Chapter 11

Harry was strongly aware of the warm sunlight on his face coupled with the strong winds that flew past him as he raced around the Quidditch pitch.

"Ronald Weasley managed to stop the quaffle again," came Luna Lovegood's commentary, "He's doing this weird move that makes him look like a starfish. It seemed entirely accidental to me at first but since he keeps doing it, I no longer think so. Either way, no one has managed to score yet."

She was right. They had been in the air for about thirty minutes if Harry's estimates were somewhat correct and neither team had managed to score a single goal.

The Ravenclaw team had done some restructuring and since Cho Chang had graduated, they replaced their seeker as well. Harry wasn't sure if she was any good yet since this was the first game of the school year but he knew better than to underestimate his opponent. Currently, she was circling the pitch the same way he was but on the opposite end. At one point she had made an admittedly clumsy attempt at a 'Wronsky Feint' that Harry had simply ignored.

"Ginny Weasley got the quaffle and she's rushing towards the goalposts. Oh – Oh dear, the bludgers are closing in. Careful Ginny or they'll get you."

Ginny looked over her shoulder to try and spot the threat Luna had perceived and therefore missed the approach of the bludger right in front of her. It collided with her shoulder, causing her to spin uncontrollably for a few seconds until she regained control of herself.

"I told you to watch out," Luna said airily, "Roger Davies got a hold of the quaffle this time. I wonder if he's still in touch with Fleur. I never did ask him how that ended up. Did you all know 'Roger' means 'famous spear'? It might mean he will become a famous chaser one day. Or perhaps a famous spearman. Are those still around? Ah, he couldn't get the quaffle past Ron. Those Weasleys are really good, aren't they?"

Harry laughed. He really loved Luna's commentary. While not very useful and to the point, it kept his mind occupied and entertained.

Harry whooshed past the stands to see if any of them were hiding the snitch but came up empty. He saw that McGonagall looked amused and not at all as annoyed as she had been with Luna when she only just begun commentating. Even Snape seemed to be entertained by her antics. Probably because he was not really a Quidditch fan and appreciated Luna's dreamy monologues.

When Snape caught Harry watching him, he pointed towards the pitch as if to tell him to get back to it. Harry gave him one of his cheekiest grins, glanced around one last time and returned to his post. In doing so, he passed Ginny who gave him a murderous glare. Harry rolled his eyes and kept scouring the grounds, ignoring the song that was erupting from the Gryffindor stands.

Weasley is our King,
Weasley is our King,
He didn't let the Quaffle in
Weasley is our King.

Weasley can save anything,
He never leaves a single ring,
That's why Gryffindors all sing:
Weasley is our King.

Harry smirked. How fantastic was it that the Slytherins had given the Gryffindors the opportunity to hail Ron in song. They had only needed to change some of the words.

But then again, the Ravenclaw keeper was pretty good himself. Suddenly, Harry caught Ron waving at him with all the subtlety of an ostrich in a tea shop. When Harry looked at him, Ron waved vaguely at an area behind him. Harry didn't need to be told twice.

"It almost looked as if Ron Weasley was performing some kind of mating dance," Luna said happily, "Perhaps he was trying to regain Harry's interest for his sister. Either way, it seemed to have worked because Harry is quickly headed his way."

Harry noticed that the Ravenclaw seeker was not following him. Perhaps she thought that Ron simply wanted a word about something. The beaters – however – seemed to be sharper of wit and they both launched a bludger Harry's way. He dipped dramatically in order to evade them, then pulled up sharply in between both beaters, laughing joyously as he did so.

No matter what, Quidditch always made him feel alive. Even when it almost killed him.

Finally, the Ravenclaw seeker caught on but it was far too late. Luna was yelling something with much excitement but the wind rushing past Harry's ears left him nearly deaf for everything else around him. He rushed past Ron who smirked triumphantly while the Gryffindor beaters knocked a bludger straight into the rival seeker's path, slowing her down even more.

It wouldn't have mattered anyway. By now, Harry had spotted the snitch fluttering somewhere near the edge of the pitch and snatched it out of the air, making a U-turn to show off his catch as Ron nearly jumped him while they were still in mid-air.

"Harry caught the snitch for all the points," Luna said dreamily, "I suppose it's all over now. Gryffindor wins. Thanks for coming and I hope to see you all again next time."

Harry landed his broomstick and was swarmed by the rest of his team. Davies shook Ron's hand politely, the two boys smiling at each other.

"Nice keeping, Weasley," Harry heard Davies say.

"Your keeper was bloody brilliant as well," Ron said amicably, "This could've been anyone's match, really."

"Not when your seeker is Harry Potter," Davies chuckled, "Good game anyway."

"Yeah, good game."

Harry couldn't help but notice how much Ron had matured.

---

Snape was on his way to his private quarters where Harry was waiting for him to get started with his next Occlumency lesson. He was rather unhappy with the prospect of hurting Harry more like this as well as viewing those horrible memories of his childhood that never failed to fill his own heart with anger but there was nothing to be done. This was what Harry wanted and Snape did not want to deprive him of the opportunity.

That didn't mean he had to like it though. And his displeasure with the situation was clearly manifested on his face as he swept through the corridors, his fierce glare enough to force most of the people who would cross his path to move away.

Yes. Most of them.

"Severus, do you have a moment?"

Of course, Professor Bell was not to be swayed by his malice. Couldn't she get lost somewhere? Preferably in the vicinity of the forbidden forest or something?

"No," he replied curtly, not halting his movement. And yet, the persistent woman did not falter behind. In fact, she kept up with him even if that meant somewhat skipping or half-running to do so.

"Come now, Severus," she said, huffing with the fast steps she was forced to take. "I just want to talk to you."

"I'm not available right now," Snape said, glaring darkly at the spritely woman, annoyed when she simply smiled sweetly at him.

"I just want to talk to you about Harry."

That stopped Snape dead in his tracks. It took Bell a few moments to realize his arrest and almost tripped over her own feet as she turned around to face him again, her hair swaying as she moved.

"What about him?" Snape growled, narrowing his eyes at her. "Is something wrong?"

Bell seemed to think that question over for a moment. Not at all sure of how to respond to that. "Well –" she said hesitantly, "I was wondering if you could enlighten me about the relationship between the two of you."

"I beg your pardon?" Snape asked, quirking his eyebrow. "Whatever do you mean?"

"It just seems a bit odd," Bell continued as she brushed a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, her gaze seeking Snape's. "And I'm probably wrong about this but I'd rather be wrong and embarrassed at the end of this than be right and not have done a thing about it."

Snape's earlier foul mood was lifting slightly as he felt amusement at what Bell was saying. She couldn't actually be implying…

"And what – pray tell – is this situation you speak of?"

Bell seemed to steel her resolve as her fierce gaze bore into Snape's eyes. She tilted her chin ever so slightly and Snape couldn't help but cross his arms and lean against the wall he was standing near as he watched her gather herself. Oh, this would be good.

"Is it normal for an Apprentice to seek refuge in his Master's private chambers as often as Harry does?" Bell asked.

Snape exhaled sharply as he tried not to laugh. He couldn't believe she had actually gone there. "No," he said easily, "Not at all."

Bell frowned, staring at Snape as if he were some anomaly she couldn't quite figure out. "Then, what are you doing with him?"

Snape pushed himself away from the wall and continued walking. "Follow me," Snape said briskly, "And I will show you just what it is we do together."

It didn't take long for Snape to hear the tell-tale sound of another pair of shoes hastily trying to keep up with him. Ever so slightly, he slowed down. Not enough for her to notice what he was doing, but enough to be sure he wouldn't lose her along the way.

"Are you saying he's there now?" Bell asked.

"Of course," Snape supplied, "Where else would he be?"

"In Gryffindor tower," Bell snapped, "In the library? Anywhere else."

"Oh, but he so much rather spends his time with me," Snape said maliciously.

"He always looks so tired when he returns from you," Bell accused, "Just what are you doing to him?"

"Nothing he hasn't asked for," Snape replied. Oh, how he was enjoying this back and forth. It was fun to tease this woman who was obviously quick to mislead. Had truly no one told her about the relationship between Harry and him?

"Here we are, Maya," Snape said, smirking as he opened the door to his quarters where Harry was already sat on the floor as he read through one of his books. There was obvious surprise in his eyes when he looked up.

"Professor Bell," he greeted half-heartedly, quickly getting up from the floor and brushing himself off. Harry glanced at Snape, clearly seeing the amused twinkle in the man's eyes, not quite understanding what was happening.

"Why has all your furniture been moved aside?" Bell asked as she stepped inside.

"We need a lot of room," Snape replied, "for when we –" he walked over to Harry and casually draped an arm around his shoulders. "-Practice."

Harry groaned when he finally realized what Snape was up to. Unfortunately, Bell seemed to take that noise of annoyance as something entirely different.

"Are you ready for today, Harry?" Snape asked more caringly than he had ever done, "Or haven't you quite recovered yet?"

Harry decided to play along. "I'm still a bit sore," Harry said pitifully, "but I'll do as you say, sir."

"Harry!" Bell exclaimed, "What's going on here?"

Snape snorted and at that moment, Harry couldn't keep it together anymore. He burst out laughing as he teasingly pushed Snape's arm away. Snape chuckled and ruffled Harry's hair roughly enough for Harry to bend his head slightly.

For a moment, Bell was shell shocked but then she departed, slamming the door shut as she went.

"Oh uh," Harry said, "You might've gone too far."

Snape shrugged. "Let her be," he said, "She's the one who wanted to meddle in things that weren't her business."

"You can be really heartless sometimes, you know that?" Harry said, "I'll be right back."

Not listening to Snape's objections, Harry left the room and went after Bell. If anything, she was still his history teacher and he did not want to end up in her bad books.

Lucky for him, Bell never got very far, already confused at the first tangent.

"Professor!" Harry called out. Bell saw him approach and sighed.

"Mr Potter," she greeted, "What more have you to say to me?"

"Professor, I'm sorry," Harry said, "I didn't mean to embarrass you."

Bell looked a little bit frustrated. "I just don't understand," she said, "What's going on between the two of you?"

Harry smiled warmly at her. "I suppose no one told you yet," he said, "But Severus – well – he got me out of a really bad spot."

Bell's expression softened as she listened to Harry. "What do you mean?"

Harry scratched the back of his head in embarrassment as he sought for the right words. "You see," he said, "The family I was living with, they… they were bad for me."

Bell frowned. "Bad? Harry, did they –"

But Harry shook his head furiously. "It doesn't really matter, Professor," he said, "But I was in a bad way and Severus got me out of there. He offered me a home –" Harry couldn't help his voice from trembling as he went on, "- He offered me a family, even if it was small. He still allowed me to call it my own." Harry wiped at his face with his sleeve, something he knew Snape would reprimand him for. "And last Christmas –" Harry swallowed thickly and met Bell's compassionate gaze. "- He adopted me."

The smile that crept on his face was unstoppable and seemed to warm Bell's heart.

"Harry," she said, "I didn't know."

"He used to be much harsher, you know," Harry chuckled, "He was the fearsome dungeon bat of Hogwarts, though I suppose he still goes by that name."

Harry shook his head at the image of him and Snape fighting in the classroom, before… well, before everything. "I think he's happier as well," Harry said, "Maybe still not as happy as I would like him, but better."

Bell smiled at him warmly, and without warning, she drew him into a tight hug.

"Oh, you silly child," she said, "You're so sweet I could squeeze you to death right now!"

Thankfully, she didn't. She let go and quickly wiped at her eyes. Harry graciously pretended he didn't notice. "But why did you feel the need to trick me like that? My heart nearly stopped!"

"I think Severus just wanted to mess with you a bit," Harry said, "He has a weird sense of humour."

Bell rolled her eyes. "I'll say. You can tell him that I'll get even with him for that!"

Harry chuckled. "I will. And if you need help with that, I'm your man!"

"Interesting," Bell said as she thoughtfully ran a finger across her lips. "I'll keep that in mind. Now, where do I go from here?"

"Just go left, Professor," Harry chuckled, "And then you go straight ahead. Call a house-elf if you get lost."

"Will do," Bell said cheerfully and she disappeared behind the bend.

Glad to have that over with, Harry returned to Snape.

"You're bloody mental, you know that?" Harry said after he closed the door.

"Language," Snape droned.

"Says the man who implied a sexual relationship between the two of us to a completely innocent Professor."

Snape laughed. "And where did you gather she is innocent of anything?"

"She just looks like it," Harry shrugged.

"Of course," Snape, "A solid foundation to build your trust on, the way someone looks. Tell me, were you more enamoured by her long locks or by her amber eyes? No, perhaps it had more to do with the chest area."

Harry grinned maliciously "Ah, so you are aware of the finer things in life," he said, "And here I thought you were blind to any such observations."

"You are quite wrong," Snape said, undeterred, "I would have made a lousy spy had I not been able to grasp the finer details of my colleagues and their interests in others, male or female."

Harry stood there grinning for a while before playfully hitting Snape on the shoulder.

Snape took it without flinching. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Just thinking," Harry shrugged, "About the possibilities."

"Mind your cheek, brat," Snape said, "Or I'll give you the undiluted version already."

"No you won't," Harry said easily, plopping himself back down.

"And what makes you so sure of that?" Snape said as he grabbed the diluted Drink of Despair off the shelf.

"Because you're my family," Harry said matter-of-factly, "And I know you because of it."

The somewhat delighted expression on Snape's face made Harry look away as he felt himself flush.

Snape cleared his throat. "Well, shall we begin?"

---

It was a dreary Tuesday when Harry found himself seated next to Hermione and Ron in the morning, picking at his scrambled eggs. Ginny sat a few spots further away. She didn't seem angry anymore but she seemed distant. That was fine with Harry. Ron didn't even seem to fault Harry for anything for which Harry was grateful. The redhead had indeed matured.

When Harry looked up at the ceiling, he became aware of the pouring rain that was going on outside. Dark clouds blotted out the sky so much, it almost seemed like the middle of the night. Every now and then, lightning struck in the distance, followed by the ominous roar of thunder.

"Blimey," Ron said, "It's a good thing we don't have Quidditch practice today. We would probably be thrown off our brooms if we tried to fly."

"Trelawney seems to agree with you," Harry said, nodding towards the high table where Trelawney was standing next to Flitwick, dramatically motioning towards the skies and jumping with every approaching rumble.

"Maybe she's just scared," Hermione said.

"Or mental," Ron mumbled, shoving another spoonful of porridge in his mouth.

Harry was in the midst of peeling a banana when the doors to the great hall flew open dramatically. The hall was illuminated by another strike of thunder, revealing the form of two shadowy creatures in the doorway. Some students yelped in surprise. Others drew their wands. But none were prepared for the people who strutted into the great hall as they dripped all over the floor.

"Everyone, listen up!"

"And gather round,"

"For I, Fred,"

"And me, George,"

"Have returned from our glorious mission!"

"It's Fred and George," Ron exclaimed unnecessarily, "What are they doing here?"

The Weasley twins looked beyond awful. Not only were they dripping wet, they were also dirty beyond belief. They were smeared with mud, stinking clay and even blood. Some barely healed scratches were visible on the both of them and Fred seemed to be favouring his right leg. They looked thinner than they were before and honestly, they looked like they've been to hell and back. And yet, underneath the muck, grime and obvious fatigue, they were both grinning ecstatically.

The twins bowed exaggeratedly and made their way to the high table, parading proudly as if they were peacocks, ready to impress their potential mate.

"Hello, ickle Ronniekins," Fred said, ruffling Ron's hair as he passed.

"Good to see you, sis," George grinned, patting Ginny's hair.

"I can't believe it," Harry smirked when he noticed George carrying a book of sorts. He looked at Snape and saw that the Potions Master's face was a mask of indifference. He seemed cool and collected and not at all surprised to see the Weasley twins. But Harry recognized that glint in his eyes. Snape was very pleased indeed.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled but he made no move to greet the Weasleys. It was almost as if he already knew that they weren't there for him.

"Here you are, Professor," George said as he dropped the book onto the high table with quite the exaggerated bang.

"Told you we could do it," Fred said proudly.

Snape raised his wand and used it to scan the book that was practically dropped in his lap. When nothing happened, he opened the book and scanned its contents.

"Did you copy all of it?" he asked evenly, staring into Fred's eyes as he answered.

"Every single thing," Fred sighed, obviously exhausted.

"Well –" Snape said as his lips curled into a smile, "- you obviously lack subtlety but I commend you on a job well done. Your mother has received the formula some weeks ago. You may retrieve it from her."

"What?" George exclaimed, "You already sent it?"

"But what if we had failed?" Fred asked in disbelief, "You thought we couldn't do it! You said so yourself."

"Did I?" Snape asked, "Well, you've certainly proved me wrong, gentlemen." He smirked as he perused some more of the pages. After a while, he noticed that the twins were still standing there, looking quite dumbfounded.

"Well?" Snape asked, "What more do you expect? A kiss on your cheek and a hug goodbye?"

"Severus!" Dumbledore admonished, "Fred and George have obviously been through much."

The headmaster faced the twins with a cheerful smile and opened his arms wide in greeting.

"Please," he said, "Take a seat and eat with us. You are most welcome."

"Thanks, Professor," George said, taking a roll from the bowl that stood in front of Snape.

"We'll take you up on that offer," Fred agreed, winking at the headmaster.

They walked back over to Ron, Fred pulling him close in a one-armed embrace, rubbing his knuckles over his baby brother's head. "Missed us?"

"Not one bit," Ron grumbled, "Get off, you smell awful!"

"Scourgify," Hermione muttered as she cleaned the twins as best she could, sniffing in disgust at the puddles they left behind.

"Where have you been?" Ron asked, "And what was that recipe Snape was talking about?"

"Ah, little brother," George said, "Prepare for a fascinating tale of trials and mischief. Filled with wonder and amazement."

"Monsters and ancient magic," Fred added, "As well as love gained and lost."

It almost appeared as if the entire student body was leaning in to listen to the tales spun by the twins, while Snape was happily perusing his texts, vaguely aware of Bell looking over his shoulder with much interest.