Bonds of Affection

“Detention,” Harry repeated with a smile. “More greenhouse duty?” It was a welcome thought.



“You should be so lucky,” Severus said gravely. “For the duration of the day, you will remain by my side. You may read, or amuse yourself in other innocent ways, but you will stick to me like dog on a leash.”



Harry stared at him incredulously. “That doesn\'t seem like much of a punishment,” he said quietly.



Severus gave him a brief glare. “You might change your mind by the end of the day.”



They cleaned up after breakfast together, and then Severus headed to his study. Harry followed closely. Severus sat on his chair and started reading and taking notes. Harry pulled a random DADA book from the shelf, and sprawled on the floor by the desk.



He spent a few hours, completely engrossed in the book. Now and then, however, he lifted his eyes and looked at Severus. The man\'s face was distraught, and he was scanning the pages of his text almost furiously, his lips mouthing an obvious curse after each line.



“What are you reading?” Harry asked.



“Herbology,” a reply followed. “Willows.”



“Trying to find something on the Wailing Willow?” Harry guessed.



“Yes,” Severus confirmed impassively. “Oddly enough, there is absolutely nothing on it.”



“Is that all you\'ve been reading for the last two weeks?” Harry demanded.



“What else would I read at this time?” Severus said absently, without looking up.



Harry looked up at him in surprise. It did not occur to him that Severus would be so intent on figuring it out the mystery ingredient in the potion Harry had taken. He stood up, and walked up to Severus, who was still seated behind the desk, absorbed in reading.



Harry, threw his arms around him, and pressed a kiss against his cheek. Burying his face in the man\'s long black hair, Harry inhaled deeply, allowing the nostalgic smell of dried grass, the smell of fallen leaves... the smell of late fall, enter him. “Thank you,” Harry whispered quietly.



A hand reached to the back of his head and stroked his hair with unusual tenderness. Harry stood quietly, absorbing the touch with his entire body, not daring to move, half-expecting a sarcastic remark. But absolute silence answered him for the next few minutes.



“Well,” Severus said softly. “Shall we have some lunch?”



Harry nodded quietly. They were about to start cooking lunch, when a firecall came through from Hermione. Severus stepped out of the dining room to give Harry some privacy.



Through the firecall connection, Hermione looked at Harry worriedly. “Harry – are you alright? Did you get hurt? And Snape?”



He shook his head. “We are both fine. It\'s all good, Hermione. Don\'t worry. We\'ve talked it out.”



She smiled uncertainly. “Well... that\'s a change. I\'m sorry I haven\'t called to check on you sooner – but... I was with Ron.”



Harry smiled broadly. “That\'s nice,” he smirked.



“Not really,” Hermione said weakly. “He\'s in the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts. Something happened to him... when I came back to the Burrow from helping you, he was already gone for the day. We found him later that day, in Knockturn Alley... unconscious, and beat up, with a few hexes placed on him. Instead of St. Mungo\'s, we took him to Pomfrey\'s, figured might as well – she has his medical records and all....”



Harry felt a lump at the back of his throat. What was Ron doing in the Knockturn Alley, a paradise for dark wizards and witches, an unofficial black market for anything and everything illegal.... ? He asked the question out loud, and Hermione shook her head dejectedly.



“I have no idea,” she said. “Ron doesn\'t either. He\'s fine by now, except he doesn\'t remember what happened. They are keeping him under observation until the end of the day...”



“Maybe I\'ll drop by,” Harry said quietly. “If Sev... er, Snape lets me.”



Hermione grinned a little, Harry\'s slip of tongue not going unnoticed. “Maybe I\'ll see you at Hogwarts then. I\'ll be either with Ron, or at the library. I\'m waiting for him to be released.”



Harry nodded and let her go. When he exited the living room, Severus was waiting for him.



“Sir? I know I\'m supposed to be doing detention... but .. Ron....” Harry suddenly found himself stumbling through words. “Please,” he whispered quietly.



“What happened to Mr. Weasley now?” Severus asked sourly. “An accident involving his infernal car again, I presume?”



Quickly, Harry conveyed the details of the conversation with Hermione. “Please, Sir,” Harry begged shamelessly. “I want to see him... I\'ll do double the detention tomorrow and the next day... ... if you just let me have a break for a few hours today.”



“I am afraid not,” Severus said calmly. “You will be staying by my side the entire day.”



Harry nodded dejectedly. “Yes, Sir,” he said quietly, feeling absolutely miserable. He did not even have the resolve to argue.



“It just so happens that I am going to visit the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts,” Severus said coolly. “A complete coincidence, naturally.”



Harry stared up at him with a wide grin. “Naturally,” he agreed. “Thanks.”



“I suggest you go clean yourself up before we leave,” Severus advised him sternly. “You have spent the morning rolling around on the floor.”



Harry gazed down on his shirt and shrugged. “Nonsense,” he said with a smirk. “Your floor is clean enough to eat off.”



Severus rose an eyebrow. “Something to explore at a later time, I am certain.”



x x x



Only half an hour later, Severus, Harry and Hermione all sat beside Ron\'s hospital bed at Hogwarts. Ron was looking at them with a chagrined smile.



“Sorry,” he said sheepishly. “Don\'t know what happened.”



Harry looked at him in disbelief. “You have no idea why you were in the Knockturn Alley?” he demanded.



“I don\'t even remember going there,” Ron said with a sigh. “Last thing I remember was sitting in the library with Hermione. We were both reading on Willows...”



Harry snorted. “Is the everyone at Hogwarts now reading on Willows?” .



“Not everyone,” Hermione said soothingly. “Just the Dumbledore\'s Army...”



Harry couldn\'t suppress a mortified groan. “The entire Dumbledore\'s Army knows I drank Voldemort\'s enslavement potion?” he growled. “Why don\'t you just kill me now?”



Hermione gave him a brief glare. “Nobody knows about the potion,” she said sternly. “We wouldn\'t just blab about something like this, Harry. And the Army - they are happy to help, even without knowing the reasons. You should know this by now.”



“Okay,” Harry whispered peacefully. “So Ron... you were reading on Willows.. and then what?”



“Don\'t remember,” Ron muttered. “Just ... blackout... until someone found me at Borgin & Burkes.”



“I see,” Severus said very quietly. “Well, I think I know what happened, Mr. Weasley.”



Ron glanced at him from the hospital bed. “What?” he asked defensively.



“You had the brilliant idea that Wailing Willow Bark would be an ingredient dark wizards might know something about. Then, you had the significantly less brilliant idea to venture out into the Knockturn Alley by yourself, and seek out the said information,” Severus said sharply. “I am guessing you had discovered something, given that you were found Oblivated.”



Ron smiled weakly. “I guess it makes sense,” he said reluctantly.



Severus Snape was giving him a deathly glare. “Mr. Weasley, if you as much as set your foot into the Knockturn Alley again, I guarantee that I will make your life hell for the duration of the next academic year.”



“Okay,” Ron said quickly. “I\'ll be good.”



Severus looked at him sceptically. Hermione smiled a little.



“Don\'t worry, Professor,” she said softly. “He won\'t go back. I\'ll make sure of it. You and Professor Dumbledore will take it from here, right?”



“Undoubtedly,” Severus said grimly.



“So what exactly do you think happened?” Hermione insisted. “Someone gave Ron some information, and then someone else Oblivated him?”



“Perhaps,” Severus said quietly. “However, there is another possibility. There is a spell that can be placed on a text... ensuring that whoever reads it, does not retain the information, and is subsequently Oblivated.”



“Interesting,” Hermione said thoughtfully.



“So, Hermione,” Ron asked with a smile. “I don\'t get to go home till evening... what are you going to do for the rest of the day?”



She shrugged absently. “Maybe I\'ll volunteer for a few hours. I hear they are cleaning out Umbridge\'s old office. Harry, want to come along and help?”



“No thanks,” Harry said with a shudder. “I\'ve had enough of her office for the year.”



Hermione nodded sympathetically. “I still can\'t believe what she put you through... the Blood Quill...”



Harry smirked. “The Blood Quill I could live with. But not all the pink decorations and the pictures of kittens on the walls. That was just... creepy.”