Animula

Chapter 8: New Experiences

Severus stood up from the large sofa and stretched, the early morning light making him look almost like a ghost occupying his own sitting room. He looked around the room and a small smile crossed his lips. It was a little hard to believe Harry had been there for nine days already. His injuries had been healing remarkably well, and for whatever nightmares he did have, Severus had been there for him. Everything seemed to be going perfectly, even if he was sure Padfoot would never let him live down the fact that earlier that morning they\'d stumbled out of Severus\' rooms to get breakfast, both having fallen asleep on Severus\' sofa while watching the movie. Severus had planned to carry Harry to bed, but he\'d looked so peaceful where he was, that he\'d never gotten around to it and ended up falling asleep as well.

Today was the last day of Harry\'s recovery, and also the day they\'d set aside to go on a major shopping trip to get him everything he needed. Severus had put it off simply because it would be tiring for a healthy person, much less one with a bad arm and a concussion. Harry\'s concussion was gone now and his arm was only slightly tender-thanks to Severus\' ointments and the support of the sling.

He\'d had Harry\'s clothing washed and left them for him on the beside table the night before, informing Harry that they would be leaving early because of the sheer amount of things they had to get. Pushing a few strands of hair still damp from his shower behind his ear, Severus exited his room and crossed the hall to Harry\'s door. He knocked softly, keeping his voice down in case Harry hadn\'t woken yet, and murmured, \"Harry? Are you awake yet?\"

~*~*~

Darkness, loneliness, trapped. He was trapped.. nowhere to go. Can\'t go out the door, locked, bolted tight. Yelling outside, screams aimed at him. Freak, ugly, burden. Names, hurt feelings.

Harry curled into himself on the small cot, whimpering when his bruised and battered body made contact with the scratchy material. The large man, face shrouded in more darkness and shadows, unlocked and opened his door, pulling the trembling boy out by the scruff of his shirt. Large tears trailed down the boy\'s young cheeks. So young, yet no longer innocent or naive.

Large hands, smacking, punching, yanking. Long strands of ebony locks pulled out of his skull. Weeping, screaming, and cursing filled the otherwise silent room. Tall skinny lady curses man to stop, screams at him that he will kill the boy. Harry weeps, no one hears. Harry aches, no one cares. Shoved back into the cupboard to await more punishments. He doesn\'t know what he did wrong. No, wait, he does. He cried because of the cleaning stuff he was using to clean the bathroom made his eyes water and his throat sting. He got smacked, hit. He apologized, nothing helped. Got shoved into the cupboard, locked up ever since. No food, no water. Two days straight, only being let out to be beat. Harry doesn\'t know what to do to ease the pain he feels. The five year old boy just wants to die.

~*~*~

Severus heard no response from Harry so he opened the door slightly and was immediately met with the sight of the small teen in a cold sweat thrashing about in his bed. Severus quickly crossed the room and grasped Harry by the shoulders and shook him gently. \"Harry! Harry wake up, you\'re having a nightmare.\"

The young teen woke with a start, breathing hard , with panic painting his features. \"It\'s ok Harry,\" Severus said quietly, grasping him by the shoulders, \"it\'s over now. I\'m here.\" As Harry\'s bearings began to come back to him, he slowly dissolved into quiet sobs and let Severus gather him into his arms, gently stroking his back and murmuring comforting words such as, \"it\'s okay,\" and \"it\'s over now,\" and, \"I\'m here; no one is going to hurt you while I\'m here.\" It was just most proof that as quickly as his physical wounds might heal, his mental wounds might last a lifetime. Cradling Harry\'s slim frame in his arms, Severus continued to comfort him as his sobs began to ebb.

~*~*~

Harry wrapped his arms around the familiar chest, not wanting to let go anytime soon as his tears continued to seep out of his closed lids. He was still hesitant in crying in front of Severus, but at the moment he didn\'t really care. His pride could be put on the back burner for a few minutes until he was comforted. SnapSnape\'s words didn\'t really register to him all that much, but the low baritone voice that made the man\'s broad chest rumble while his cheek was pressed to it, made him more calm than real words could ever accomplish. Although the last phrase that he managed to hear, \'no one else is going to hurt you while I\'m here.\' Almost had Harry start weeping again. Not tears of sadness, but tears of joy. Something he\'d rarely done except for when he\'d laughed too hard with Severus over the past two weeks.

Harry sighed and nuzzled into the warmth radiating off the man like it always did. Even with all the food he\'d been eating these past two weeks, he was still cold. He\'d at least filled out some, so he wasn\'t as bony, but he didn\'t think he would ever be pudgy, or fat like his cousin. His skin was paler since he didn\'t spend everyday outside working, but he was definitely healthier looking. He wasn\'t sickly pale, or anything like that. His hair was thicker and shinier, thanks to the shampoo that Severus\' let him use. He shivered when he recalled the dream/flashback. His hair had always been thinner then most kids because of the constant pulling when he was younger. As he had grown older, Vernon had only used his hair to drag him around the house, but he didn\'t rip it out. He was still short, as he probably always would be. And his teeth were nicely white, and surprisingly straight, considering the abuse they\'d taken when he was younger and in elementary school.

So, over all, he was physically healthy, besides being too short for a boy his age. But mentally.. well, he still doubted himself and sometimes he found himself still wondering why Severus would want to help him. Although his trust in the older man had grown, he still sometimes felt like he should pay him back for his kindness. His earlier plans of helping him in his herb garden when it was warmer outside and his arm wasn\'t as tender was still in act. Although now it wasn\'t really about paying the man back, Harry just wanted to help him.

The young man sighed and pulled back from the embrace, not even blushing when he finally realized that he was only in his white cotton briefs and the older man was alreadlly lly dressed in his usual black outfit. Severus had already seen him in them anyway, since the man was often coming into his room to wake him up from his nightmares/flashbacks.

Harry sat back against the headboard, bringing his knees up so he rested his head on top of them and wrapped both his arms around his legs. Looking over at Severus, he shook his head slightly. \"Just another flashback.\" Harry frowned and paused, wondering if he should tell him about this one. He\'d told the older man about some of his dreams, but sometimes.. it was a little too personal and too heart wrenching to bring up again. He nodded to himself and decided to continue.

\"It was the time when I was cleaning the bathroom with ammonia and I was only five. I started to feel weird, my eyes were watering and my throat seemed like it was closing up, making it harder to breath. So, doing the most logical thing at the time, I stepped out of the room so I could go outside and get a breath of fresh air. Uncle Vernon intercepted me and asked what the hell I thought I was doing.

\"At the time, I was crying, because my eyes were still watering from the strong smell. Vernon smacked me, told me I was a wuss and sent me back into the bathroom. After cleaning the rest of it, and going over what I had already cleaned, all the while with Vernon watching me, his hand over his nose to keep out the strong smell. When I was finished, he grabbed me and basically kept me locked in the cupboard for two days without food or water, only taking me out to beat me.\" Harry sighed and sniffed. Using one hand to wipe the residue of tears off of his face, he smiled weakly at the older man. \"So, when are we going to get going?\"

~*~*~

Severus listened to Harry intently, willing his temper not to rise at the despicable acts committed by his relatives. More bad memories was the last thing Harry needed. He felt honored that Harry was comfortable enough to share these flashbacks with him and would do his best to help Harry through them. Leaning back against the headboard next to Harry, he rested a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“As soon as you shower, dress and eat breakfast. I believe fresh bagels are on the menu today. After that, it’s off to town. I don’t know if I mentioned this, but we’re a bit away from town; about an hours drive. We’ll need cloths, better school supplies, and a few other things, so it’s going to be a busy day.” Severus paused a moment and gave Harry’s good shoulder a gentle squeeze. “I’ll leave you to that now and go get breakfast set up in the dining room.”

Severus stood and slowly made his way to Harry’s door. On the threshold he stopped, looked over his shoulder and said, “Padfoot, I know you’re in here.” Sure enough, a large black head popped out from under Harry’s bed, followed by a slightly smaller blonde one. Severus shook his head ruefully and signaled the dogs to follow him. “Come on you two.” They followed obediently out the door, and Severus followed after them after saying one last thing to Harry, “see you at breakfast.”

~*~*~

Harry grinned, a watered down version of his usual grin, but he was still happier then he had been when he first waken up. Severus really could calm him down.

He got up from the bed while pulling up his briefs from where they had ridden down. He grabbed his freshly washed clothes and left to go to the bathroom, all the while trying not to think of exactly what the dogs were doing while under his bed.


Coming out of the bathroom, hair still damp and freshly combed, he headed downstairs and into the dining room. Pulling open a large cherry red door, he stepped inside. He smiled when he spotted Severus sitting at the table and took his usual seat in front of the older man.

Jessica came out of the kitchen carrying a large platter of freshly baked bagels, along with a mug of coffee, and a small glass of chocolate milk (after the cook had discovered Harry\'s love for chocolate milk, she\'d decided to give it to him at every meal). She set it in between them, smiled at both of them and quickly left. Probably off to read another novel.

Luckily, Harry hadn\'t woken up at all during the night, so he hadn\'t needed to make any trips down here himself in the middle of the night. After having a short discussion with Severus about him feeling uncomfortable ordering the staff around (the older man had found out when he\'d spotted Harry carrying his own dishes back down to the kitchen), Severus had told him not to worry, since they were getting paid highly for their jobs, and if they felt like they were being overworked, they would have said so a long time ago. Snape was by no means mean to his staff, so long as they got the job done, he was happy. Harry was still a bit nervous with ordering them around, since he\'d always been on the receiving end. But after going over it with Severus, he\'d discovered that it wasn\'t exactly the same thing. These were adults that had chosen their profession. Either because of the need for money, or like in Jessica\'s case, they were good acquaintances with the present owner of the manor, Snape.

They ate comfortably, now and again starting up a small conversation about the books they were currently reading, but otherwise they stayed in companionable silence.

Finished, Harry used a napkin to clean his fingers and mouth, set the soiled napkin to the side of his plate and waited for Severus to finish, all the while sipping quietly on his chocolate milk. Ever since living at the Snape\'s manor, he\'d discovered that he had quite a sweet tooth, one that had never been satisfied at his relative\'s house. So he often had small snacks in between meals, nothing that would spoil his appetite of course, since Severus had told him that he wanted Harry to eat well and get back his strength. But Snape himself also indulged in the chocolate cravings that the younger man sometimes had. So they would often be seen sitting in Severus\' sitting room, eating chocolate and watching a movie, or just talking quietly to each other.

Harry took another sip of the sweet liquid and gave a small smile. These past two weeks had definitely been the best days of his life, and he loved living at the manor; his and Severus\' home. But.. he really wasn\'t looking forward to going back to school. He still wasn\'t all that sure ow thw they would greet him. He knew the students and some of the teachers were against homosexuals.. so he could only imagine how they would react to him.

Harry sighed and shook his head slightly. It was no good to start worrying now. He would be going back tomorrow, along with Severus. He was going to miss talking to the older man freely, without restraint as to status. He was still a bit unsure of himself when it came to talking to him completely free, since there was such an age gap between them, that Harry was sure that Severus sometimes thought of him as immature even though he was more mature than most kids his age.

Harry sighed again. \'I guess it\'s back to being alone again tomorrow,\' he thought, frowning slightly.

~*~*~

Severus set his coffee down and looked across the table at Harry, noticed he was again unhappily deep in thought. \"Something wrong Harry?\" He asked, tipping his head slightly to one side as he often did when asking question; except in the classroom of course. He\'d have to get used to calling Harry Mr. Potter again. He\'d gotten used to spending leisure time at home reading, or talking to Harry. As much as he\'d loved reading he\'d never really liked to spend too much time at home because it was so empty; another motivation for him to take up teaching like he had.

These past two weeks had been such a sharp contrast to his past experiences, however. He was just starting to think an intelligent being would never walk into his classroom again; Harry had proven him wrong. It was so refreshing to be able to talk to him. He was neither immature nor criminal as so many children his age were. Severus had actually caught himself thinking Harry was only a decade or so beneath him instead of nearly two, from time to time. Provided he had a small frame, but he was not so much shorter than Severus, and his eyes seemed far older then they should have; Severus wasn\'t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. \'His eyes are very beautiful though,\' Severus mused to himself before giving himself a mental shake and bringing his attention and concern back to the conversation at hand.

~*~*~

Harry sighed. Either he was really transparent, or Severus was really good at reading him. Harry was guessing it was more the former then the latter. The only times he wasn\'t transparent was when he was purposefully guarding himself and his emotions.

The young man looked up, meeting the other\'s eyes, and shrugged lightly. \"Just thinking about school,\" ... and people\'s reactions.

~*~*~

Severus nodded and remained silent for a moment, studying Harry. \"You shouldn\'t give them too much thought; they\'re not worth it. Years from now you could be doing just about anything and I can guarantee you, from what I\'ve seen of their intelligence, except of course Mrs. Granger, very few of them will be qualified to do anything more than pump gas for a living,\" he said at last, resting his hand lightly over Harry\'s in comfort.


The drive into town was relatively uneventful with that same comfortable silence interspersed with some quiet conversation. After exactly one hour they rounded a curve into town. From there it wasn\'t long to the local mall. \'Better get clothing first,\' Severus thought to himself, \'he\'ll need that most because he gets so cold.\' After a few more moments, he pulled into a parking s in in front of a local clothing shop, Andrew\'s, well renowned for the excellent quality of its clothes, even if they were a little pricey; but the upside is that you get every pennies worth.

Stepping out of his car, Severus lead the still slightly shocked Harry into the store. Walking slowly down the aisle with no particular destination in mind, he turned to Harry and asked, \"where would you like to start?\"

~*~*~

Harry\'s eyes widened. He\'d never actually been in a clothing store, but he was positive that this was definitely more expensive than it needed to be. He knew he was going to get a few articles of clothing, but.. he didn\'t expect to walk into a store like this! Who would buy a pair of jeans that were thirty dollars? What\'s the point when you can get a cheaper pair that do the same thing, but for less money?

Harry looked around at all the racks, before looking back to Severus, frowning slightly. \"Umm.. isn\'t this a bit expensive?\" He didn\'t want to be wasting Severus\' money, even if he did have a lot, he could be using it for himself, or his manor. Not.. well, not on Harry. \"You shouldn\'t be spending so much money.. I only need one or two items. I can just cycle through them.\" He\'d done it before, hell, he had re-used his clothes until they were so worn that they were thread thin and would tear easily.

~*~*~

\'He really should be canonized as the worlds first living saint,\' Severus thought to himself. \'Even now he\'s trying not to be too much trouble. I wouldn\'t be surprised if he\'s afraid that I\'ll drop him like some abused puppy I thought was cute for a while.\' It was a hard thing to convince someone they were worth something when all their lives they\'ve been told they weren\'t, something Severus knew firsthand, but as stubborn as any memory might be, Severus was more so. He\'d survived six packs of seventeen year old students five days a week for the last seventeen years; he could wait out anything.

\"Well, it\'s a bit more than most people care to spend on clothing, yes, but the things you can get here are a lot more durable and well made than things you might find in other stores,\" Severus explained as they walked slowly onward together. \"And I am well aware of how much money I intend to spend and I assure you, you need it and I can afford it. More importantly, you deserve to have something nice and durable...and warm,\" As he spoke the last sentence, Severus made a point of looking in Harry\'s eyes.

~*~*~

The young man blushed slightly. Well.. it would be nice to have something warm for once. Harry sighed lightly. Maybe Severus was trying to get the point across that he didn\'t like Harry hugging him to get warm? Frowning, the youth gave a small nod, still looking down.

Shaking his head, knowing he was being transparent again, Harry looked up and gave a weak grin. \"Then maybe we should start with sweaters?\" The older man nodded and led him towards the racks filled with brightly coloured sweaters and sweatshirts. Harry frowned and looked through the rack, trying to look like he was being picky, but really he was just looking at the price tags. Finally coming across something that was the cheapest out of the rack, he pulled it out.

It was a dark red sweater, the pattern almost looking like large ropes trailing down the length of the sweater. It wasn\'t very appealing, but at least it was cheaper then the others, and it looked like it would be warm. Harry was used to wearing clothes that didn\'t fit, were incredibly cheap, and weren\'t exactly what you would call.. nice looking.

Harry turned to Severus, showing him the sweater. It was durable and warm, and it was cheap. Harry still wasn\'t too sure that he deserved having anything, but if Snape said so, then he could just stick to cheap clothes that wouldn\'t put that much of a dent in Severus\' intended spending range for him.

~*~*~

Severus raised a tell tale eyebrow in Harry\'s general direction. He was such a transparent Martyr. However much that might have annoyed some people, Severus had been there himself and could not ever find annoyance at such acts except those aimed at the Dursleys. If it weren\'t at Harry\'s request he would\'ve run them out of town on day one; but that didn\'t mean he still didn\'t have plans for them.

Stepping forward, Severus gently took the sweater from Harry and examined it. As he suspected he\'d dug out the cheapest one in the pile; but no matter. Eventually he\'d see how much he was really worth and then nothing would stand in his way. \"You don\'t need my permission to get anything Harry,\" he said turning back to face him. \"All I ask is that you get a full wardrobe; and by that I mean at least ten regular outfits, one suit, a proper coat, a few pairs of shoes.\"

Seeing Harry\'s eyes widen slightly with \'I am not worth that,\' practically written all over his forehead. Placing one hand over his shoulder, Severus spoke again, \"I know that\'s a bit overwhelming; that\'s why I\'m here to help you. The things here may be expensive, but thee bye by no means extravagant, or overpriced. You can pick out anything you want. You only need to look to me if you want to know my opinion; beyond that, the choice is yours. I\'m a man of my word, so please take me on it.\"

Severus paused and waited for his words to sink in before adding. \"And if I might make a suggestion...\" He trailed off and reached for a Shetland Sweater the same brilliant red as the first Harry had selected, but with a much more pleasing design. It would hug Harry\'s small frame; emphasizing the elegance in it without looking like it was trying to fill him out, as well as keep him very warm; Severus had a few of them himself. \"What do you think of this one?\"

~*~*~

Harry put back the sweater he had carefully chosen from the rack and took the offered sweater. Eyes widening at the nice form fitting sweater with a small golden ball with wings on the right breast area (he didn\'t know what that stood for, but he imagined that it was supposed to be a golf ball or something, and the wings were to show it taking flight), all in all, it was very nice. Harry smiled and draped the sweater of his arm. He resisted look at the price, knowing he would probably put it back if it ended up being expensive. He\'d have to do that for anything else he was going to buy in this place, otherwise, they would spend all day in here looking for something cheap.

Severus followed him as he walked towards the jeans rack. Scanning the rack (making sure to not look down at the little white tags attached) he pulled out three pairs of jeans. A sleek black form fitting pair, another one stone washed and the popular low rise style, and the last one was faded blue with a high waist and a straight boot cut. He showed them to Severus, who nodded with a small smile on his face. Obviously, Harry had been correct in just picking them. Maybe he would try getting some kind of job once things settled down, and he could pay Snape back?

He walked towards the other pant section, this one carrying everything else from sweat pants to dress pants. Harry grabbed a comfortable looking pair of dark blue drawstring pants, slightly baggy, but it still looked like it would be nice and roomy, instead of just plain baggy. Looking up at Snape for approval, he saw him nod slightly in reassurance. Harry grinned and walked towards the next section.

A light blush staining his cheeks, he picked through the underwear for his size. He wasn\'t positive, but the underwear Severus had given him fit perfectly, and he had checked the tag, so he knew from the size there, what he might be. Grabbing a three pack of plain white boxer briefs, he also grabbed a silky (he hoped it wasn\'t real silk or it would be a bit expensive.. but he still held onto not looking at the price tags) pair of emerald green boxers to sleep in. It had to air out sometime right? Harry resisted the chuckle that thought caused, and quickly grabbed a package of five black socks, before going over to the tee shirts and other summer wear.

At least these shouldn\'t be too expensive, he thought, grabbing a black form fitting muscle top and a slightly baggier plain white cotton top. Feeling a tap on his shoulder, he looked at Severus to find him holding a small basket. Smiling in thanks, he let the heavy burden fall into the basket, shaking his arm slightly to return feeling to it.

Harry looked around, trying to find the coat section. Finally spotting the sign, he walked towards it, before pausing and asking to hold the basket. Severus just shook his head, and motioned for him to continue walking. Harry sighed and went into the large section. Trying on various coats, looking to find a coat that actually fit him and didn\'t end past his hands, he finally found a waist length navy blue coat that fit him nicely and actually had two layers inside so he could wear it for the colder seasons and the warmer ones. Holding onto it instead of putting it in the basket (it was too big anyway), he walked towards the back corner where the suits were kept.

Frowning, he tilted his head towards Severus who was watching him intently. Blushing slightly under the dark stare, he tilted his head and asked, \"why exactly do I need a suit?\" It\'s not like he went anywhere.

~*~*~

\"There are events that will come up from time to time that will require you to have a suit, and as you have probably guessed from the many coats I own, I prefer to be prepared ahead of time,\" Severus explained. Still seeing Harry slightly confused, Severus elaborated, \"graduation, for example. And then if you decide to go to collage you\'ll probably be interviewed, or if you go into the work force right away you\'ll also need a suit to make a good impression. For you I might recommend a simple charcoal suit with a white shirt and a green tie, but that\'s just an example.\"

With a small nod he watched Harry browse the various selections with that intensely concentrated look he got when thrust into unfamiliar territory, and he found himself smiling slightly in spite of himself. It was very amusing, watching Harry move around to look at clothing. He had a light-footed grace about him that, while perhaps gained by more unpleasant experiences in life, was an endearing quality now in his new freedom. In the end, Harry picked out a suit nearly identical to what Severus had described and they moved onto shoes together.

Being on the shorter side, Harry had small feet that were surprisingly easy to fit. Time there passed quickly and they were soon leaving the store with a pair of sneakers, a pair of dress shoes, a pair of sandals, and a pair of black hiking boots added onto their load, which Severus was carrying. He was not about to risk Harry damaging his arm so shortly after taking it off the sling.

Next they ventured briefly to an office supply store to gather some extra school supplies. After they were loading the rest of that into the trunk, Severus turned around and caught Harry\'s eye. Signaling for him to come closer, Severus gently removed his thick glasses and studied his features for a moment. \"I was planning on replacing those glasses to begin with,\" he mused allowed, \"would you like contacts as well, or instead? They might be easier for you to handle than glasses.\"

~*~*~

Harry blinked at the blurry version of Severus and tilted his head slightly. The older man put his glasses back on, causing Harry to blink sharply again, focusing in on everything. Contacts? Well.. it would be better then constantly fixing his glasses with tape when they broke from someone hitting him.. but putting his er ier in his eye? The young man shuddered. He was about to say contacts as well as the glasses, but he had a strong hunch that contacts were even more expensive than the clothes they had just bought.

Frowning, Harry looked back up to meet Severus\' gaze. \"I guess contacts.\" He paused before stating the truth, \"I\'m a bit nervous with putting my finger in my eye though.\" He pouted and frowned. Hopefully it wasn\'t painful.

~*~*~

\"Tell you what,\" Severus said while they both got into the car. \"The eye clinic will probably have a few blank contacts around. You can try putting them in there and see what you think. I heard it\'s not so bad once you get used to it, and I think they have kinds that you can leave in for a month without changing.\" Severus was going to add that Harry didn\'t need to feel pressured into contacts, but he decided against it, knowing the young teen might worry about Severus telling him he\'s costing too much.

The drive to the eye clinic was short and comfortably silent, like most of their drives already, and Severus appreciated knowing someone who was relaxed enough around him that didn\'t need to fill up the air with empty words.

They walked quickly inside, eager to get out of the cold and, while arranging to see the doctor, Severus picked up a few blank contacts. Returning to the waiting room with Harry he explained, \"they said it would be about a fifteen minute wait. You can try out these in the meantime if you like.\" With that he handed Harry the case with the blanks in it and just for good measure he added, \"don\'t worry about dropping them, they\'re only blanks.\"

~*~*~

Harry frowned and took off his glasses, placing them gently on the low coffee table in front of the chairs. Sitting down in one of the hard chairs, he unscrewed the lid stucstuck a finger inside the container, pulling out a contact. Setting the small container down on the table in front of him, he slowly brought his finger to his eye, still hesitant. Well.. it wasn\'t like it would seriously hurt him or anything. Giving a mental shrug, he gently pressed his finger to his eye and brought his hand back. He blinked several times and smiled slightly when he barely felt anything there. That wasn\'t so hard.. mimicking his earlier movements, he followed what he\'d seen others do when they were contacts, and gently pressed his finger on his eye, bringing it back, and with it the small clear contact. His smile brightened. That really wasn\'t that bad. And it would be a hell of a lot easier then his glasses. Hopefully they didn\'t fall out though.

Settling back into the chair, the two dark haired men waited for the receptionist to call Harry in.

~*~*~

They waited for maybe five minutes, chatting quietly, before they were called inside. The doctor Severus chose was very efficient. It was simply a few minutes of saying better or worse as different lenses were put in front of him until he had pin pointed Harry\'s prescription, and it was only a few more minutes after that before the doctor returned with custom made contacts for Harry. Severus made quick work of paying the man and a few moments after he left the room he glanced back over at Harry to see him staring almost in disbelief at the package in his hands.

Severus quickly closed the space between them and laid a hand on his shoulder to gain the teen\'s attention. \"Go ahead, try them on,\" Severus coaxed gently. He was completely honest with himself; even though he\'d tried his best not to influence Harry one way or the other, he was glad he\'d chosen contacts over glasses. His eyes were a beautiful deep color, rare as irises went and the last thing they needed was a barrier of glass between them and the world.

~*~*~

Harry smiled shakily, still surprised that he\'d actually gotten them. Pulling them out of the white paper bag, he unscrewed the small case and repeated the earlier process that he\'d gone through with the blanks, though this time Severus was holding onto his glasses for him.

Blinking sharply to adjust to wearing both of them, Harry\'s eyes widened. Everything looked.. sharper. And he didn\'t have those damn heavy frames weighing down on his ears and nose. Smiling widely, he flung his arms around the older man\'s waist, whispering, \"thank you, thank you,\" over and over again. Severus chuckled and patted him on the back.

Calming down, Harry grinned lightly, and walked out of the store with the taller man striding beside him. They walked down the street and into the parking lot. Harry shivered and hugged himself. He felt.. odd. Looking around, he frowned at the many people walking the streets. Getting a little bit closer to Severus, he sighed when some of that .. odd feeling lessened some what. Frowning, he tried to figure out exactly what was bothering him. He\'d felt a little weird as soon as they\'d exited the optic\'s store. Maybe it had something to do with the contacts?

~*~*~

\'He\'s nervous,\' Severus mused to himself when he noticed Hamovimoving closer, \'and with good reason too. All these new things; and he\'s probably so used to the glasses by now...\' Severus mulled that over for a moment or two before tapping Harry on the shoulder in order to stop him from walking out into the parking lot just yet.

\"You know there\'s a bookstore not far from here, why not stop in there before lunch?

~*~*~

Harry\'s eyes lit up, nervous feeling completely gone for now as he imagined all the books. Smiling brightly, he nodded and followed Severus until they came across a small little place packed between two large buildings.

Stepping into the store, the name unknown due to the faded sign on the front, Harry looked around. The room was comfortably warm, the lighting was bright, but not the harsh florescent lighting of most places. The books were lined neatly across the many shelves. It looked like they had crammed as much books into one place as they could, yet it still looked neat and organized. Harry actually felt comfortable in this small place, which was unusual, considering he usually hated being in small spaces. Maybe it was because of the many books, or the calming lighting?

Harry scanned the shelves and randomly pulled out books. Reading the back cover and then ing ing them back. Eventually Severus came over, carrying a small novel in his hand.

~*~*~

A small smile spread over Severus\' face at the sight of Harry cruising over the shelves. It was good to see him so happy. \"How\'s the book search coming?\"

~*~*~

Harry looked up at the older man. Smiling, he put the book back that had been in his hands. \"I\'m just looking. I still have a bunch of books to read in your library still, so there\'s no point in getting one.\" Harry smiled. He was actually really looking forward to going through those books, and talking to Severus about them.

But going into this bookstore had really calmed him down. Maybe it was just the books, or maybe it was the lack of people.. Harry sighed and brushed past Severus, who followed him to the cashier. Snape paid for his book, and the two went back outside, Harry walking close to the older man. Close enough, that to anyone else, it would be considered invading their personal space. But at least it made Harry feel calmer. Hopefully he wasn\'t this jumpy when he went back to school. It wasn\'t like he was going to be able to hang around Severus.

Harry sighed, his mood quickly brought down by that thought. He really was going to miss spending most of his time talking to Snape. Though Severus was probably glad to get rid of him so he could read and be by himself for once. Harry knew that Severus liked his company, the man wouldn\'t hang out with him if he didn\'t, he was blunt spoken enough to state that. But Harry still felt like he was invading the man\'s solitary life.

~*~*~

Once Severus had packed the last of the shopping bags away, they both climbed into the car and started out for home. The drive was relatively silent until they reached the edges of Severus\' forest. There had been a question nagging at Severus all day long. Over the past two weeks, Harry and he had read many things together and often had great conversation during and after reading about the books. Harry seemed very insightful and excessively happy when he was reading; not to mention his innate talent for poetry. If he ever pursued it, Severus was sure he\'d make a great author.

\"I\'ve been think\" S\" Severus ventured, glancing at Harry, \"I\'ve been having a lot of trouble with my book lately; I can\'t seem to get any further in it at the moment. So I was wondering if you\'d mind taking a look at it? \"

~*~*~

Harry looked over at Severus, smiling, \"sure.\"

~*~*~

Severus returned the smile before focusing his attention back on the road. After another fifteen minutes or so of driving they were pulling into the driveway. Pausing to stretch as he parked the car, Severus glanced over at Harry. \"I don\'t know about you, but I\'m exhausted. Why don\'t we go relax a bit and have Jess get some lunch together?\" Harry grinned and nodded, \"alright then.\"

They both stepped out of the car and stretched lightly, Severus carrying his bag from the bookstore. That was when Severus noticed Harry walking towards the back seat were the bags were stored. \"Don\'t even think about it,\" he said in a friendly tone, but one that was not meant to be argued with. \"You\'re not lifting much of anything until your arm\'s not sore anymore. We can have Dobby set things away.\" Harry looked at the door like he thought he should be carrying his own stuff, but eventually relented and they walked side by side up the steps.

Severus was just about to pull the door open when it opened for him and revealed a tall, pale, blonde man with very distinguished features that, upon seeing Severus, contorted to reveal shock and guilt; emotions his face didn\'t seem made for.

\"Lucius?!\" Severus managed through his mild shock. \"What are you doing here?\"

\"Well... I have an explanation, Severus.\"

\"An explanation for what?!\"

\"Just come in the foyer before both of you catch cold,\" Lucius begged, and if it hadn\'t been for Harry\'s easy susceptibility to cold, Severus wouldn\'t have listened. The front door was not closed a second before Severus spun around with a look that brooked no argument and leveled it on Lucius.

\"Why. are. you. here?\" He asked, punctuating each word. \"It\'s not as though you\'re unwelcome, but every other time you\'ve come here you\'ve been up to something.

Lucius looked indignant for a moment, as though he would protest, but one look at Severus\' serious expression changed his mind. \"I was returning your dog,\" Lucius explained with an almost intimidating air of dignity; one he\'d used to bend many people to his will, but it did not fool Severus.

\"Why did you barrow my dog? And which one?\"

Lucius opened his mouth to explain when at that moment Padfoot came trotting in with a scrap of clothing hanging from his mouth. Lucius had the decency to look slightly embarrassed before he explained, \"he was teaching someone a lesson. No one saw me, and he doesn\'t have any tags so it\'s not traceable, but they still deserved it.\"

Severus raised a slender eyebrow towards his hairline and bent to retrieve the fabric. It was a shredded bit of boxer shorts with the initials D.D. sewn on the hem. A huge smirk crept across Severus\' features and he showed the scrap to Harry.

~*~*~

The raven haired boy looked at the material, frowned for a second, before he burst out laughing. Dudley deserved it, indeed. Reaching down, small chuckles still escaping his parted lips, he rubbed Padfoot behind the ears, smiling at the large dog. \"Good boy.\" The dark haired dog jumped up at the praise, intending to put his paws on Harry\'s shoulders, as he\'d often done with Severus, but with how small Harry was in frame and height, the raven haired boy landed on his back with a quiet \"oomph.\" Padfoot quickly got off him and stepped to the side, licking his face. Rubbing the large dog\'s neck, he chuckled quietly, \"it\'s okay Padfoot, I\'m not hurt. Just try not to get too overexcited next time. You should save that energy for Remus.\" Harry laughed when the animal did a doggy smile and licked him again on the face before racing off, probably to find his mate. Harry smiled and sat up, wincing slightly at the ache in his back. He was probably going to have a small bruise there, but it wasn\'t that bad. He\'d rather have a few bruises from some rough housing than actual abuse.

He blinked when he noticed a hand in front of his face. Smiling up at Severus, he grabbed onto the large hand with both of his aauleauled himself up. Letting go a little too suddenly, he was saved from falling back on his ass by two agile hands catching his shoulders and pulling him forward, so instead he landed against a firm, broad chest. Blushing slightly, Harry backed up, mumbling a thanks.

~*~*~

Severus smiled quietly at Harry before turning his attention back to Lucius who was trying to suppress his laughter at that moment. \"Now as for you, my old friend,\" Lucius managed to control his laughter and present a look of perfect innocence to Severus, \"since that little thieving escapade turned out so well... you\'re forgiven, but do try to ask next time.\"

Rolling his eyes as if in boredom Lucius replied, \"If you insist, but it\'s so much more interesting this way.\" He paused to check his watch and then promptly made for that door. \"Sorry to cut this short, gentlemen, but my wife will be expecting me home soon.\"

\"Always the same with you eh? She\'s got you hen pecked you know,\" Severus shot out half heartedly. It had been a really long time since he\'d sparred verbally with his friend.

\"Well at least I am married,\" Lucius shot back not missing a beat.

\"Finchè voi nonlo baci ancora (\'As long as you don\'t kiss me again\', in Italian),\" Severus came back at him to which Lucius just shook his head ruefully and dramatically bowed out.

Severus watched the door a few moments after he had left and with a soft sigh he said almost to himself, \"he\'s changed so much.\" He and Lucius had been so close as teenagers, but, as with most people, he\'d drifted apart from Severus. Whenever they did see each other, it was like old times for a few moments, but reality always came back. It wasn\'t that Severus minded him having a life, that techtechnically what marriage was, finding someone to stick true to for the rest of your life and, as much as Severus had ever seemed adverse to the subject, it was something he had desired for most of his life up until this day. A soul-mate.

~*~*~

Harry frowned, looking between the closed door and the somber man next to him who had his head bent down, long nds nds of ebony hair blocking his face from view. There was obviously some kind of past between Lucius and him, and Severus obviously missed it. Harry\'s eyes lost their new found sparkle, replaced instead by sadness and sympathy.

Walking over to the man, the small raven haired teen slipped his arms around the older man\'s waist, squeezing gently, trying to give him comfort. Hoping that he was succeeding in bringing the man out of his depressing thoughts.

Harry didn\'t like to see Severus sad. His professor didn\'t seem like he was happy often, but over the past two weeks Harry had definitely noticed a change. He\'d smiled more, even laughed a few times. He was pretty sure Snape didn\'t do that often. And if it was Harry\'s influence on him that was making him more happy, then Harry would gladly stick around to make sure Severus kept smiling and didn\'t dwell in past memories, and would instead move on. The older man was trying to help him with that, so he figured it would be only fair (and Harry really did want to help him) to help the man in return. Even if Severus pushed him away, Harry wouldn\'t give up. He wasn\'t stubborn often, but when he was.. he wouldn\'t give up, no matter what happened. Even if something terrible happened to him.. he didn\'t want to see Severus sad.

~*~*~

With another small sigh, Severus leaned into the embrace, wrapping his arms around Harry as well; a small , if not somewhat sad, smile crossing his features. He hadn\'t had someone he could depend on to cheer him up and read him so well since Lucius got married, and he\'d missed it terribly. It was as if Harry could read him even through the walls he had, knowing that talking wouldn\'t reach him well. As transparent as Harry appeared, you never really knew, and he just hoped he was able to do the same for him.

They staying like that for a few minutes before Severus pulled back, absentmindedly brushing a few strands of hair out of Harry\'s eyes. \"What do you say we get that lunch now?\"

~*~*~

Harry looked up at the soft touch, smiling softly. Looking into Severus\' eyes, he found that they were darker than usual, probably with sadness, but it looked like he was trying to make an effort to get out of it. Harry smiled and nodded.

Severus told Harry to go to his sitting room while he picked up their meal. The young man agreed and made himself comfortable on Snape\'s large tan coucnuggnuggling into the arm rest so that he was a bit warmer. It wasn\'t that these rooms were particularly cold, but for some strange reason, they always felt cold until Severus came into the room. Or maybe that was because Harry was allowed to snuggle into the older man\'s side for warmth.

They\'d eaten in here a couple of times over the past two weeks, either watching es wes while they ate, or just spending their time in comfortable silence, each in their own thoughts. Of course with the latter, thoughts tended to go down hill, but somehow the other man was always able to read him and cheer him up before he got too depressed. The same thing happened with Severus. Harry wasn\'t very good with words, so he usually let his actions speak for themselves. It just so happened that words didn\'t always work to bring Severus out of his dark moods, it dit did help when Harry\'s arms were wrapped around him.

Harry, still lost in his thoughts, didn\'t notice the quiet opening of the door, or the slight shuffle as Severus entered with a small platter on his hands, carrying two pastrami sandwiches and two small glasses of hot chocolate.

~*~*~

Severus gently set the tray down on the coffee table and sat down beside the younger teen, raising an ebony brow towards his hairline when he jumped in surprise. \"Relax Harry. I don\'t bite,\" he said, handing him one of the sandwiches with a small smirk.

~*~*~

Harry chuckled, heart still beating fast in his scare. At least Severus hadn\'t taken advantage of him being lost in his thoughts, like Vernon had always done. Harry had always paid dearly for his lack of attention to his surroundings. Of course.. that still didn\'t always stop it from happening, but at least he wasn\'t caught by surprise.

A cool sandwich was placed into his hand, causing Harry to blink. He\'d obviously done it again. Flickering his eyes up to meet Severus\' concerned gaze, obviously the teen\'s inner thoughts had appeared across his face, Harry smiled weakly and shook his head, saying, \"thanks,\" in a quiet voice. Snape probably didn\'t know why he was being thanked, that or he would jthinthink Harry was being polite again by thanking him for the sandwich. But the raven haired teen felt like he should say thanks again.. for everything. For showing him another way in which he was completely different from Vernon, showing him that Harry could trust him even more.

~*~*~

Severus smiled softly at Harry while nodding his understanding. He was an intelligent man, and he knew Harry said much more with action than with words and when he did speak, there wasen gen greater depth than originally appeared. “You’re welcome Harry,” he replied quietly before leaning back and starting on his sandwich, watching Harry do the same.

“Oh, I almost forgot, there’s something I wanted to give you,” he said suddenly, reaching under the couch for the bag he’d carried his novel in from the bookstore. rus rus glanced up and fought not to giggle. He must have been rubbing off on Harry because, even though confusion plainly covered his features, one eyebrow was slightly raised towards his hairline. Turning to face him on the couch, Severus began speaking again. “You have to be one of the bravest people I’ve ever met Harry. You’ve obviously been through so much and still had the courage to go under the care of a teacher you hadn’t known long.” Severus wasn’t as good with words when it came to his own emotions so he stopped there saying only, “and I just wanted to thank you for trusting me,” before pulling a very thick red leather bound book with a golden effigy of a lion on it’s hind paws on the front. The book was blank; a place for Harry to write his poems and jot down his feelings like he had with his previously filled book.

~*~*~

Harry took the book from Severus’ outstretched hands, running his small hand over the cover in reverence. He couldn\'t believe it.. finally.. his *own* book. One that was actually meant for him to write in, one that was actually *given* to him by someone who understood and cared for him. Smiling, Harry gently set the journal aside on the coffee table, before diving at Severus, hugging him tightly, his skinny arms wrapped around the slender neck. \"Thank you.\"

Over the past two weeks, Harry (and Severus too it seemed) had gotten more used to touching the other man. It could have just been the lack of physical contact as a child that made Harry reluctant to touch, or let anyone touch him. And maybe his childhood was to blame for him being a bit.. clingy, for lack of a better word. Harry just hoped that Severus didn\'t mind. The older man seemed too kind to just out and out tell him to stop touching him, but he also hadn\'t seemed like he resented the younger man\'s touch, he didn\'t tense up at all (unless it was from surprise when Harry suddenly launched himself at him in his enthusiasm), and he never pulled away from the embraces with haste. Harry was really sad that he wouldn\'t be able to hug Severus freely during the day, since they would both be at school, and it wasn\'t very professional of a teacher to hug their student. He knew when he went back to school, he would really need the comfort again of the other man\'s arms. But maybe he could use his new journal as a substitute, however poor it was compared to the real thing. But at least Harry would be getting *some* comfort from writing and talking about his troubles, even if it was in a journal, and not on the shoulder of someone who understood and cared.

~*~*~

Severus wrapped his arms around the smaller mans waist and tucked his head under his chin with a warm smile. It was so refreshing and unexpectedly comforting to have Harry around. He\'d become accustomed to being suddenly glomped, and rather enjoyed the show of strength from such a seemingly fragile creature. He was under no delusions that things would continue to be easy between them; he knew better. But at least they trusted each other and however things went, he felt and he hoped Harry did to, that they didn\'t have to go through it alone.

Severus gently rubbed Harry\'s back as he spoke, trying to offer comfort. \"I thought something like that might be bothering you,\" he said softly. \"I\'m sure you know by now that I\'m a blunt man. If I didn\'t like being around you, or if you were bothering me, I would have told you. Actually, I rather enjoy having you around; it\'s been a long time since I knew anyone who liked reading and writing as much as I do. And I just like being with you in general; a reminder that intelligent life still exists in the universe. And trust me, I\'d much rather spend the rest of the school year teaching you rather than giving lectures to a bunch of students that, lets face it, might as well be a wall.\"

~*~*~

Harry giggled and pulled back slightly, his hands still lightly linked behind Severus\' neck. Up close, Harry was surprised to see that the older man\'s eyes were actually a mixture of various shades of dark brown, instead of pitch black like he had thought. Harry tilted his head to the side slightly and raised a curious brow, \"why did you go into teaching if you think they\'re all a bunch of walls?\"

~*~*~

\"Well,\" Severus chuckled, \"I genuinely like the subject and, for the one or two students I get that actually do listen, you being one of them, I think it\'s worth it.\" \'Not to mention,\' Severus thought to himself, brushing a few errant strands of hair out of Harry\'s eyes, \'that it gets lonely being here all alone.\' As much as he wasn\'t a social person, Severus knew he wanted/needed one person to share his life with. With an inward sigh, Severus thought, ‘God, I am getting sentimental in my old age.’

~*~*~

Harry smiled and leaned into the hand still on his cheek from where it had brushed a long strand away from his face. Frowning slightly, seeing Severus\' eyes darken, the darker shades of brown seeming to over take the lighter ones, Harry unwrapped one hand from around Snape\'s neck and poked a slender finger on his nose, smiling when the older man\'s eyes regained focus, and then ended up going cross eyed as his vision focused on the digit on his nose. \"Stop thinking.\" Harry pouted, trying to stop from laughing when Severus\' eyes widened in surprise. The man really needed to lighten up sometimes.

~*~*~

A small smile grew over Severus\' face as he looked up to meet Harry\'s eyes. \"If you insist.\" Then again he did have Harry with him. It really was hard to believe he was only seventeen sometimes, he acted so much older most of the time. Not to mention he really read Severus well and often ended up cheering him up when no one else could have.

~*~*~

Harry smiled brightly and turned around so he was sitting in between the professor\'s long legs and rested his back against the broad chest. Placing his head back so he could look up at Severus\' down turned face, he grinned, \"comfy pillow,\" he said in a baby voice. Severus chuckled and rested his hand on the younger man\'s flat stomach. Getting comfy, he turned his head to the side so his cheek rested against the firm bicep in a make shift pillow.

\"Could I ask you something?\" He heard Severus grunt softly for him to go on. Frowning, he asked, \"how do you know Lucius?\" Feeling Severus tense up, Harry rushed to say, \"you don\'t have to answer or anything, I was just wondering. You seem so.. sad after you talk to him.\" Harry squeezed his eyes shut, hoping tSnapSnape wouldn\'t push him away.

~*~*~

Severus sighed quietly, the air ruffling Harry\'s hair slightly. \"Well... Lucius was my best friend growing up; the person I could share anything with.\" Severus paused, dwelling on that doomed game of Truth or Dare that, although he should, he didn\'t want to take back and do over. \"After he got married he kind of drifted away. Every time we see each other we kind of pick up were we left off, but it\'s not quiet the same. I miss the company.\"

~*~*~

Harry rested a hand on the bicep beside his cheek, gripping it in reassurance. He could relate to missing someone\'s company, though they hadn\'t really grown apart.. \"I\'m sorry. I used to miss one of my friends, but we probably weren\'t as close as you and Mr. Malfoy. Ron and I were really good friends when we were younger.. well, I thought we were. But when we both grew up a bit more, Ron started getting more interested in playing sports and looking at girls. I was just happy writing and reading.

\"He thought I was a sissy and that I wasn\'t a real man, so he soon found friends that were more fun to hang around with. It\'s not that bad though. I was hurt when he just left me like that, but I know most people end up losing friends, so it\'s only normal. Besides, I kind of deserved it, because he thought I was lying to him the whole time, which.. I guess I kind of was. He thought that my stuttering was an actual problem, instead of me just being nervous.

\"After awhile of getting closer to him and being more comfortable, I dropped the stuttering, and he got really pissed off.. saying how he trusted me and how could I lie like that to him after everything we\'d been through. I guess it doesn\'t make much sense that I didn\'t feel comfortable around him for a long time, but I just always felt weird around him. Not attraction weird, but.. kind of like I almost knew something was going to happen. But a year or two went by, and I figured that I was just being stupid, so I stopped being so nervous around him, and my stuttering stopped too when I finally calmed down. He thought I had been lying to him all that time, so any connection we had after he had found those other friends was instantly lost.

\"Since then, which I think was around grade 9 or so, I haven\'t made any other friends except for you, because no one would approach me due to my new stereotype of being a snob because I wouldn\'t talk to anyone, and I was too shy to even bother. Or maybe too hurt of rejection.. I don\'t know. But,\" Harry shrugged lightly, \"I didn\'t really need friends. I had my journal to write in, and that was good enough for me.\"

The raven haired teen was a bit surprised that he had just blurted all this ou Sev Severus, but he felt oddly comfortable around the man. Nothing like he had experienced around Ron. He\'d stopped stuttering after basically first meeting the professor, and he hadn\'t regretted it. He was definitely more outspoken around Snape, even if he did sometimes keep things to himself, but even Severus did that. Everyone was entitled to their secrets. Harry just felt like he should share a piece of his past, because... well, just because he was comfortable talking to Severus about it.

~*~*~

\"Finding a real friend is a hard thing,\" Severus murmured tightening his grip on Harry slightly. \"This Ron doesn\'t sound like he was ever much of one to you. There\'s more to being a man than being macho. You were more of a man for continuing on through all that like you did; it takes a lot of strength.\" Severus paused for a moment before continuing. \"I don\'t give up my friends so easily.\"

~*~*~

Harry smiled and hugged the arm underneath his head. \"I\'m glad,\" he paused before continuing, \"and neither do I.\" He knew now that it was possible to find a real friend, one that cared for him, understood him, and knew when to leave well enough alone. Someone that Harry trusted with his life, literally.

The next few hours were spent on the couch, lightly napping, both lost in their own dreams. Neither knew exactly when they let their lids close and stay closed, but it looked like the day\'s events had tired them out. And while neither man was really looking forward to the upcoming day, they were both glad to know that they would be able to find solace in a home in the company of their friend.

When supper rolled around, Jessica sent someone up to bring them their meal, which they shared while watching another movie out of Severus\' extensive collection. Occasionally the silence between them was broken by a sarcastic remark from the older man directed to the movie, and the younger man\'s laughter.

After watching the movie, Severus escorted Harry back to his bed, mockingly tucking him in, to which the teen giggled at. Saying goodnight, Snape parted to go to his room, leaving Harry to quickly fall asleep in the large comfortable bed.

Sometime during the night, a small raven haired teen pulled the second pillow down beside him, unconsciously wrapping his arms around it in a hug, a small smile on his young face making the teen look even sweeter for a young man of his age.