Harry walked back into his bedroom, listening for any sign of life. It was very early in the morning, and Harry thought Severus would be here, if he had bothered to stay at all. As he got closer to the bathroom, he could hear the shower running. He relaxed a bit and sat down on the bed. Tabitha immediately jumped up on the bed and whined softly.

'Sorry, girl, I didn't mean to leave you behind. I was just upset.' Tabitha licked his hand in response, as if accepting his apology. Harry scratched her behind the ear and sighed wearily.

He didn't know what to do anymore. Every time he and Severus argued, it was always about the same thing. Their arguments had become worse as time went on, and Harry couldn't figure out why this was so important to him. He knew Severus loved him, despite what he had said he previous night. So what if Severus wouldn't be truthful about his past? Was it really worth losing his lover, just to get the answers to his questions?

Apparently, some part of Harry thought it was, because he always found himself plying Severus with questions and angry when he didn't get the answers that he wanted.

Honestly, Harry thought that it stopped being an issue about secrecy long ago, and it really was about trust. Last night, he had told the truth about that. If Severus would tell him anything, he would be more than happy to let the rest go. He knew also that Severus considered knowledge as power, which is why he had been so closed-mouthed in the first place, with everyone.

But Harry wasn't just anyone. He wanted to bond with Severus once school was over; he wanted what Sirius and Remus had.

Harry heard a door click and he turned his head toward the sound. 'Severus?'

'What are you doing here, Harry?' Severus asked, and Harry winced at the icy tone. 'It wasn't necessary to traipse down here at this hour for your belongings. A house-elf could have done it for you.'

Harry frowned. 'Severus, I came down here to apologize. I know that you love me. I love you. I didn't mean what I said. I was frustrated and angry, and I was completely out of line.'

'Perhaps you were, perhaps you weren't. The fact remains that we have a problem. You persist on sticking your nose where I clearly don't want it, and I don't know how many ways I can tell you to sod off. You've made it blatantly obvious that my love is not good enough for you, so I don't know why you are here.'

Harry had to admit that Severus has a point, even if the words stung. He tried again. 'I know we have a problem that we need to work through, but you are far too important to me. I can't just get up and walk away from this.'

'You were perfectly capable of doing so last night, and let me clarify that it is you with the problem, not me. I was perfectly content until you made it your life's ambition to try and invade areas of my life, places where you don't belong.'

Harry scowled. 'So what? This is it? You're just going to take everything we have and throw it away, even after I've apologised. And I am not the only one with a problem. You don't trust me, admit it.'

Severus sighed and rubbed his eyes. He wished that Harry would just leave him in peace. Looking at his former lover, he said, 'I can't make you see that I'm not the one causing this. There are some things, Harry, that come with time. Trust, taking someone into your confidence, they're things that require time and must be earned. We haven't been together very long, and you have chosen not to wait, whether because of your nature or becasue of your immaturity, I do not know. All I do know is that you will not be satisfied, no matter what. Last night made it clear to me, and I won't go through that again. The best thing that we can do is end this before it goes any further and something is said or done that we just can't take back. I don't want to hurt you.'

Harry choked out a bitter laugh. 'You think that this doesn't hurt?'

'Better now than a year from now, Harry. I think that in the long run, this is for the best, for both of us. I gave it a lot of thought, last night and this morning. It's better this way.'

'And I thought that you really loved me,' Harry whispered.

'I do, Harry, but sometimes, it just isn't enough.'

Harry nodded. 'If that's your decision, I'll just pack up my things, then. My rooms should be fine. Dobby always kept them clean for me, in case I needed some time to myself.

Harry turned away from the sound of his ex-lover's swirling robes. He nodded when Severus said, 'I'll have Draco come help you.'

When he heard Severus leave the room, Harry moved toward the closet and pulled out his trunk. With an astounding calmness, Harry started moving about the room, feeling for his things. He wasn't surprised a few moments later when Draco came bursting into the room.

'What is going on? Uncle Severus just came into my room and shook me awake, telling me to come in here and help you pack.'

'I guess he didn't want me to do all of this myself,' Harry replied in a flat, unemotional voice. 'He needn't have bothered. I could have called for Dobby. He'll have to transfer all this stuff to my room anyway.'

'Why are you leaving?' Draco pressed.

'You know what happened last night. I came here this morning to apologize. I did and he decided that it would be best if we ended our relationship. So I'm leaving.'

'You're going to give up just like that? Why don't you stay and fight for your relationship. You know how bloody stubborn that man can be. Make him see the stupidity of his decision.'

'Exactly. It was his decision to end our relationship. In case you weren't informed, it takes two to make a relationship. He's decided that he doesn't want to work through this with me. I've already lived once in a place where I wasn't wanted. I won't do it again.'

Draco sat at the end of the bed, watching his friend continue to pack. 'So this is it then. Funny, I thought you and Uncle Severus were going to end up an old, married couple, living alone in comfort, occasionally invaded by all those adopted children you talked about.'

Harry pulled his underwear out of the drawer and dropped them into his trunk. 'It was a wonderful dream, but that's all it was. He doesn't want me anymore. So, no marriage, no children, no grandchildren to spoil.'

Draco closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The lack of vitality, the dull, emotionless tone of Harry's voice, broke his heart. He just knew that Harry's strength was hanging on by a mere thread. 'Well, then,' he finally said, 'I guess that you're going to need some help.'

Harry raised his head and gave Draco a tight smile. 'I'd appreciate it. Thanks.'

'Don't mention it. I'll start in the living room.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'There, I'm fairly certain that this is the last of it,' Draco said as he put a book and some rolls of parchment into a box. He and Harry had filled the trunk and four boxes.

'I didn't realise that I had this many possessions,' Harry commented.

'Neither did I. All that's left now is Luthien's tank. If you'll wait for a moment, I'll get dressed and I'll carry it down for you.'

Harry nodded. 'While you're doing that, I'll call Dobby and have him get my trunk and boxes.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Draco made sure that Harry and Tabitha cleared the door before he kicked it shut behind him. 'Where would you like me to put the tank?'

'On the desk for now, I think. She likes to be near me, and I'll be in here most of the time.'

Draco set the tank down. 'Do you want help unpacking?'

Harry shook his head. 'No, I'll do it myself, so I know where everything is. Besides, if we don't get down to breakfast, Dad and Remus will be worried. I'll worry about my things after classes are over.'

'All right.' Draco stepped up to Harry and laid a hand on his shoulder. 'You know that this won't change anything between us, don't you?'

'I know it won't, because we won't let it. Come on. Let's go down to the Great Hall.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sirius and Remus walked into Harry's classroom. 'Good afternoon, Harry. Are you ready for your lessons?' Sirius asked, walking by and ruffling his son's hair.

Harry, startled out of his brooding, nodded. 'Which lesson is first?' he asked.

It only took those few words for Sirius to notice the tired, defeated tone his son's voice held. Really looking at Harry, he noticed that his son looked the same way that he sounded. 'What's wrong, Harry? You look so dejected. I would have thought that you and Severus would have made up by now.'

Harry shook his head. 'My relationship with Severus is over.'

'What?' Remus asked, beating Sirius to the stream of questions going through both their heads. 'Why? What happened? I thought you went down to clear things up this morning.'

Harry sighed and stretched his hands out across the table, grabbing the first thing that he came into contact with, which just happened to be a quill that one of his friends had left behind. Playing with it, he said, 'I did. I apologised, but Severus had already decided that it would be best if we ended our relationship. I moved my things into the room across from yours.'

'When did you do that?' Sirius asked.

'This morning. Draco and Dobby helped. I haven't unpacked anything.'

'Why didn't you tell me?' Sirius demanded.

Remus answered, 'Most likely because he thought you would waltz into the dungeons and beat Severus to within an inch of his life.'

Harry couldn't help but smile. 'He has a point, though I don't know if I would have put it that way. Dad, I want you to stay out of this. My relationship with Severus is just that...mine. What happens between us is personal.'

'What about Draco? He always seems to have his nose in it,' Sirius commented as he went to stand behind Harry, placing his hands on his son's shoulders in a show of support.

Harry leant back and rested against Sirius. 'Draco is...well, Draco. He does what he wants. Besides, he is Severus' nephew, so it's up to him to tell Draco to back off.'

'How are you feeling?' Remus asked.

Harry shrugged. 'I don't know...numb, mostly. Right now I don't feel much of anything, just tired. I expect that this lack of feeling will hange soon enough.'

'If you want, we can skip the classes today and do a make-up class his weekend,' Sirius offered.

Harry shook his head. 'If it's all the same to you, I'd like to go ahead. Perhaps it will be enough to keep me from thinking too much about this.'

'All right, whatever you want. How about Defence first?' Remus asked and Harry nodded. He pulled away from Sirius and began to pull out his things.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'Are you sure you don't want any help?' Remus asked once more as he and Sirius stopped outside Harry's room.

'I'm sure,' Harry replied, opening the door and letting Tabitha in. 'I already know the layout and Dobby left everything on the bed, so I can work from there. This way, I'll know where everything is. I would also like to be alone for a while.'

Sirius said, 'All right, but we're right across the hallway, if you need anything at all. I don't care what time it is or how small or insignificant a thing it seems to be. Do you understand me?'

'Yes, thank you. Good night,' Harry said, stepping inside and closing the door behind him. Outside the entrance to his son's room, Sirius stared at the door for a minute, until Remus took him by the hand and led him toward their room.

When Remus had him settled on the sofa, Sirius finally said, 'Do you think that he'll be all right?'

Remus sat down next to him. 'No, he won't be, not for a while, but there's nothing that we can do, except be here when he needs us to be. As much as we would like to protect him, he's an adult now. This is something he has to work through himself.'

'I know,' Sirius said, resting his head on his husband's shoulder. 'I just wish he didn't have to hurt so much.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry put his last course book on his living-room shelf, next to the desk, and went to clear off his bed, breaking down the boxes and then stuffing them inside his trunk for later use. Then he placed the trunk in the very back of his closet.

He thought about working on some of his revising, but then he thought better of it. Instead, he pulled out his pyjamas and walked into the bathroom, once again grateful that he managed to find a set of rooms with its own bathroom still available. He felt for the tap and turned on the hot water, then the cold, adjusting each kind until the water was perfect. After slipping off his clothes and placing them in the hamper, Harry stepped into the shower.

Harry shampooed and conditioned his hair and cleaned his body. After washing off all the soap, he turned off the shower and stepped out to dry off and put on his pyjamas.

Finally, he crawled into bed, on his usual side, and sat there for a few minutes, listening to the offensive silence. Oh, there were sounds. He could hear the usual creaks and groans of the castle, Luthien hissing to herself, the crackle of the fire, and Tabitha snoring in the corner of the room, but it was the sounds that were missing that finally got to Harry. There was no tinkling sound of phials being moved. There were no snorts, mutters, groans, or outright laughter coming from the living room as Severus graded papers. There was no one next to him, ruffling the pages of boring potion journals.

Harry slid deep under the blankets and curled up on his side in a foetal position. Finally alone, he gave into his heart's command and cried until he fell asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, Harry walked into his classroom, trying to ignore the nauseous feeling in his stomach. It was the time allotted for his Potions class, and he wasn't looking forward to it. Luckily for him, Ron was coming in for the class as well, as part of his extra tutoring.

Harry placed his bag in its usual place and removed Tabitha's leash so that she could go lay in her place in the sun, next to the professors' desk. Then he started gathering the ingredients for the Healing potion that Severus was teaching him today.

It was a fairly complicated potion, one that would most likely be on the written part of the Advanced Potions N.E.W.T, if not the actual potion that was to be brewed for the practical portion. Because of this, Harry had taken the time to memorize the potion and copy it in Braille, just to get a feel for it.

Just as he placed the last jar on the table, he heard the door open.

'Hello, Harry,' Ron said as he came in. He put his bag away in the proper place, so that Harry wouldn't trip over it. 'How are you?' Ron knew of Harry's break-up, though he didn't know much in the way of details. He hadn't been able to talk with his friend yet.

'I'm alive,' Harry said, sending a small smile in Ron's direction. 'That's about all I can manage at the moment.'

'How about you and I have dinner tonight in your room? We can have Hermione and Draco come as well. That way, you won't have to put on a brave face for everyone.'

Harry nodded. 'That would be nice, thanks.'

'Don't mention it.'

At that moment, the door burst open and the familiar swishing of robes announced Severus' entrance. 'Good morning, Mr Potter, Mr Weasley. This morning we will be making Watterby's Healing Draught, which is on page 75 of your course book. I've supplied the phoenix tears for you.'

Harry and Ron got to work measuring out the water and setting it to boil while they listened to Severus lecture on the proper way to follow the rather tricky instructions.

Harry found that it wasn't as difficult to be in class with Severus as he thought it was going to be. Severus was in full professor mode, and Harry found it easy to distinguish "Professor Snape" from "Severus".

The only truly difficult part was when Harry took the phoenix tears from Severus and their hands brushed against each other. Harry became a bit flustered and almost dropped the eyedropper, but he recovered quickly. Severus was careful not to touch him again, both because he himself was unnerved by the emotion that the simple, innocent touch caused, and so that Harry didn't get flustered again and inadvertently cause a problem with the potion, which could be hightly volatile if done improperly.

Finally, after two hours, the potion was completed. Severus looked over Ron and Harry's potions and announced them both perfectly made. He gave them both high marks and had them fill empty bottles for Madam Pomfrey. Then Severus left while the two were still putting their things away, and Professor Flitwick arrived for Harry's next class.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later that night, as planned, Ron, Hermione, and Draco had dinner with Harry in his rooms. Afterwards, they sat around talking before Hermione made Ron leave with her so they could do some studying.

When they left, Draco asked Harry, 'Do you really think they're going to study?'

Harry shrugged. 'They've been spending a lot of time together lately. You think there's something going on with them?'

'Like you said, they're spending a lot of time together, without anyone else around.'

Draco sighed. 'Well, if they are dating, then I'm happy for them. It's about time that they pulled their heads out of their arses. Speaking of arses, how was class with Uncle Severus?'

'Draco! Quit being mean to him!' Harry yelled. He took a deep breath and said a little more calmly, 'I know you're upset on my behalf, but he's your uncle, the only real family that you've got left, who cares if you live or die. He loves you, for some odd reason, spoilt rotten as you are, so don't blow that. He needs you, too. You're his only family as well. If you're honest with yourself, you know that I have as much responsibility in this mess as he does. Don't you just take my side because I seem more vulnerable. Give him your support. I have Sirius and Remus. He only has you.'

Draco rubbed his nose with the back of his hand and then chuckled ruefully. 'I'm not being very fair to him, am I? Don't answer that. Okay, I'll be nice. I'm going to see how he is. I'll see you tomorrow.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Draco opened the door that linked his chamber to his uncle's and peered inside. 'Uncle Severus, are you here?' he called out.

Severus came out of the bedroom, a potion journal in his hand. 'Draco, if you're here to yell and throw a tantrum, I'm not in the mood,' he said as he took a seat on the sofa.

Draco sat down beshide him and rested his head on his uncle's shoulder. 'I'm not here for that. I'm sorry that I've been such an arse to you. This is your relationship, not mine. You have to do what you think is best. I know Harry's not completely innocent. If I hurt you, I didn't mean to, and I apologize.'

Severus sighed and slid his arm around his nephew. 'I know you were just trying to protect Harry. I can understand that.'

'Maybe, but I shouldn't have been rude to you. You're my uncle, and I love you. Do you forgive me?'

'Of course, and I love you, too, you brat.'

Draco smiled at his uncle. 'How are you doing?'

'I'm managing. I won't lie to you and say that it doesn't hurt, because it does, very much so.'

'Then why can't you two work past this?'

'We've reached an impass. He wants to know all about me, everything, now, and there are demons in my past that I'm simply not ready to share with him. He refuses to wait.'

'Why can't you tell him some things, and ask him to wait until you're comfortable telling him the others?' Draco asked, genuinely curious to know why his uncle was preferring to stay silent.

'If I thought that it would stop at those few things, I would be more than happy to confide in him, but I know that once I start disclosing some of my past, he'll expect to hear it all. You should know how curious and headstrong he is. The problem would only escalate, and we'd end up where we are now, except the ending would be much nastier and more painful. It's better this way.'

Draco sighed and nodded. 'I just hope you know what you're doing.'

Severus said, 'So do I. Tell me, is Fred going to grace you with his presence tonight?'

Draco shook his head. 'No, I'm all yours. I wanted to spend some time with you. We haven't had time to ourselves in I don't know how long. We don't have to do anything. We can just sit here and read, if you want.'

'That would be nice, Dragon.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next three months passed by, and for Harry and Severus, time had moved both swiftly, and at times, it seemed interminably long. Even after this length of time, they were no closer to reconciliation than the day when they had parted company. If anything, they seemed further from that point than they ever had.

In that time, Harry threw himself into his studies, working harder than he had before, and he usually ended up throwing himself on the bed, too exhausted to do anything but sleep.

Draco, true to his promise to himself, left his uncle's relationship with Harry alone, and was simply there for him when he was needed. Other than that, his nose was usually in a course book and could be found in Harry's room.

Fred was a scarce figure during these three months. He was extremely busy with the company, which was doing better than ever, plus he knew how frantic studying for N.E.W.Ts could be, though not from personal experience, and he wanted Draco to study as much as his little brother and his girlfriend did.

Draco had been right when he suspected that more than friendship was going on between Ron and Hermione. The two were trying to hide it, not wanting to hurt Harry by being too happy and nauseating, but they had to confess when Harry one day flat out asked them if they were having sex.

Still, Hermione was unchanged, and she spent more time studying than ever, and Ron was matching her in effort. The others still hadn't got Ron's new aspiration out ouf him. Of course, Hermione was privy to that information, but she wasn't divulging.

Harry was happy for them, but knowing they were together only amplified his feelings of loneliness. He missed Severus, so much so that the nights that he didn't fall into bed exhausted beyond all reason, he usually cried himself to sleep. He wouldn't, however, cry in front of anyone else, afraid that they'd send him to St Mungo's, they were so worried about him. He just didn't know how to get past this problem.

Little did he know that he was about to hit another impass between Severus and himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'Are you sure you won't come?' Draco asked.

'Yes, I'm sure. Now go!' Harry ordered.

'All right, then. I'll be back later.'

'Have fun,' Harry said as Draco went through the fireplace. Yet another Hogsmeade weekend, but Harry didn't feel like tagging along with his friends. Draco was the last one who tried to talk Harry into going, after asking Harry to come down to his rooms. He declined and practically had to threaten Draco before he would take the hint. Now he was here, all alone, in rooms he once called his home.

Harry's head turned toward the door that separated these chambers from his ex-lover's. Harry closed his eyes and bowed his head. Breathing deeply, he tried to quiet his racing heart. It had been so long since he'd been this close. He missed Severus deeply, and no matter what he tried, the pain didn't go away. He knew that he'd probably fall apart if they were ever left alone during their lessons, because to be so near him was excruciating.

Harry opened his eyes and stood up, his face set with determination. He realised that he no longer cared anymore. He didn't care aboutvSeverus' past. He didn't care about whatever mysterious things that his ex-lover was hiding. All he wanted was to be back in his arms, novmatter what the cost to his pride and dignity.

Harry screwed up all the courage he had and strode over to the door with confidence, since Draco assured him that he hadn't moved a thing, hoping that Harry would come to visit him. He opened the door and carefully walked through the Potion master's living room. 'Severus?' he said. Getting no answer, he went into the bedroom. 'Severus?'

He heard a soft moan coming from the bed, and he smiled to himself. It wasn't often that Severus indulged himself by being lazy and sleeping in, but considering it was a Hogsmeade weekend…

Harry walked over to the bed and sat down, careful not to wake Severus. He knew the other man had to be completely asleep, or he would have said something by now. Harry reached over and touched the man's cheek gently. He bent over and softly pressed his lips to Severus'.

Harry immediately pulled back as a man who was obviously not his Severus responded to his kiss. 'Who the hell are you?' he yelled, jumping up and stumbling back.

'I should ask the same thing about you,' the man said. Harry noted that he had a light accent, one that he couldn't really place. 'Do you always go into your professor's quarters, waking them up with a kiss? I have to admit that it would be a nice way to wake up. You have very soft lips.'

'What are you doing in m- this bed?' Harry seethed through his clenched teeth.

'Well, I was making love to my lover, who seems to have disappeared for the moment, not that it's truly your business. What are you doing here?'

Harry's bottom lip trembled in his rage. 'How long?' he asked, ignoring the other man's question.

'Pardon me?'

'How long have you two been lovers?' Harry asked softly, now afraid that if he raised his voice again, he might lose his temper and do what he was itching to do: cast the Cruciatus on the bastard who had obviously replaced him.

'I don't see why I have to answer your questions when you will not answer mine, but as you seem to be upset…we've been together for three weeks, but we've known each other for years.'

Harry's ears caught the sound of a knob turning, and he turned toward the offending door. 'Armand, I'm sorry, but I have work to do, and I can't spend anymore time in this little endeavour of ours. You're going to have to leave. I'd hate to think what Draco would say if he saw you here.'

'Sev, love, I know you can't see with a towel over your head, but you have a visitor,' the man named Armand told him.

Severus closed his eyes and cursed. He hadn't wanted Draco to find out about Armand, especially since he didn't know how long this pathetic attempt to get over Harry was going to last. He pulled the towel off his head and froze, his eyes growing into saucers and his mouth gaping stupidly.

Harry turned back towards the man in the bed. 'Armand? So that's your name. How very nice to meet you. I'm truly sorry to have awoken you in such a manner.' Harry turned his false congeniality toward Severus, his eyes starting to brim with tears that he absolutely refused to let fall in front of these two men. 'Professor Snape, I'm sorry to have bothered you. I'll see you in class.' Harry turned abruptly and marched out the door, not bothering with the use of his cane, yet hoping that he didn't run into anything and further humiliate himself.

'Get out, Armand. I want to be alone,' Severus said, his tone brooking no argument. Armand wisely said nothing, just pulled on his clothing and left. Severus sat down heavily on the bed, his heart beating rapidly. He'd never wanted Harry to find out about his affair with Armand, not like this, if ever. He didn't want Draco to know, since he knew his nephew would see it as an act of betrayal against Harry. If Severus was truthful to himself, he knew it was, but it was the only way that he could think of to forget Harry.

If he was honest, he never thought that he and Harry would get back together again. He was just trying to find a less painful way to go on, but he'd never once imagined that Harry would come back to his rooms.

Severus buried his face in his hands. He was such a fool.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry got to his rooms without running into anyone, which wasn't too difficult, since third year students and above were in Hogsmeade, and the others were outside, enjoying the sunny day. When he closed the door behind him, he collapsed against it, letting the tears that he'd been holding back fall down his face. Tabitha, who he had left in the room since he knew he'd be coming straight back and he didn't need her to navigate for him to get down to the dungeons, ran up to him and licked the salty drops from his face. Harry wound his arms around her neck and buried his face in her fur, giving in completely to his sorrow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'Harry?' Draco said, walking into his friend's room and looking around. 'Harry, where are you? I brought you some candy from Honeydukes.'

Draco walked into the bedroom and found Tabitha and Harry lying on the bed, both asleep. Draco walked closer and Tabitha woke up, lifting her head to see who it was. When she saw Draco, she started wagging her tail and whining softly. Draco pat her head as he walked by and he sat down next to Harry.

Looking closely at his friend, he saw that Harry's face was swollen and there were dried teartracks on his face. Draco frowned. He wished it wasn't so hard for Harry, and he desperately wanted Harry and his uncle to work things out.

Draco reached over and stroked Harry's hair. 'Harry, wake up. I brought you some Chocolate Frogs and some Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. You know how you like those, and they're even more fun when you can't see them,' he teased.

Harry slowly opened his eyes, waking up from his nap. He had finally cried himself to sleep a few hours before. 'What time is it?' he asked tiredly.

'It's five o'clock.'

Harry sat up with surprise. 'It's really that late? I didn't realise.'

'How long have you been asleep?' Draco asked worriedly. He knew that Harry tended to oversleep when he was depressed.

Harry shrugged listlissly. 'Since I came back from your uncle's rooms, where I met his new lover,' Harry muttered, grinding the sleep out of his eyes.

'His what?' Draco yelled. 'You aren't serious!'

Harry nodded. 'Oh, yes, I am. I found him in bed, on my side of the bed. I kissed him, thinking it was Severus. His name is Armand.'

'I don't believe this. How can he have a lover? How long has this been going on?' he asked, not really expecting an answer.

'Well, according to Armand, they've known each other for years, but their recent relationship has been in existence for three weeks,' Harry muttered bitterly, slumping back into the pillows.

Draco joined him. 'And I've been trying to get my uncle to let you in, just a little bit, especially these last few weeks, since school is almost over. Oh, he must have had a huge laugh at my expense. What did he say to you?'

Harry let out a low, hollow laugh. 'Nothing. Absolutely nothing. He didn't even say my name when he saw me.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later, after watching Harry aimlessly pick at his dinner and barely eating a thing, Draco stormed into his uncle's rooms. He found his uncle in the bedroom, lying on the bed, reading one of the journals to which he subscribed. 'I see that Armand isn't here any longer. Pity. I so wanted to meet him,' Draco sneered.

Severus didn't bother to look over. 'Say what you want and get out. I don't wish to discuss this with you.'

Draco glared at him. 'You don't care what you do to Harry, do you? You don't want to talk about it. What a surprise. Fine. Let's not discuss the whore you're fucking. Let's talk about Harry.'

Severus sat up and glared back at his nephew. 'You will not speak in such a way about a man that you do not know. I do not wish to discuss anything about Harry with you. Now leave.'

Draco ignored the warning in his uncle's voice. 'Tell me, how many times are you going to destroy him? Blaming him for my rape wasn't enough. Making him feel unimportant and useless, a thing not worthy of your trust wasn't enough. Even turning down his attempt at reconciliation right after the fight that split you apart wasn't enough, but did you have to bring your new lover into the rooms that you two shared? Who cares if Harry never came in here? You could have been considerate enough to wait until he was out of Hogwarts before bringing that thing in here.'

Severus stood up and pointed his wand between his nephew's eyes. 'Get out, now. I don't have anything to say to you. Stay out of my business, you impertinent, spoilt brat. If you do not leave within the next ten seconds, I will start deducting points and you will spend the rest of your free hours at this school tagging along behind Filch. This is my life, and I will not answer to you or anyone else.'

'Yes, Professor Snape,' Draco hissed, turning around and storming out.

Severus laid back down on the bed and picked up his journal, but he didn't read it. Instead, he thought about this latest predicament. He never should have got involved with Harry in the first place. He'd known it was a mistake, and now he reaped the benefits of his blunder. How could he have allowed one young man to blow his life apart like this?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Draco knocked on the door to Sirius' rooms, shifting from foot to foot in his impatience. It was four days after Harry found his uncle with his newest acquisition, and Draco was worried about his friend. Harry wasn't eating, and he spent most of his time sleeping. He hadn't even gone to classes, and once seeing him, no one had the heart to force him to go.

After what seemed like an eternity, Sirius opened the door. 'Oh, hello, Draco. What can I do for you?'

'I want you to call Ana. I think she needs to see Harry as soon as possible.'

Sirius sighed. 'Draco, don't you think I've tried to get Harry to speak with her? He adamantly refuses.'

'Then force him to see her. Have her come in and talk to him. I think that once she's here, he'll break throught this damned wall he's got around himself. He can't go on like this. He's got his exams in less than two months. He needs help!'

'I know he does, Draco. Please, come in, and I'll firecall Ana. Let's see what she has to say.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sirius held out an arm for Ana to steady herself as she stepped out of the fireplace.

Ana smiled at him and dusted off her robe. 'Thank you. I hate travelling by Floo powder, but I have a feeling that this is rather urgent.'

'Yes, I'm afraid it is. Thank you for coming on such short notice.'

'It's no problem. So tell me, what's happened?' Ana said, sitting down on the sofa next to Draco. 'Good morning, Draco.'

'Good morning.' Draco looked at Sirius. 'You want to tell her, or shall I?'

'You can tell her, if you want. The idiot is your uncle, after all.'

Draco scowled. 'Yes, but he's my idiot uncle, so please, don't.' Sirius nodded and Draco turned his attention to Ana. 'A few days ago, Harry discovered that my uncle has taken a new lover.'

'Oh, dear,' Ana commented.

'Precisely. He found this man in my uncle's bed, when he went in to beg Uncle Severus to reconcile.'

'I'm guessing that he's not taking it very well.'

'No, he's not,' Sirius said. 'He's missing classes, he's barely eating anything, he's slept most of the last few days. I've tried to convince him to see you, but he refuses. Draco thinks that if you simply show up at his door, perhaps it will shock him back into reality.'

'I don't see how it could do any harm,' Draco interjected. 'He can't go on this way. He's barely functioning now. If he won't talk to us, he needs to speak wth someone. He's just being his usual stubborn self.'

'What do you think, Ana?' Sirius asked.

Ana thought for a few moments. Finally, she decided, 'I don't see how it could make anything worse. All he can do is refuse to talk.'

'When do you want to speak to him?' Sirius asked.

'There's no time like the present,' Ana replied. 'I'm guessing that he's holed up in his room?'

'Where else?' Draco said, looking at his watch. 'If you'll excuse me, my first class starts in five minutes.'

'I must get going as well. You know where Harry's room is. Good luck with him.'

Ana got up and followed them out the door. 'I'll let you know how it goes.'

Sirius nodded. 'Thank you.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ana waited until Sirius and Draco were out of hearing range before knocking on Harry's door. She continued knocking every thirty secontds for the next five minutes, until an irritated and wet Harry opened the door.

Harry scowled, his hair dripping in his eyes. He'd just got out of the shower and had to rush to dry his body off, because whoever was at his door wouldn't just leave. 'I don't care, Dad, or Draco, or whoever you happen to be. I am not going to class today.'

'I wasn't planning on forcing you to go,' Ana said, smiling when she saw Harry's eyes go wide with surprise. 'I see I caught you in the shower. I do apologize.'

'Ana, what are you doing here? We weren't supposed to meet today.'

'I know, but Sirius called me. Now, before you get angry with him and Draco, they're just worried about you. You're scaring them just a bit.'

Harry sighed and stepped back. 'You might as well come in. Have a seat while I finish drying off my hair. I'm sure that they're not going to leave me alone until I talk with you.'

Ana walked in and sat in her usual chair, and petted the excited Tabitha, while Harry went into the bathroom. When he came out and sat down, she said, 'So tell me, what's going on with you, Harry?'

'I'm sure that they told you what happened.'

'I'd like to hear it from you, if it's all the same.'

Harry laid down on the sofa and covered his eyes with his right arm. 'On Saturday, after saying goodbye to Draco, I decided to go see Severus. I wanted to try to reconcile. Instead, I found another man in his bed. That's all there is to it.'

'How did you feel when you discovered Severus' new lover?'

Harry snorted. 'How do you think? I thought he loved me more than that. He couldn't even wait until I was gone. It hurt, knowing I'd been replaced so easily.'

'Why haven't you been eating or going to class.'

Harry sat up and made a face. 'I have been eating, but for obvious reasons, I haven't been exactly famished. Dobby's been bringing me small dishes of food throughout the last few days. Dad and Draco aren't always here, and when they bring me food, it's often right after Dobby's been here, and I'm not hungry. I've tried telling them that I've already had something, but they don't believe me. As for school, I needed a few days alone, to pull myself together. I have been studying, however, when I'm not catching up on sleep. I haven't slept much lately, either, what with studying, so I figured that these past few days would be a good time to catch up with everything. I was planning on resuming classes tomorrow. I would have considered today, but I didn't want to deal with Potions.'

'So, basically, there was nothing truly amiss, that would warrant me coming down here.'

'I appreciate that they're concerned, but sometimes I really wish that they would let me handle these things on my own. I learnt my lesson the first time that I nearly died from malnutrition and exhaustion because I was hurt by something that Severus did. I'm not going to repeat my stupidity.'

'Is there anything that you would like to talk about today?'

'Not really. There's nothing left to say right now.'

Ana stood up. 'I will leave you to your thoughts, then. I will see you on Friday.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At the end of the day, Harry called Draco, Sirius, and Remus into his rooms, to discuss the latest drama in his life. As soon as they were all seated, Harry began. 'I want to have a word with all of you, and I want you to let me say what I have to, without interruption. If you have anything to say after that, you're welcome to do it. Agreed?' Everyone said "yes" and Harry continued.

'I know that you're all worried about me, and I do appreciate it, but calling Ana in here wasn't necessary. Finding Severus with someone else was a shock, and it hurt, so I needed a few says to pull myself together. I'm not going to harm myself, however.'

Harry took a sip of water. 'I also know that you three are being less than nice to Severus, and I want you to stop. My relationship with him is mine. I think I've said this before. The plain, hard fact is, Severus and I have no relationship now, except for student and teacher. If he wants to have a new lover, it's none of my business. Yes, it hurt to know that he's sleeping with someone else, but it's his choice, and I have no right to be angry, and neither do you.'

Harry sighed in defeat and flopped down on his chair. 'I know that you want to protect me, but please, stop. I'm not a child. I'm blind, not mental. I can take care of myself. I can fight my own battles. Now, do you have anything to say?'

'This Armand person may be my uncle's choice, but I don't have to like it,' Draco muttered.

'I'm not asking you to like it. I'm not particularly thrilled about it myself, but I am asking you to respect his privacy, as I should have. I shouldn't have just barged into his rooms. I lost that right when I moved out. Please, do this for me, all right?'

Draco said, 'I'll try my best.'

Harry asked, 'And you two? Will you please let me deal with things on my own?'

Sirius sighed heavily. 'It's hard for me to realize that you don't really need me, but I'll try.'

'Dad, I do need you, and you too, Remus. I just need to take on my own responsibilities fully.'

'I'll make sure he behaves,' Remus said. 'I'll muzzle him if I have to.'

Harry laughed. 'I hope you won't have to go that far. Now, how about some tea, before we all retire for the night?'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two days later, when Harry walked into the classroom, Severus was already there. 'Good morning.'

Harry closed his eyes briefly as he pulled out his Potions book and his reader. 'Good morning, Professor Snape.'

'Harry, I came early because I wanted to talke to you about what happened on Saturday.'

Harry turned away from his ex-lover. 'Severus, please, can we not? What you do, who you're with, it's no business of mine. I apologize for invading your privacy. You owe me nothing in the way of an explanation.'

'All right, if you're certain,' Severs said, though he sounded doubtful.

'I am,' he said, just as Draco and Ron arrived. 'Which potion are we working on today, Professor?'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two weeks later, the Weasleys got a wonderful surprise: Bill had been transferred to London to do work for the Gringotts in Diagon Alley. Apparently, in some of the oldest vaults, whose owners and their bloodlines had since died out, there were old artifacts that still carried or were protected by some rather nasty curses. The transfer was indefinite, and the Weasleys couldn't be happier to have him home.

A week after he arrived, Bill came to Hogsmeade to visit his three brothers. To celebrate, Fred, George, and Bill went to Hogwarts on a Saturday to have lunch with Ron, Hermione, and Harry. Draco was not present, because he was still recovering from a Neville Longbottom potion-gone-wrong. He couldn't have visitors, because whatever the effect of the potion was, it seemed to be contagious, as Millicent Bulstrode and Madam Pomfrey found out.

They dined in Harry's room, where they could all be comfortable. They spent most of the time listening to Bill talk about his work in Egypt, and about Fred and George's newest creations.

After a while Ron and Hermione excused themselves to go study. Everyone else knew better, but decided against contradicting them.

A short time later, Fred and George decided to leave as well. As the twins stood, Bill looked up at them. 'If you don't mind, I'll stay and talk with Harry for a bit.'

Fred gave him a funny look, but only said, 'Don't keep him too long. He's in the midst of panicking for his N.E.W.Ts.'

Bill laughed. 'Ah, yes, I remember that well. Don't worry, I won't keep him too long.'

After Fred and George excused themselves, Bill turned to Harry. 'I really hope you don't mind my staying, but when Fred and George were talking about their new products, they were leering at me with a predictably wicked gleam in their eyes. I fear for my life.'

Harry laughed loudly. 'I know that feeling. They love it that I can't see. It makes me all that much more vulnerable to their pranks. You can stay as long as you like. It's been quite a while since I last...well, saw you,' Harry said, grinning in Bill's direction, which wasn't too difficult, since they were both sitting on the sofa.

Bill chuckled when he heard Harry's stomach growl. 'Hungry again?' When Harry nodded, Bill told him, 'So am I.'

'Would you like to have dinner with me? I know you don't want to eat anything that's been near Fred and George.'

Bill roared with laughter. 'No, I don't. Dinner would be lovely, thank you.'

Harry smiled and got up. 'I'll just call Dobby.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After dinner, Harry and Bill got comfortable on the sofa again. 'Tell me, Harry, what happened between you and Severus Snape? Mum and Dad seemed happy that it was over, but Fred and George don't seem so thrilled. I thought you two looked great together. Fred sent me a picture of you two at Snape's home.'

Harry leaned his head back and closed his eyes, fighting against the burning tears that suddenly wanted to overwhelm him.

Bill stared at him, concerned. 'Oh, Harry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do this. Just tell me to shut up and mind my own business.'

Harry took deep breaths and tried to swallow around the tightness in this throat, but no matter what he did, he couldn't keep the tears from seeping out. Resigned to his embarrassment, he opened his eyes and let the tears fall. 'I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do this in front of anyone. It's just that...no one has mentioned how we looked together in a while, and I just realized how much I really do miss him.'

Bill slid closer and put an arm around him. 'Have you tried reconciliation?'

Harry shook his head. 'I don't think that his new lover would appreciate it too much.'

'Ouch!' Bill said. 'I didn't know.'

'Yeah, I walked into Severus' rooms and found his lover in the bed. Now that really hurt,' Harry said, leaning his head on Bill's shoulder.

'You know, you're going to be all right. You're intelligent, charming, gorgeous...who wouldn't be thrilled to have you, including Severus Snape? I'm sure that he'll come around. How could he not?'

'How can you say that I'm charming, or anything else, for that matter? I'm over here, bawling like a moron, on your shoulder. As for gorgeous, I may be blind, but I remember what I look like. I'm short, too thin, and I'm sure I look pathetic trying to feel my way around.'

Bill pulled Harry's face toward him. 'Your height is fine, your build is quite nice, and you walk with a confidence that I could never pull off if I were in your shoes. If Severus Snape does not come back to you, pleading for another chance, then he's the biggest idiot on the planet.'

'What if he won't? What if he really doesn't want me? What if I can't feel anything for anyone else? What if I can't bring myself to-'

Harry was stopped mid-sentence as Bill pressed his mouth to Harry's becoming the only other man to kiss Harry in years, with the exception of Armand. Bill's mouth was so soft, so warm and wet, so inviting that Harry couldn't help but respond. Harry slid his hand up and hooked it around the back of Bill's neck, opening his mouth in invitation when Bill's tongue slid across his bottom lip.

When Harry finally pulled back, he was surprised to find that he was now in Bill's lap. 'Bill?'

'Shh, it's okay,' Bill murmured, stroking his back in soothing circles. 'It's okay to just feel. If you want this, it's not wrong. Do you want this? If not, I'll leave and we can forget this ever happened.'

Harry shook his head. 'I just want to feel something other than pain,' he whispered and then brought his mouth to Bill's.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later that night, Harry walked Bill to the door. 'Thank you,' he said, bringing his hand to Bill's cheek.

Bill kissed Harry's palm. 'The pleasure was mine. I'll talk to you soon. Think about what I said.' Bill then kissed Harry goodbye. When he left, he didn't notice Severus standing at the other end of the hallway, hidden within the shadows.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'You look like you're troubled, Harry. What's been going on with you this week?' Ana asked. They were in his room, since it was stormy outside. They could hear the thunder rumbling over the castle, but the sound was muffled since they were deep inside the castle's depths.

Harry shifted uncomfortably and sighed. 'I did something and I don't know if I did it because I'm incredibly stupid or because I'm desperate for any comfort that I can find.'

'What did you do, Harry? Surely it can't be as bad as all that.'

Harry chuckled ruefully, signifying that it was indeed "as bad as all that". 'I slept with someone.'

'I take it that this person was not Severus Snape.'

Harry shook his head. 'You know my friend, Ron Weasley? Well, it was his brother, Bill. He's been transferred to the Gringotts in England, to work on breaking curses on some of the ancient artifacts that have been stored in the deepest vaults of their London offices.

'Would you like to tell me how this incident came about? It could make you feel better, or at the very least help you to work things out in your mind.'

Harry nodded. 'Bill came to visit Fred, George, and Ron. We all sat around in my room, where it was private, and we were talking about all sorts of things. I know that they were trying to keep my mind off Severus. In case you haven't noticed, I've been a bit depressed lately.' Harry smiled softly when he heard Ana chuckle in agreement. 'For a while, it worked, and it felt like old times, but then Ron and Hermione left, wanting to "study", or so they said, and then Fred and George. Bill said he'd like to stay and have dinner with me, since he was supposed to be staying with Fred and George. He said that they had looked at him with a rabid gleam, and he was terrified to eat anything that they set down in front of him.'

Ana laughed loudly and Harry grinned. Ana herself had been on the receiving end of one or two of their little pranks. 'With Fred and George around, you learn to keep our wits about you; otherwise, you're going to fall victim to one of their experiments. I'm no exception. Fred said that just because I was blind didn't mean that they were going to let up on me at all. Isn't that sweet?' Harry said amusedly.

'Of course, I could commiserate with Bill's plight, so I had dinner brought up for the two of us, since I don't eat often in the Great Hall anymore. I hate the way people stare at me. I can feel their eyes on me, and I know that it's not my imagination, because the others see it. Anyway, we started talking about work and other things, and after dinner we were on the sofa, talking some more. Then he brought up the dreaded "S" word and I got upset, which completely horrified me. You know how I hate to cry in front of people. Well, he pulled me over, trying to comfort me. He had his arms around me, and I had had my head on his shoulder, and the next thing I knew, we had our lips locked together and I was halfway on his lap. Things just progressed from there.'

'The two of you didn't talk about this before you had sex?'

Harry shook his head and laughed. 'We didn't talk at all until afterwards. Ridiculous, isn't it? After we'd had sex, I was afraid that he would want more than I could give him. I was relieved when I realised that he didn't.'

'What do you mean by that?'

'Bill isn't looking for a relationship with me. In fact, he has a girlfriend. They've been together for two years, and he says he loves her very much. They're even talking about marriage. I have to say, though, that their relationship is quite...unconventional.'

'Unconventional? How so?'

'Both are bisexual, and when they first started dating, they had an agreement: while they were together, they would have no other lovers of the opposite sex, but when the felt the need to seek out their own sex, they would be free to do so. After they fell in love, they kept the agreement, provided that they didn't get attached, emotionally, to their other lovers. I know it's odd, but it seems to work for them quite well.'

'You said you were relieved. What exactly were you relieved about?'

'Like I said, he wasn't looking for a relationship. Also, that meant that I wouldn't have to feel guilty about not falling in love with him.'

'You don't think you could fall in love with Bill?'

Harry shook his head. 'If this had been another time, before Severus, I probably would have said that I could, but my heart only wants one man, and it's not Bill Weasley. Don't get me wrong, I adore Bill, really I do, and I think he's quite appealing, but I could never love him. It's hard to explain. When I first met him, I looked at him and thought, "oh, wow, this guy is so cool!" He's gorgeous, and he's nice, and he's funny, but he's not for me.'

'If he were to approach you again, would you have sex with him?'

Harry let out a soft laugh. 'You know, it's a good thing that I'm used to talking to you by now. Otherwise, this would be so embarrassing. Would I have sex with him again? I honestly don't know.'

'Why did you sleep with him this first time?'

'I've sat here for the past two days and tried to think of the answer, knowing that you'd ask this question, but the truth is, I really don't know. I don't know if it was a moment of stupidity, or maybe a deep need for the kind of comfort that he was willing to give me. Maybe it was to get back at Severus in some small way, a thirst for revenge, even if he never knew about it. Finding that...creature...in his bed hurt me so much.'

'Do you think you really wanted revenge on Severus?'

Harry shrugged. 'I might have. I heard him in the hallway yesterday, taking points away from a Ravenclaw and a Hufflepuff for running in the hallway, and for a second, I wanted nothing more than to stalk over to him, get right in his face, and tell him that I let Bill Weasley fuck me through the mattress.'

Ana replied, 'You didn't do that, though, did you?'

'No. Common sense prevailed. Even if I truly wanted to do it, it wasn't the time or the place, and I wouldn't humiliate him in front of the other students like that. He's a professor and he deserves respect.'

'If he had been alone, do you think you would have said something?'

'I don't know. A part of me really wants to wound him. Three months later, and he has a man in our bed,' Harry said angrily, tears threatening to fall. 'That was our bed, and he put another man in it. I know, I know, he's likely had other lovers there before me, but it's not the same. Like I told Virginia a long time ago, there's a difference between knowing something and witnessing it. Previous lovers, while likely, weren't tangible. It was an abstract idea, one that had no basis in what I experienced. That bastard was in our bed, on my side of it, lying under the blankets, naked. I kissed that thing, for Christ's sake! And then Severus walks out of the bathroom, naked. I know he was, because I didn't hear his robes. I always hear his robes.'

'You know, Harry, you never told me why you had gone into his rooms. Why did you go to see Severus that day?'

'I missed him so much that I was ready to forget all about his past. I didn't care anymore. I'd been without him for months, and I couldn't stand it anymore. I know that our breakup was as much my fault as it was his. I've always been curious, looking for mysteries. I mean, look at my bloody track record. How many times have I been nearly killed while trying to solve mysteries in this school? First the Philosopher's Stone, then the Chamber of Secrets, then my godfather and the Dementors. I do, however, refuse to take the blame for the Triwizard Tournament. I didn't put my name in that goblet, and I would have liked nothing more than to have sat in the crowd, cheering for Cedric. I've always stuck my nose where it didn't belong. Professor Dumbledore even caught me in his Pensieve, which had been in his cabinet.'

Ana laughed. 'You have been a bit precocious, haven't you?'

Harry smiled. 'I've got into more trouble than it's worth. This obsession with Severus' past stopped being about his past a long time ago. I know there are things that he's hiding, but I missed him so much that I didn't care anymore. I just wanted him back. I was ready to get on my knees and beg him to forgive me for being a prat. I didn't realise that I would be so easy to replace.'

'Do you think that's what this man was, a replacement?'

'I don't know. You'd have to ask Severus. That's just what I felt when I figured out that it wasn't Severus I was kissing. I couldn't believe that he could get over me so quickly. I was still in so much pain that the thought of another man hadn't occured to me.'

'What about Bill Weasley?'

'Like I said, I'm not sure why I slept with Bill, but I never would have considered it before I found Severus with...Armand...what kind of name is that anyway?' Harry muttered sullenly. 'I thought he loved me. How could Severus get over me that quickly?'

'Perhaps this Armand is Severus' way of trying to get over you,' Ana reasoned. 'Or perhaps he thought, like you did with Bill, that this man could give him the comfort that he needed.' Ana watched Harry's expression go from sad to sour. "Perhaps not," she thought to herself.

'That kind of thinking would require me to be reasonable, and I don't want to be reasonable. I'd rather be angry, and irrational, and highly immature.'

'Why is that?'

'I've tried being reasonable, and rational, and mature, particularly around everyone else, and quite frankly, it sucks. I don't want to know why he's with Armand, or why I'm fucking Bill Weasley. I just don't want to think anymore, or talk anymore. Tell me, what good does any of this talking do? It hasn't brought Severus and me together again. Talking about every single event in my life hasn't brought back my eyesight. The only thing that happens is that I'm angrier and more miserable than I was before the session.'

'You don't feel that you're getting anything out of these sessions, then?'

Harry sighed wearily. 'No, in all honesty, I don't, not anymore. It's nothing against you, Ana. I adore you, and I've enjoyed talking to you, even about the bad things, but let's face the facts. I'm not anywhere nearer to figuring out the psychological reason for my blindness, and I'm almost out of school. I've got to move on, make decisions about my life and what to do with it.'

'I understand, Harry. If you think that you can't get anything from these sessions, then there is no need to continue. I do hope however, that you'll change your mind someday. Personally, I think your blindness is somehow related to your relationship with Severus, which is the one area that you always refused to discuss in great detail, but until you are ready to step back and scrutinize it from every angle, we won't get anywhere.'

'I'm sorry, Ana. I just can't.'

'I know. Don't worry about my feelings, Harry. This is my job, what you pay me for. If you ever want to resume our sessions, you can always find me through St Mungo's.'

Harry nodded. 'Thanks for everything, Ana. I couldn't have got this far without you. I do appreciate all that you've done for me.'

'Goodbye, Harry,' Ana said, getting up and moving toward the door. 'I hope that whatever you do, you are successful.'

'Goodbye, Ana. Thank you.'

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