. "Although Voldemort will know it is gone."

"Too bad," Harry said flatly. "If we are to be for each other, if you are to be for me, then no one else can have a claim on you."

Interesting, Severus thought. The possessive tone of Harry's voice sent a chill up his spine. It was a good thing.

"We still have to do the Ritual," Severus reminded Harry.

"I may actually enjoy it this time," Harry gave a sly grin. "What do we have to do to release the bindings?"

Severus gave his own grin. "You need to come when I do," he said. "And there's a chant you have to say at the same time."

"Really?" Harry was interested in that. He had never come during the ritual, the first years being too young but the last two years he had barely gotten hard. Severus hoped that the lure of power would help Harry achieve an erection this time.

Severus ran Harry through his brief part of the Ritual and directed Harry to take off his clothes as he prepared the pentagram.

As he sat naked on the cloak he had spread on the rock they used as a platform, Severus looked appreciatively at the young man before him. Harry had grown and filled out over the years. Severus knew that the bond between them had not only protected Harry from Dumbledore and Voldemort, but also from the Muggles Harry was forced to live with. The bond had made sure that Harry was treated relatively well and decentlu fed.

Severus picked up the athame and the cup, and looked at Harry. "Ready?"

Harry nodded, "Yes!"

Harry came forward and Severus made a shallow cut in Harry's finger for the necessary three drops of blood. Severus added his own blood to the cup. The freely offered blood showed their willingness to participate in the ritual.

Severus held out a hand, Harry took it and straddled Severus' lap. Severus cast the charm for lubrication and loosening. Harry placed his hands on Severus' shoulders to steady himself.

Starting the chant, Severus focused on the words he needs to say, not the warm, lithe body under his hands. As he chanted, his cock filled and he positioned Harry above him. At the right moment, Severus guided Harry onto his cock and Severus had to ignore the soft "oh!" that Harry voiced.

Harry assisted Severus in moving, flexing his thighs to move up and down on Severus' cock. As the chant came to the critical moment, Severus saw that Harry was hard, leaking and ready. They both came and together chanted the ending of the ritual. Unseen by either Harry or Severus, a dark mist flowed from Harry's scar with a sharp whine. As is dissipated, a bright white light surrounded them, lighting up the open area they were in.

"It's done," Severus said softly.

Harry lifted his head from Severus' shoulder and hesitantly leaned in. Severus put a hand on the back of Harry's neck and guided him in for a soft kiss.

"Can we do this more often? And in a bed?" Harry asked eagerly.

"The problem will be in keeping it a secret," Severus replied. "The Headmaster is connected to castle and able to learn what goes on, mostly from the portraits but most of the House Elves are loyal to him. That means that we will not be able to see each other routinely. It is not, quite, against the rules for a teacher and a student to be in a relationship. However, since it is you, there are always different rules."

Harry sighed.

"On the other hand, you will need training to deal with your expanding power," Severus soothed. "We certainly will need to work on dealing with that."

"More detentions?" Harry grinned.

"I am afraid so," Severus replied with an answering grin.

Harry snuggled into Severus, "Don't want to move. Comfy." The wards around the space they were in kept the worst of the cool air away from them.

"We don't have to hurry back," Severus agreed. "Although you will have to face Mr. Weasley's displeasure in missing Quidditch try outs."

"Fuck," Harry said softly. "I'll deal with Ron."

"If you are not in a hurry, I would like to help you build an Occlumency shield," Severus offered. "It is best if you have your own shield. I will not have to charm your memories that way."

Harry looked wary, remembering their one disastrous attempt at Occlumency training at Dumbledore's request.

"This will be better," Severus promised. "I now know I was fighting teaching you true Occlumency before, the bond between us was not ready for it."

"If you're sure," Harry replied carefully.

"With the bond, it will be simple for me to teach you," Severus replied. "Take a breath and look into my eyes…"

Green eyes looked at him, trusting in a way that took Severus' breath away. Lily had looked at him that way, once, when he first explained about magic to her. Severus pushed that memory aside and gently pushed his mind toward Harry's. He quickly showed Harry the basics of building a shield and then withdrew.

"Oh!" Harry said softly. "That's not hard!"

"Then build a shield and keep me out," Severus said.

"Ready," Harry said, looking Severus in the eye.

Severus attempted to gain access to Harry's mind and just… slid off.

"Very good," Severus praised. "When your full shield is up, no one can get in, but they also know you have a shield. More subtle is setting up secondary memories so that the other person thinks they are gaining access to your mind but they only see what you are allowing them to see."

"Like setting up a decoy?" Harry tilted his head in thought.

"Yes," Severus replied.

"Give me a minute," Harry said. He was silent for almost five minutes, then said, "Try it again."

This time, Severus gained access to memories of Quidditch. Severus pushed further but couldn't get anything but Quidditch.

"Very good!" Severus was impressed. Harry had figured out how to create a diversionary memory just from a suggestion. "It is more than sufficient for all but the most talented Legilimens. Unfortunately, Dumbledore and Voldemort will fall into that category."

Harry shrugged. "You'll teach me," he replied. "What else do we have to do today?"

"That was the most important," Severus answered. "Any truly serious training, I must warn you that we will need to leave the castle."

"We could use the Room of Requirement," Harry offered. "We could make it invisible to Dumbledore." At Severus' inquiring look, Harry explained, "It's on the seventh floor, across from the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls how to do the ballet."

"I suspect you could make it invisible," Severus corrected gently. "But that is a good idea."

Severus eased Harry off his lap, casting healing and cleaning charms once Harry was on his feet.

They dressed in silence, and Severus cleaned the cup and the anthame.

The walk back to the castle was easier between them than the walk out. Inside the doors, Harry turned and hesitated.

"I will see you… Thursday evening," Severus said.

"Yes, sir," Harry tried for sullen but wasn't sure if he pulled it off.

It was too late for lunch, so Harry headed for the dorm. Quidditch practice was indeed over as Harry climbed into the portrait hole, the Gryffindor common room overflowing with good cheer.

"Harry!" Ron waved a hand, drawing Harry's attention.

"Sorry, mate," Harry said. "Se-.. Snape kept me forever!"

"We saved you a spot," Ron replied cheerily. "But I think it's a good team!"

Harry looked around the happy room. "Guess we'll see. Who made the team?"

"You're still Seeker," Ron said, "Although we think Ginny would make a good backup, if we need one. I'm still Keeper, Ginny and Dennis Creevy are Chasers, and Jamie Phelps and Matt Lewis are Beaters." Harry didn't know Jamie and Matt that well, being third year students, but they had been on his list of candidates for their large size, if nothing else. "And there's a short list of alternates for all the positions."

"Thanks!" Harry said, taking the illegal butter beer that someone shoved in his direction. "Good job!" He opened the bottle and took a swig of the not-quite-warm beverage.

"Sorry," Ron said. "Forgot to make it cold."

"Its fine," Harry waved a hand. "Tell me about the try outs."

Ron rambled on about the try outs, the others adding random bits as Ron would get sidetracked. It made for a fun afternoon.

"I need a shower before dinner," Harry put in. "I'll see you there?"

"Sure, I'm starving!" Ron said.

"When are you not?" Harry laughed, going up to his room.

In front of a mirror, Harry looked at himself. He didn't think he could see anything different, but he felt different. He'd have to be careful for the next few days until Severus…. Snape, he had to think of him as Snape, to protect them both. He'd have to be careful until Snape could give him some more training.

There was an informal party in the Common Room even after dinner, but Harry begged off and went to the Library to do some work.

"How did you escape?" Hermione whispered. "I didn't think Ron would have let you leave."

"I made him tell me everything this afternoon," Harry admitted. "That way, he's done his job and I can get some homework done tonight."

"What are you working on?" Hermione asked.

They compared notes and settled into some N.E.W.T. level Transfiguration homework. They exchanged ideas on the assignment and then settled in to start writing.

"Closing time," Madam Pince reminded them.

"Oh, sorry!" Hermione said. "Just have to pack up!"

Harry packed up his books and papers into his bag, and they left together. He let Hermione's chattering review of the homework assignment wash over him on the walk back to Gryffindor Tower.

Fortunately, the party had either wound down or moved elsewhere, there were only a few students in the Common Room. Harry bade Hermione good night and went up to his room.

Harry remembered to cast a silencing charm and close his drapes before he went to sleep. He hoped to dream of Severus.

In his chambers, Severus Snape stared at a glass of bourbon in his hand. He had abstractly known this day would come but he still had not been prepared for it. It had been a long six years since he started the bonding between them, but it had been a hidden memory from both himself and Harry. Until today.

Today, he was a free man. Well, free-er. He had traded his slavery to Voldemort – and in a way, also to Albus Dumbledore – to a life-long bond with Harry Potter. It was a vast improvement.

Knowing about the bond and the protection it offered to Harry, he thought back to some of the events over the years that, in retrospect, now made more sense.

The Chamber of Secrets still made Severus wince. How Dumbledore could allow students to be in the school when there was a Basilisk roaming free was still a mystery. While Harry had defeated the Basilisk, it was a narrow escape and Severus had to give the boy credit for seeking his help in dealing with the spectre of Riddle and his very tangible monster.

Sirius Black was another matter. He had escaped from Azkaban only to die saving Harry from Peter Pettigrew. The larger irony being that everyone had thought Pettigrew was dead and was now in Azkaban himself.

Another memory tugged at Severus… Ah! The Tri-Wizard Tournament! After the three champions had been chosen, the Goblet had flared like it was going to disgorge another name but it had given up nothing but a puff of ash. Severus wondered if the false Moody had anything to do with that. Dumbledore had been all chuffed when a battered Cedric Diggory had won the tournament.

All during that year, Severus had been worried that Voldemort would find some way to come back to life. His Mark had grown darker during the year, only to fade again with the coming of summer. Something Voldemort had planned had not gone right, Severus was convinced of that much.

At that point, Dumbledore had finally admitted to that bloody Order of the Phoenix that Voldemort had created fucking horcruxes! They had all scrambled for the next two years to figure out what Voldemort might have used and worked to banish the parts of the soul in the objects.

The members of the Order of the Phoenix had found six artifacts but Dumbledore kept insisting there should be seven. Severus had never disagreed with the theory, but no one had any ideas about what the seventh artifact could be.

Severus took a sip of his drink. Many things would change now that he and Harry had bonded. He stroked his arm, enjoying the clear skin there. Having had some time to digest the action, Severus felt calmer and more centered, in addition to the lightness he had felt initially. He had had the Mark for so long that he had not been aware of how much it had eaten at him.

Severus finished the bourbon and went off to get ready for bed. He had slept alone for many years but, tonight… tonight the bed was cold and lonely.

Harry took advantage of the Sunday morning to sleep in. It also let him avoid both Ron and Hermione – and himself – for a little longer. Harry knew he'd have to spend some time organizing the Quidditch team with Ron, then working on homework for the rest of the day. And it would be Monday before he'd have a reason to see Severus… Severus? Why did that sound so natural?

Harry sighed and turned over, closing his eyes to try to sleep some more.

"Hey! Thought you'd sleep all day!" Ron greeted Harry at lunch.

"Nah, just catching up," Harry replied, sliding into his usual seat.

"We need to schedule the pitch so we can practice," Ron went on. "You're the Captain and you have to do it for us."

Harry sighed. "Sure, we can draw up a plan after lunch and I can put it in to Madame Hooch," he offered.

Ron brightened up with that. "That'll be good." Ron babbled on about ideas he had for the team and Harry couldn't be churlish enough to make Ron stop.

The day alternately flew by and dragged on. Harry interacted with his friends but a piece of his mind was back in the Forbidden Forest, thinking about the ritual and what it might mean.

It wasn't until Tuesday afternoon that Harry realized the change in his magical power. In spite of being a wizard in a wizarding school, he really didn't use his magic that often.

"Finding one's animagus form the first time requires concentration, as well as an openness to the change," Minerva McGonagall lectured. "I want everyone to spread out, make yourself comfortable and quietly concentrate."

Harry and Hermione moved to chairs on the side of the room. Harry closed his eyes to focus…

"Harry!" Hermione shrieked.

"Mr. Potter," Professor McGonagall said firmly, "hold still and breathe."

Harry looked up at the professor. It was odd seeing her in shades of grey instead of in color. He looked around. There was very little color at all. Then he took a breath and… whoa! The odors in the room hit him! He sneezed, trying to get the smell out of his nose.

"Now, I need you to focus on going back to your human form," she went on. "Picture yourself, think of how you look in a mirror. Ignore what you may be feeling in your form right now. That can be hard but you need to focus."

Harry listened to the sound of her voice and thought about his usual form and… changed back.

"Very good," McGonagall praised him. "Fifty points to Gryffindor for the successful transformation."

Harry sat back in the chair, suddenly tired. He turned and grinned at Hermione, "That was cool!"

"Harry!" Hermione breathed. "That was amazing!"

"What was it?" Harry asked. "I think it was a dog of some sort."

"A wolf, to be more accurate," Professor McGonagall said. "A gray wolf, I suspect, but I will need to have you change again to double check." As Harry moved, she said sharply, "Not now, Mr. Potter! You need to rest before you try that again. And don't do it without supervision."

Harry sat back in the chair and relaxed. "I am tired! That takes a lot out of you," he admitted.

"This is a good lesson for everyone else," Professor McGonagall explained. "If you do have an animagus form, the first change can be exhausting. It's also possible to get 'stuck' in your animagus form in the beginning. The abilities of your form can be distracting, which is why you should never attempt your first change without supervision."

"The smells were starting to get overwhelming," Harry replied. "It stinks in here. I mean… well, in my other form, it's smelly and confusing."

"The senses of your animagus form will often be very different from your human form," Professor McGonagall explained. "Once you find your form, you need to practice changing back and forth until it becomes automatic. Then you can focus on learning more about using the senses of your form."

Hermione turned to Harry and asked, "What did you do?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know," he admitted. "I just thought about it and it happened."

Professor McGonagall looked at Harry oddly but went on to explain to the class more about the process and assigned homework. "Mr. Potter, I would like to set up some private lessons, if you would like. I think that would be useful to you."

Harry ducked his head, not wanting to be singled out. "If you think it would be helpful," he replied. "Thank you."

"I think it will be very important," she replied. "I will see you… Friday afternoon?"

Harry considered his schedule. "I think that will work. I'll be there," he agreed.

Over dinner that night, Minerva mention to Severus, "Mr. Potter found his animagus form in his first attempt."

Severus took a deliberate forkful of stew, and swallowed before answering, "Really? What form did he take?"

"I'm pretty sure it's a gray wolf," Minerva said. "I'm having him for private lessons starting on Friday."

"Interesting," Severus murmured.

"I… thought you would want to know," she replied.

Severus looked at her, trying for bland but overtly curious. "Mr. Potter is always doing unexpected things," Severus tried for a deflection.

"That is true, that is true," she nodded.

That night, Severus considered Harry's growing powers. Developing an animagus form at the first attempt was one manifestation of that. Good thing he had the brat in Potions tomorrow so he could assign detention and they could talk.

As Harry was going to bed that night, Ron said, "Hermione said you have an animagus form? A wolf of some sort?"

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, it was kind cool," he replied. "McGonagall's going to give me private lessons on it."

"Do you have time for that?" Ron looked worried.

"I guess I'll manage," Harry replied. He crawled into bed. "Should only be a couple of lessons, I would think."

"I hope so, mate, you already have enough to do," Ron said. "Good night."

"Night," Harry replied. Then cast the silencing charms, just in case.

Harry drank in the sight of Severus… Professor Snape, in the potions classroom. He went to his usual seat and placed his book bag under the desk. He dropped his head, to take a deep breath to steady himself.

There was something… different about the lesson today. Severus actually took a brief minute to explain what they needed to do before directing them to proceed with the potion.

"You are making a healing salve, one that Madam Pomfrey frequently uses in the Infirmary," Severus added. "It is a general healing salve for minor cuts and abrasions. Many of you have most likely had it used on you. If you perform satisfactorily, I will approve your batch for use in the Infirmary."

Harry could see Hermione's head jerk up at that. Severus had never offered an option like that to anyone, as far as Harry knew. The rest of the class stirred in interest.

"Show me what you can do," Severus purred.

They set to work, studying the directions carefully. While Severus didn't necessarily help anyone, he wasn't as vicious as he had been in the past. He also kept a closer eye on the class, making sure no one disrupted anyone else's potion.

Harry studied the directions and considered. He looked at the ingredients and thought about a change he wanted to make. It felt right.

In the end, his potion wasn't quite the bright green that it was supposed to be, but he was convinced it would be better than what the original potion would do. He scooped it into jars to turn in.

"Mr. Potter," Severus drawled. "That is not the described color."

"I think it's better," Harry replied firmly. Belatedly, he added, "Sir."

"And what makes you think that?" Severus said.

"It will do the same thing as the original but it has a soothing property that the original doesn't have," Harry said.

"Did you write down what you did?" Severus asked sternly.

Harry pointed to the annotated paper on the desk. "Yes, I did."

"I am not convinced. And, it is you, Mr. Potter. However, I am willing to discuss this with you," Severus said. "Tonight after dinner? Come to the lab." Severus swept away.

"Yes, sir," Harry bit his lip to keep in the smile that wanted to break out. He wasn't supposed to want to spend time with Severus.

In the hall, Hermione hissed, "Harry! You were going to finish up that Runes homework tonight! It's due tomorrow!"

"Snape shouldn't keep me all night," Harry rolled his eyes. "It's almost done anyway, I just have to check it over."

Hermione huffed. "If you're sure," she said.

"Hey! Watch it with Snape," Ron muttered. "We have Quidditch practice on Saturday! You can't afford to miss our first real practice! Don't get any more detention for the weekend."

"I'll be careful," Harry promised.

After leaving the rest of his books in his room but taking the parchment with the potion notes, Harry went off to dinner. After eating, Harry went to the lab, tapped on the lab door and walked in.

"Good timing," Severus said. "Come and look at this."

Harry peered into the cauldron. It was the potion they had been working on earlier, only the 'proper' color.

"Now, this is the traditional brewing of the salve," Severus said. "Tell me what you did differently, and why."

Harry brought out his notes and walked through the steps. "At this point, I had this… feeling? I added another two grains of oats, and stirred it an extra five times. Mostly to incorporate the extra ingredients."

"Did you cook when you lived with the Muggles?" Severus asked.

"Yeah," Harry shrugged. "I was their personal house elf."

"Well, the good news is that you never need to go back there again," Severus said. At Harry's look of pleased surprise, he asked, "What?"

"Really?" Harry smiled.

"Now that we've completed the bond, you can… do whatever you please," Severus admitted. "And you're seventeen, you're legally an adult anyways. You can do whatever you want."

"I never have to go back there?" Harry asked, dumfounded.

"Never," Severus promised. Although now that he was free from his own memory charms, he realized that Harry had always come back from the summer breaks thin and tired. Perhaps Lily's sister should be visited at some point.

"Thank you!" Harry breathed.

"Back to this," Severus drew Harry's enthusiasm back to the work. "I'm suspecting that you are a reasonable cook and never had any instruction?"

"Instruction?" Harry frowned. "I guess not, although Aunt Petunia did have a cookbook that I looked through when I was older. But they'd eat almost anything. Mostly meat and potatoes, and lots of it. So I never learned anything fancy."

"Well, your meager cooking skills, and the unbinding of your powers have made you more… intuitive about potions," Severus admitted. "What you've done is actually an allowable variation of the salve, usually brewed for very young or very old patients. Since we have neither here at Hogwarts, I generally use the 'basic' set of instructions."

"Cool!" Harry grinned.

"Sit for a moment," Severus directed, pointing to the stool in front of the bench. When they were settled, Severus waved his wand briefly and said, "Muffliato." He put his wand away and explained, "No one can listen to our conversation now."

Harry thought for a moment and said, "Teach me that! If I use it around me kinda regularly, then no one should think anything of it when you and I use it."

"Good point," Severus agreed and walked Harry through the charm.

"Can I share this with Hermione and Ron?" Harry asked.

"It's relatively benign," Severus said. "The more power you put into it, the stronger it is, but anyone should be able to cast it."

'Thanks!" Harry answered.

Severus went on, "Professor McGonagall says you've found your animagus form?"

"A wolf! It was pretty cool!?" Harry grinned, remembering the transformation.

"Since you've already done that, you should continue to work with Professor McGonagall on practicing and moving in and out of your form," Severus said gently. "But... you need to be careful for a while, until we can figure out what unbinding your magical core has done to your control."

Harry sat up straighter and bit his lip. "I didn't even think of that," he replied. "She was explaining how to do the transformation and I just knew I could do it."

"That's the sort of thing I'm referring to," Severus pointed out. "We don't want to draw any unnecessary attention to you just as yet. Dumbledore will be hearing about your animagus form by tonight, if he has not already."

"And since I did it in class, no telling who will know about it," Harry realized. He closed his eyes in dismay. "Bloody hell, it'll probably be in the Prophet by the end of the week."

"Exactly," Severus said.

"Okay, I get it," Harry said. "I'll be careful."

"Until we can work on it, you'll have to be diligent to resist any… instincts to do things that aren't precisely part of your classwork," Severus went on. "Hopefully, it won't take too long, but at this point, you'll have to not do anything rather than show off anything extraordinary."

Harry shrugged. "Fail rather than succeed spectacularly," he interpreted. He looked at Severus, "And talk to you about it."

"Unfortunately, yes," Severus agreed.

"Good thing I'm only an average student then," Harry grinned. "If I were Hermione, that would be a different thing."

"It would indeed," Severus replied. "I have the hope that you will have a more instinctual ability, as opposed to Miss Granger's book learned ability. She will be good, but you will be much stronger and have more range than she ever will."

"Okay, is there anything else?" Harry asked. "I have some homework to get done."

"Instead of detention on Thursday, you'll be helping me brew more salve for Madame Pomfrey," Severus said. "But the right way."

"That works," Harry agreed. "As long as it's not when we have Quidditch practice, please? Ron will go spare if I have to miss too many practices."

"I suspect I can work with that," Severus agreed. "Go do your other homework."

Harry surprised him by leaning in for a brief hug before he left.

Severus knew that he'd have to balance the 'needs' of the bond with letting Harry enjoy his last year at Hogwarts. He wasn't quite sure what they would do at the end of the year, he still had time to plan, but he knew they would both be leaving at the end of the year.

After casting a quick Muffliato, primarily to keep Dumbledore from learning what they were doing, Severus had Harry work on a different potion for Madame Pomfrey at their Thursday meeting. He gave Harry the instructions for the Fever Reducer and then asked Harry to work carefully and to talk aloud as he worked. And to voice any 'urges' he had to make any changes.

At one point Harry said, "I'd like to add more wormwood here."

"What do you think that will do?" Severus asked.

Harry tilted his head in thought. "It might… it'll serve as a general pain reducer, I think."

"Just the wormwood?" Severus probed.

Harry looked down at the instructions. "No, it also needs some… lemon grass? And some counter-clockwise stirring at the end."

"Again, not a new variation, but close to an acceptable variant," Severus replied. "It works well for patients with a fever related to an infection, rather than just a general fever."

"Hey! This can be fun!" Harry smiled.

Severus resisted rolling his eyes. "I've created a monster! Now, make the potion the way it is written out, please."

Harry giggled. "Okay, I get it, no messing with the potions."

"Only under supervision and with some discussion," Severus replied. "You have good instincts but you don't have the experience to understand the implications. That applies to all of your coursework at the moment."

"I know, I know," Harry sighed. "I went back the other night and wanted to re-write my entire Runes essay. I know what I had there was reasonable but there were suddenly all sorts of interpretations and options I wanted to include." He took a breath. "Although I did resist."

"It will be hard for a while, until you learn to balance your instinct and what you 'should' be doing," Severus replied.

"When it's something Ron and Hermione are in, I can try to work between them," Harry replied. "Better than Ron and not as good as Hermione."

"That's a good plan for now," Severus agreed.

Harry handed Severus a parchment. "This is the Quidditch practice schedule for now until Christmas," Harry said. "If you know when we have practice, then it's easier for you to schedule our sessions."

"Thank you," Severus replied, somewhat surprised he hadn't thought to ask Harry for the schedule.

"When can we work in the Room of Requirement?" Harry asked. "There's this… itching, I guess. My magic wants to do something and I think I need to work on that sooner than later."

Severus looked at the schedule and though about his own work. He did have papers to grade and more requests from Madame Pomfrey, although now he might ask Harry to assist him with that. "How about Sunday afternoon? Will that be soon enough?"

"Sure," Harry agreed. "I have to meet Professor McGonagall tomorrow and we have Quidditch practice on Saturday, but I'll do homework tomorrow night to make sure I have plenty of free time on Sunday."

"Meet me here and we can go to the room together," Severus said.

"Sure," Harry agreed.

Severus was better prepared for the hug today, returning it carefully. He had never been demonstrative but the bond and the proximity to Harry made it easier to accept the hug graciously. Harry hung on to him for a moment.

"Feels good to touch you," Harry muttered into his chest.

"The bond does that," Severus replied. "We will have to explore that, also."

Harry looked up at him, "You don't mind?"

"No, I don't," Severus said softly.

"Good! Then I can do this." Harry stretched up for a quick kiss.

"Brat!" Severus said fondly. "Now go, before it's too late."

"See you Sunday," Harry promised.

At dinner on Friday, Minerva casually said to Severus, "Harry is… different."

Severus took a discrete breath before turning to look at her. "How?" he asked mildly.

"It's like… his magic is like that of an adult," she said carefully. "When we were working on his animagus form this afternoon, he had a level of control that I've rarely seen in a student his age."

"Have you talked to the Headmaster about it?" Severus probed.

"Harry's magical signature also had… it looked like a bond?" Minerva asked gently. "And, it felt like you."

Damn. He had worried about this.

"Would you like to join me for a drink after dinner?" Severus asked, thinking desperately. "This is a conversation we should have in private."

"I'd be delighted," Minerva replied with a small smile. "I have some bourbon you might like, come to my rooms about eight?"

"Certainly," Severus reluctantly agreed.

Severus tapped on Minerva's door and she called, "Come in!" She reached for a bottle and poured two glasses half full. "I suspect this will be an interesting discussion."

Severus sat down and took a sip of his drink. "I suspect it will be," he agreed. He got out his wand, "Do you mind?" he asked.

Minerva shook her head and Severus cast a strong privacy spell. Something Albus might ask questions about later, but he didn't want to be interrupted or overheard.

"How much do you know about Harry's background and living situation?" Severus started.

"Everyone knows about The Boy Who Lived and I remember Lily and James, of course," she answered. "I know Harry went to live with his Muggle aunt. I tried to protest that when Albus left him there, but he overruled me. But, well, other than that, not too much."

"The Muggles had treated Harry as nothing more than a House Elf and, while they didn't physically abuse him, there was no acceptance, much less love in his childhood," Severus elaborated. "They all bullied him and until Harry got his Hogwarts letter, he had lived in the cupboard under the stairs." Severus knew that the bond had protected Harry physically after that but he was now sorry he had to send Harry back there at all.

"Severus!" Minerva excaimed. "Did Albus know about this?"

Severus shrugged. "More than likely," Severus admitted. "Harry doesn't remember anyone checking up on him at all. Lily's sister never wanted him and Harry was painfully aware of that."

"Why didn't he say anything?" Minerva asked, plaintively.

"Who would believe him?" Severus asked. "And Albus had prattled on and on about needing to live with blood family to protect him against the Dark Lord. Harry had to feel like he had no choice."

Minerva huffed but had no argument she could make.

Severus took another sip of his drink and decided he needed to trust someone.

"Back in Harry's first year, I completed a ritual bonding ceremony with him," Severus said. Minerva's eyes went wide at that. "Yes, I know," Severus nodded. "But I could see the magical power that was in him even then and, well, I wasn't going to have him enslaved to either Dumbledore or Voldemort."

"So you enslaved him instead?" Minerva hissed.

"No, I did a bonding ceremony, and, as Harry grows older, he will be the dominant partner in our… relationship," Severus replied gently. "Someone, I'm assuming Dumbledore, had already put a binding on Harry's power before he even started at Hogwarts. He had done some accidental, wandless magic even as a child." He heard Minerva's intake of breath at that and nodded in understanding. "I put a memory block on that for both of us that held until this year."

"Harry's magical maturation?" Minerva guessed.

"He shows the signs for it, now that we've finalized the bonding and freed him from the binding," Severus agreed. He rolled up his sleeve to show his blank arm, "He removed the Mark before we even did the ritual."

"Severus!" Minerva gasped stretching out a hand, as if to touch him. "I've never heard of such a thing!"

"I know," Severus agreed, rolling his sleeve back down. "It's honestly a relief to have it gone."

"Do you think Voldemort is alive?" she asked.

Severus had to shrug. "At one point, it seemed so. During that damned Tournament, the Mark got darker and seemed like it wanted to activate. Then it didn’t, and it faded back to its previous state. I haven't made an effort to compare notes with anyone, obviously, but Karkaroff had come to me at one point worried about his mark getting darker. Once the Tournament was over, we didn't talk about it again."

"Now what?" Minerva asked.

"I need to work with Harry on his control," Severus admitted. "He had a new level of power that he's not used to handling and he needs to learn to… temper his reactions. He also has instincts that he needs to learn to manage. I'd prefer if he not attract Albus' attention until we're ready to leave at the end of the school year."

"Oh, I hadn't thought of that," Minerva replied. "Yes, you'll go with him, won't you?"

Severus nodded. "It's still new to both of us," he admitted. "I'm trying to let him take the lead to be comfortable with what we are doing."

Minerva looked at him with a knowing eye. She took out her wand, held it up with one hand and placed her hand on her heart. "I will keep your Secret – yours and Harry's – and assist you to the best of my ability. So Mote It Be." A white light flashed briefly around her.

Severus released a tension he had been holding in. "Thank you," he said. He had been worried she would insist on going to Dumbledore and he would have had to take some serious action to prevent that. He was glad to have her on their side.

"What are your more immediate plans?" she asked.

"I'm meeting Harry on Sunday afternoon to go to the Room of Requirement," he offered. "I need to test his basic abilities and start working on control."

"That explains his sudden ability to find his animagus form," Minerva realized.

"Indeed," Severus agreed. "And he's manipulating Potion recipes on the fly. So far, he's only changing them to known alternatives, but I can already see how he might make changes that will go outside the known variations. He doesn't have enough experience to understand the implications of what he is doing."

"Oh, my!" Minerva exclaimed.

"We've already talked about Harry's need to resist doing something… different without thought, but it will be hard for him to know what those limits are until we've had a chance to work on it," Severus explained.

"If there's something I can help with, do let me know," Minerva offered.

Severus considered. "It would draw less attention if you were to… request Harry work with you on something. I can only give him so many detentions before Albus will start to ask questions."

"Good point," she agreed. "Let me think of something I can do that won't gather too much attention. I'm already working with him on his animagus form, and there's less chance of something truly dangerous happening in the Transfiguration class. But I will certainly keep an eye on him."

"Thank you," Severus said.

"And how about you?" Minerva looked at him steadily over the rim of her glass. "What do you need?"

Severus should not have been surprised at the offer, but he was touched that she had thought to make it. "I'm not sure, to be honest," he admitted. "While it's technically been going on for a number of years, this is new to me, also. I've been so focused on keeping Harry safe and hidden from Albus, that I haven't had a chance to think of anything else."

"Make sure you take time for yourself," Minerva replied. "This is a change to you as much as to Harry. There's bound to be… repercussions."

Severus took a sip of his drink. "I know," he said slowly. "It's much too early to separate what is from the bond and what are natural reactions. I'm very aware that we have several years of uncomfortable relationship to overcome. I'm hoping that the focus on Harry's more immediate problems give us time to work past that."

Minerva looked at him with merriment in her eyes. "Who are you and what have you done with Severus Snape?" she asked.

"I…" he hesitated. "Between the removal of the Mark and finalizing the bond, I've had a weight I didn't even know exist lifted from me. Knowing that we will leave Hogwarts at the end of the year lets me consider options I've never had a chance to think about. It's… liberating."

"Good!" Minerva approved.

Severus left a while later, bemused to have not only Minerva's assistance, but her approval for what he was doing.

Harry spent Saturday anticipating his time with Severus, so much so that he had to force himself to focus on the Quidditch practice. He decided to mix the lead players and the backups together right from the beginning, mostly so there was less confusion if any of the backup players needed to play at the last minute. He set Ginny to be the Seeker on the other team and he played Seeker with the newer backup players.

They halted the game several times to discuss strategy. Harry let everyone make suggestions about what might work best in certain circumstances, remembering how boring it had been when Oliver Wood would try to dictate complex strategy at them.

Harry made everyone take a turn as Keeper, for at least a few minutes. None of the positions were easy and he knew they'd give Ron less grief when they understood how hard being Keeper was. Ron had a good day, keeping out more attempts than anyone else, and he was in high spirits.

"Good practice!" Ron enthused.

"That was fun!" Ginny added. The others nodded as they moved to the locker rooms to leave their equipment.

Harry let the excited chatter wash over him. It felt good to be part of the team but he couldn't wait to be alone… to think about Severus.

Hermione dragged Harry to the Library after dinner to work on their Runes project. It let Harry focus on his homework and get more of it done than he might have otherwise.

At lunch on Sunday, Harry had to make excuses to both Ron and Hermione to escape.

"Snape wants me to brew that potion properly," Harry tried to put the right level of frustration in his voice. "I did it okay the other night but he's making me do it again."

"At least he didn't interfere with Quidditch practice," Ron muttered. Harry wanted to laugh at Ron's one track mind.

Hermione huffed. "But if you did it right the other night, you shouldn't have to go back!" she huffed.

Harry shrugged. "It's Snape," he said. "No explaining it."

Hermione turned to Ron, "Then we can work on Herbology while Harry's off with Snape."

Ron rolled his eyes but didn't protest. He brightened, "Maybe we can work with Neville. He'll know more about what needs to be done."

"He's studying with Luna," Hermione replied. "But maybe we can join them in the Library."

Grateful to be let off relatively easily, Harry waved goodbye and headed to the Potions lab.

Severus was waiting for him, grading papers. Harry thought he seemed relieved to have a reason to stop.

"Ready?" Severus asked.

"Yes," Harry said.

"Lead the way," Severus directed.

Harry led him in a somewhat circuitous route, mostly to ensure they would not be seen together. Neither wanted to have to explain to anyone what they were doing.

Reaching the seventh floor, Harry paced back and forth in front of the blank wall. On his third pass, a door shimmered into existence.

"We can go inside," Harry directed. "Hopefully, I've asked the room to not report anything to Dumbledore. Not sure how that works."

"There's an incomplete explanation of the relationship between the Headmaster and the school in Hogwarts: A History," Severus explained.

"I guess I have to break down and actually read that book," Harry admitted.

Severus looked around at the room they had entered. There were two chairs around a small table at one end with a pile of pillows stacked against the wall. The rest of the room was empty, to give them space to move around.

Harry shrugged. "Should do," he said.

"It will be fine," Severus assured him. "Let us start with some basics. Simpler spells will let me know what we might be working with." He tossed a pillow in the middle of the floor. "Levitate the pillow the way you normally would."

Harry pointed his wand at the pillow and said, "Wingardium Leviosa."

The pillow shot into the air, hit the ceiling and burst. A snowfall of feathers came down on Harry's head.

"Oopps!" Harry grinned.

"Exactly the sort of thing we do not want to have happen in class," Severus replied. "Can you fix it?"

Harry tilted his head in concentration, waved his wand and said, "Reparo." Feathers swirled through the air in a rush and the pillow was sitting again on the floor.

"Good," Severus said. "Now, do the spell again, but try to think about the level of power you are putting into your spell. Turn it down, if you can."

"Huh," Harry replied. "No one's ever really talked about levels of power, just doing spells." He paused for a moment, pointed his wand and said softly, "Wingardium Leviosa."

The pillow shot up again but it stopped when Harry frowned in concentration. It hung in the air above his head. When Harry relaxed, the pillow continued its upward travel, smacking against the ceiling but not bursting.

"Better than I would have expected," Severus admitted. "And for most students, even for most wizards and witches, fine levels of control is something you learn as you get older. You, however, have enough power that you need to learn control sooner than most."

"Oh, great," Harry muttered. "Something else to learn."

"You've already alerted Professor McGonagall," Severus had to tell him. "Your ability to find your animagus form and her private tutoring with you has already led her to me."

Harry looked up in alarm. "Do we need to do anything about that?" Harry asked.

Severus warmed at the automatic we that Harry used, and shook his head. "I have already admitted our… relationship to her and, while I know she has reservations, she will not only keep our secret but help us."

Harry's face lit up. "Really? That's good," he grinned.

"She also understands our desire to not have the Headmaster learn about us too soon," Severus added. "You may talk to her about anything you do not feel comfortable coming to me for."

"Thank you," Harry said. He looked down at the pillow lying at his feet. "Talk to me more about control."

They spent the afternoon working on the one spell. Harry was drooping and tired when Severus called a halt.

"Enough for today," Severus said. "You are doing well, but it will be a matter of practice. But you'll have to think about your control all the time."

"That's going to be the hard part," Harry admitted.

"You'll get it," Severus replied. "It's just a matter of practice."

"I'll try," Harry promised. He hesitated for a moment and then moved toward Severus. "Is this okay?" he asked as he wrapped his arms around Severus.

Severus held on to Harry, inhaling the warm – if sweaty – scent of the young man. "This is good," he admitted.

Not looking up from where his head rested on Severus' shoulder, Harry asked hesitantly, "I know what I said… out there. If you want… more…"

Severus hugged Harry tighter for a moment then relaxed again. "I'm more than willing to wait for you," he said gently. "This is an adjustment for both of us and we certainly don't have to rush anything."

Harry relaxed in his arms, snuggling closer. "I do want to… eventually," he admitted. "Just… it's a lot to take in."

"The bond will push us together," Severus replied. "But it's already set in place and it won't ask anything we're not ready for."

"Good to know," Harry admitted.

Harry left first, giving Severus a moment to review what they had done.

At dinner, Severus murmured to Minerva, "Perhaps we could meet for a drink after dinner?"

"Certainly," she agreed.

Severus tapped on the door to her rooms and went in. She handed him a drink before he even sat down.

"How did it go?" she asked.

Severus took a sip of the bourbon and sighed. "Harry has so much power that he desperately needs to learn control and I'm not sure I'm the one to do it for him. I can only do so much," he admitted. "He's going to do something that Dumbledore can't ignore at some point."

"Then you have contingency plans," Minerva said practically. "What will you do when Dumbledore stumbles across your secret before the end of the school year?"

Damn. He wasn't thinking. He grimaced. "I should have thought of that," he agreed.

"You're too close to Harry, and it's happened too quickly, for you to have a chance to think about it," Minerva pointed out.

"That is true," he agreed. "I'll have to talk to Harry about what we should do."

"If there's anything I can do," Minerva offered, "do not hesitate to ask."

"Thank you," Severus was grateful.

On their next Thursday night 'detention', Severus brought up the need for contingency plans.

"Oh," Harry exclaimed. "I wouldn't have thought of that."

"It was actually Professor McGonagall's suggestion," Severus had to admit. "But it's an excellent idea. We need to think about what to do when Albus finds out about you."

Harry frowned. "I don't want to leave my friends, but you're more important," he said. "And I can see Ron and Hermione away from Hogwarts."

"Depending on what happens, we may even need to leave England," Severus warned. "For at least a while."

Harry stared at him. "Really?" he said. "I've never been anywhere. I'd like to travel."

It was Severus' turn to frown. "It's not always glamorous, and if Albus gets the Ministry to come after us, we might never be able to return."

Harry shrugged. "We can worry about that when we have to," he replied.

"The first thing we need is an emergency plan," Severus said. "If Albus finds out next week, we wouldn't be ready to go anywhere."

Harry considered. "I know there's money in my vault," Harry said. "I would think we could get some help from Gringotts if we need it."

"It's a Hogsmeade weekend coming up," Severus said. "There's a small branch in town that we should visit so that we're not cut off from our funds."

"I know there's Black money, also," Harry grinned. "I've never wanted to know, mostly so the Dursleys' don't get their hands on it. I suspect it's time I checked into that."

"We can check on that," Severus agreed. "You also need to be ready to leave at a moment's notice," he went on. "I don't think we'd be in immediate danger, but better to be prepared than not."

"I do have some things I'd prefer not to leave behind," Harry said slowly. He thought about Hedwig, his father's Cloak, the pictures he had of his parents, and his broom.

"Make a list of the things you could possibly take with you, what you could hide until you could get back to it," Severus directed. "And think about how you might charm your trunk so that no one could get into it. That would be useful."

"Oh, good idea," Harry agreed. "Maybe we could ask Professor McGonagall to take care of it for me."

"That should work," Severus replied. "As your Head of House, she would be responsible for anything left behind."

"What about your things?" Harry asked.

"I only have a few things that I would be loath to leave," Severus admitted. "And I also will ask Professor McGonagall to take charge of them for me."

"Will she be okay after we leave?" Harry asked.

"She has promised to do what she could for us," Severus said. "We have to trust someone."

"We could put a ward about your rooms so that no one else would be able to get in," Harry offered. "You could teach me what to do."

"I will investigate that option," Severus replied. "Now, on to tonight's potion."

The trip to the Gringotts branch in Hogsmeade stunned them both.

"I have what?" Harry stammered.

"Besides your school vault, there is the Potter family vault, and two Black vaults, as well as…" the Goblin looked the parchment in front of him, "… five properties. The Black family home at Grimmauld Place, your family home in Godric's Hollow, the Potter family estates, a farm in Scotland and a sea side cottage in France."

Harry sat back. "Whoa," he breathed.

Severus was just as stunned. "We did not realize the… extent of Mr. Potter's holdings," he admitted.

"It's fairly self-managing at this point," the Goblin, Swordbuilder, replied. "You have a manager within the bank that I can ask to come out and meet with you, if you would like. He can go into more detail, since he's been managing it for you."

"I… I will think about that," Harry sat back. He looked at Severus, "I think this takes care of a number of things."

"It does," Severus reluctantly admitted. He had an adequate amount of savings, but the vast wealth Harry now had at his fingertips was staggering.

Harry sat up. "I would like Professor Snape to have unlimited access to… the Potter family vault," Harry directed. "We both need whatever documents are needed for international travel and we need Muggle credit cards so that if we go into Muggle banks, we can access at least a portion of the funds."

Swordbuilder scribbled notes. "I can do that," he said. "Since the Potter family vaults are hereditary, it would be simpler if you made a withdrawal from the Potter vaults and places that in a separate vault for Professor Snape."

Harry shrugged. "That works for me," he agreed. "Set that up and deliver the key to the new vault directly to Professor Snape."

"Harry, you don't need to…" Severus started to protest.

"I don't plan to, but if we get separated, you need some money you can readily access," Harry said. He looked Severus in the eye. "Let me do this."

Severus saw how serious Harry was and nodded. "That will be fine," he agreed.

Harry went back to meet up with Ron and Hermione at the Three Broomsticks, while Severus went back to his patrol as one of the weekend chaperones.

Harry and Severus worked out an irregularly regular schedule for their meetings. Harry spent most Friday afternoons with Professor McGonagall. Once they had worked on Harry's animagus form, they moved on to also working on Harry's control of his powers. It only took a couple of weeks for Harry to settle his animagus powers but Harry told everyone "that first time was a fluke and it's harder than I thought" so they wouldn't question the time he was spending with his teacher.

Harry unobtrusively turned most of the Quidditch practice over to Ron. He kept Ron actively involved in the practices and developing strategy, knowing that at some point that Ron might have to take over for him.

It was a snowy December afternoon when Harry got a note from Dumbledore requesting his presence in his office that evening immediately after dinner. Harry looked up at the front of the room, watching as Severus opened a similar looking message.

Harry turned to his friends, "Listen, Dumbledore wants me for some reason and I need to grab something from my room before I go there. Ron, come with me?" he asked. He hoped that if the two of them left together, that Dumbledore wouldn't think too much of it.

"Sure," Ron agreed readily. He finished eating and washed it down with a huge mouthful of pumpkin juice. "Ready."

They hurried up to Gryffindor's Tower together. Harry packed what few belongings that weren't in his trunk and turned to Ron.

"Listen, I may need to leave…" Harry said.

"Harry! What's going on?" Ron demanded.

"It's a long story that I can't tell you, but I need you to hang out here for a bit so you can answer truthfully that you don't know anything," Harry said.

"But I don't know anything!" Ron protested.

"Ron, I just need you to do this," Harry said. "Trust me?"

"Of course I do!" Ron exclaimed.

Harry threw an arm around Ron and said, "You've been a good mate. Take care of Hermione and the Quidditch team. I'll send you a letter when I can. And if it's nothing, then I'll be back later and I'll tell you about it."

"Okay," Ron said reluctantly.

Harry shrunk his trunk and put it in a pocket. He stuffed the Invisibility Cloak in a back pocket, in case they needed it.

"I'll see you later," Harry said. He didn't want to think how much later it might be.

"Take care," Ron replied, sitting on his bed.

Harry made his way to the Headmaster's office, not dawdling but not hurrying. The gargoyle at the base of the stairs leapt aside when Harry said the password, "Butterfingers."

As Harry had been half-afraid, Severus and Dumbledore were both in the office. Severus gave nothing away and Dumbledore said, "Harry! Come in!" He held out a dish. "Lemon drop?"

"No, thank you," Harry said. "What's going on?" He sat in the other chair in front of Dumbledore's desk.

Dumbledore looked at them both, taking his time. He looked at Harry and Harry felt a pressure on his mind. He had learned to keep at least a partial Occlumency shield up all of the time and he had put up his full shield when he had gotten the message at dinner.

"I see you've learned Occlumency," Dumbledore commented. "You do that well."

"Thank you," Harry replied. "Professor Snape was helpful."

"Ah! You and Professor Snape seem to have… settled some differences you had," Dumbledore commented.

Harry shrugged. "I've learned a few things," Harry said. "We get along okay, I guess." He slumped down in the chair slightly.

Dumbledore looked at Harry thoughtfully. "You've been spending a lot of time with Professor Snape," he said.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Everyone knows I get detentions just for breathing," he grumbled.

"But if you're getting along better, why would you have so many detentions?" Dumbledore replied.

Harry shrugged. "Well, I'm pants at Potions, I'll take all the help I can get," he said.

Dumbledore turned to Severus. "And how is Harry doing in Potions?" he asked.

"Mr. Potter is slightly better than he has been in the past," Severus allowed. "I do have to think that he's finally taking it seriously and putting more time into it."

"And why would you need the Room of Requirement for Potions lessons?" Dumbledore asked.

"Mr. Potter's skills in Potions are uneven enough that the Room protects him from any… mishaps he may have," Severus offered.

Dumbledore sat back. "And the bond between you?" he asked softly enough to be dangerous.

"Is between us," Severus replied calmly.

"I would think that if it were to be known that Harry Potter had formed a bond with a known Death Eater, that there would be… repercussions," Dumbledore suggested.

"Who's a Death Eater?" Harry asked, trying for innocent. "I'm certainly not one. Se- Professor Snape isn't a Death Eater. Why would anyone care?" Harry knew Dumbledore hadn't missed Harry's almost slip. He held his breath.

"Severus?" Dumbledore nodded at him.

Severus carefully rolled up his sleeve to show off his Mark-free arm.

"Interesting," Dumbledore said, eyes narrowing.

"Anything else, Headmaster?" Severus said, rolling his sleeve back.

"I will have to report your bond to the Ministry," Dumbledore said calmly. "Unless you would like to explain."

"And why would the Ministry care?" Harry asked. He was more curious than anything.

"Bonds with an underage student are… frowned upon," Dumbledore said. "It is to protect you as well as to protect he school."

"I'm seventeen!" Harry protested. "That isn't underage!"

"Perhaps not," Dumbledore allowed. "But now that you have a relationship with Professor Snape, he is not allowed to be your teacher any longer."

"Well, that sucks," Harry pouted. "I don't understand why you have to report anything. We've been doing fine."

"I will admit that I've just recently realized what might be going on," Dumbledore said. "But at this point, you either have to break the bond, if that's even possible, or I have to separate you." He paused. "For your own good, of course."

"And if we don't cooperate with you?" Severus asked, silkily.

Dumbledore waved a hand. "Then it's out of my control."

"May we discuss the options?" Severus asked. "I may be able to persuade Mr. Potter to cooperate."

Harry bit back a Fuck, no, I won't cooperate! He had to trust Severus.

"I need an answer in an hour," Dumbledore replied firmly.

"That will be sufficient," Severus said. "Come, Harry. We can discuss this elsewhere."

Harry stayed silent on the walk to Severus' rooms. Once inside, he set the strongest privacy ward he could.

"I think it would be best if we left now," Severus said. "Albus will try to turn me over to the Ministry, both as a test subject for removing the Mark, as well as to remove me from you."

"I packed my things already," Harry admitted, patting a pocket. "I can leave now, if you'd like. Although I could use a cloak, if you have one I can use."

"We probably should move quickly," Severus decided, going into the bedroom to gather some things he wanted to take with him. He handed Harry a cloak to wear. "When we don't come up to see him in the hour, he'll set everyone looking for us."

"In an hour, we can be anywhere," Harry said.

"Let me send a message to Minerva, to let her know we're going," Severus said. "Do you want to leave a message for your friends?"

"I kinda said good-bye to Ron before I went to Dumbledore's office," Harry admitted. "I didn't tell him anything but he knows I may not be back. I'll send Hermione a letter once we've settled somewhere."

"Are you sure?" Severus probed.

"Yes," Harry replied. He went over to Severus and put his arms around him. "Anywhere with you."

"Brat," Severus said fondly, dropping a kiss on his head. "Then we'll go."

He released Harry and went over to his Floo. "Minerva McGonagall's office," he said when he had thrown the powder in.

"Yes, Severus?" Minerva asked.

"The Headmaster has decided that Harry and I must break our bond or at least separate," he said baldly.

"I understand," she replied, sadly. "Keep in touch?"

"We will," he promised.

Severus closed the Floo, and looked around his rooms. "I think we're all set."

Harry set the ward so that no one but Professor McGonagall could enter the rooms, and even then she could not invite anyone else into the rooms, only go in herself.

They quietly left the castle, and walked to the edge of the Apparition wards.

Severus put an arm around Harry. "Where would you like to go first?"

"How about someplace warm?" Harry suggested, looking up at the leaden sky. "Dumbledore won't expect us to go to London. From there we can travel anywhere."

"Some sunshine and warm temperatures would be welcome," Severus agreed. "Hang on."

Harry wound his arms around Severus' waist.

They Disapparated in a swirl of magic and snow.


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