Walk the Shadows

'Sixteen years old, and you have your entire life ahead of you.' He jabbed a finger in Harry's direction. 'You will do more with your time than consider the many and possible ways you may bring about the demise of the Dark Lord.'

'Like what?'

'Like that abominable game you're so fond of--'

'No, I meant, what many ways? I don't know how I'm going to kill him. I doubt it'll even be possible, when wizards far more powerful than I am can't do it.' His voice and his gaze were very steady when he said, 'I don't expect to be the one who survives.'

Snape's nostrils flared and he pushed back his chair. Looming over Harry, he spoke in a really quiet voice, tinged with an undercurrent of something Harry could not recognize. 'I will do my best to make sure that you do. And you will do your best to learn what I have to teach. In the meantime, you will do other things with your life, too. You are not a weapon to be put in a box--'

'Or a cupboard,' Harry muttered.

Another nostril flare. Might it be the tell for righteous indignation? 'Or a cupboard, and then taken out and pointed at the enemy.'

Harry lifted his chin, trying to meet the man's eyes. When he was so close, though, it was hard. He wondered, was this outrage for him? Or for not yet fulfilling his own oath? 'And where would you put me, professor?'

Snape seemed to suddenly realize that he was looming, and he stepped away. His blank mask slid into place once more. 'You already have a room here, Potter. I assume it would continue to be adequate. While attending classes, you would, of course, be expected to stay in the dorms . . . unless it were not possible for some other reason.'

Harry looked away. He had no idea how he was ever going to sleep in the same room as four other boys. Or with anyone else, ever. He couldn't protect himself if he was sleeping. But only Snape knew why he was concerned about it.

Snape was the only one who knew a lot of things about him, in fact. About the cupboard, about Hedwig. The Harry Hunting and the starving and about how he'd broken under torture. And yet, he still stayed, still tried to help. Even when Harry broke his things, and yelled at him, hit him, and called him names. He let Harry vent, and let him cry, and hardly berated him at all anymore.

So what if he was doing it out of duty? Maybe it would be enough that, for once, someone was really looking out for him.

'Okay.'

Snape frowned. 'Elaborate. What is 'okay'?'

'I'll do it. I mean, you can be my guardian or whatev--' He smiled, and Snape smirked back. Harry wouldn't have cared, really, if he did lose points just then, but it was the principle of the thing. Someone – Snape of all people – was taking him in, letting him belong to a . . . family of sorts. 'You can be my guardian.'

TBC . . .

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A/N: Thank you to all who read and/or review! You're my Skittles, my Oreos, my Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs. Love you all! Next chapter should be out by Thursday.

*Chapter 25*: Chapter 25

Walk the Shadows -- Chapter 25

By jharad17

Disclaimer: None of this is mine. Siriously. She's rich, and I just wish.

Aug. 15, 8:30 am

He's gone to talk to Dumbledore about the guardianship thing. I'm just as glad to miss that conversation, even though it is about me, since I know it would involve a lot of Dumbledore looking at me and asking me questions, and, honestly? I don't think I could handle that from him right now. I don't know if I could look at his office and not want to smash everything again. I wonder if he was able to fix any of it? I wonder why I care.

I think this is the first time I've been alone in Snape's quarters since I got here. He's awfully . . . protective of his privacy. It's gonna be hard for him to have me here, I bet.

Of course, the last couple weeks haven't been a picnic for either one of us.

I wonder if Remus is still here. Will he be the new DADA teacher? That'd be cool. I'd like to see him again. I think. I wonder if he knows about that . . . that night. I hope not. It's gonna be hard enough to be around him without him knowing. . . .

Oh, god. What will he say about Snape being my guardian? Oh, fuck! What will RON say??

XOXOXOXOXOXO

Severus sat in Dumbledore's office, trading pleasantries with an outward calm that belied his inner raging temper. The man before him had shirked his duty to Harry, and had placed the boy in danger more times than Severus cared to speculate. Whether it was to frighten the boy into learning magic faster, or to test him and his capabilities, or for some other secret nefarious purpose, the end result was that Harry's welfare could no longer be trusted to Albus or Minerva or any of the others.

Thinking about all that Harry had confessed, about the things that should have been