Authors Notes: This chapter gave me quite a bit of trouble, to be honest, so I really hope you enjoy it! Please don't forget to review and let me know what you think! Also, I have a question for you guys to answer which I will put at the end of the chapter...

Never Again
Chapter 6—- The Nightmares Return

Severus wasn't sure how long he remained awkwardly crouched beside Harry's bed, his arms full of trembling teenage boy, but after a minute or so he allowed the stiffness to drain from his form as he held Harry gently, patting his back soothingly. Harry clung to him like a limpet, apparently having lost all sense of dignity, and that caused Severus to realise he was going to be there for a while. He pulled his wand from his robes and flicked it wordlessly, sending the lamp soaring onto the bedside cabinet once more, and switching itself on.

The sudden brightness made Harry pull back, blinking, and Severus could see his face for the first time, taking in his red-rimmed eyes and swollen face. It was startling to see the golden Boy-Who-Lived reduced to a sniffing mess but Severus said nothing, simply rising to his feet and taking a seat on the edge of Harry's mattress as the boy wiped his eyes on the edge of his quilt.

"Deep breaths," he said firmly as it seemed Harry might be reaching hysteria, "Deep breaths, slowly. What was your nightmare about? The third task?"

To Severus' surprise, Harry shook his head before running his shaking hands over his face. Without really thinking about it, Severus withdrew a handkerchief from one of his inner pockets and handed it to Harry to wipe his face and blow his nose.

"Tell me," he instructed as Harry stared down at the handkerchief in his hand, "And wipe your eyes."

Harry obliged without fight, He looked a lot younger than the boy who was plastered over the papers, branded a liar. Severus wouldn't have believed this if he hadn't been with Harry to see it for himself but he didn't comment.

"It was... I was Voldemort," Harry said, keeping his eyes downcast and refusing to look at Severus, "I thought I was me at first but then I saw the snake and my hands and I realised. I was at a meeting of a few Death Eater's—Lucius Malfoy was there and I was really, really angry. I don't know why but I was furious and I... tortured Malfoy. I kept the curse on him for ages and I enjoyed it—"

Harry's voice broke and Severus found himself placing a reassuring hand on Harry's shoulder, squeezing gently.

"Stay here," Severus instructed, rising suddenly from the bed and making for the bedroom door.

It seemed, however, that Harry had other ideas because he immediately climbed from his bed. Severus looked over his shoulder to see Harry stumbling to his feet and sighed. Instead of making Harry wait in his room, understanding how he didn't want to be left alone, Severus Summoned his quilts and handed them wordlessly to Harry before descending the stairs, Harry trailing behind.

Severus motioned for Harry to take a seat on an armchair and waited until the boy was seated with the blankets drawn around him before kneeling in front of the Fireplace. He pulled a hand of emerald Floo powder from the pouch and, after shooting Harry a warning look, tossed the powder into the grate.

"Malfoy Manner," Severus announced as he put his head into the flames and then he waited as the world spun around him, the feeling of his knees against solid ground appearing to be the only thing anchoring him down.

It was Narcissa Malfoy who was in the parlour at Malfoy Manner, dropping elegantly to her knees by the fire despite the late hour. As usual, she appeared aloof and distant, but there were also lines around her eyes that gave away the stress she was under. Severus glanced around the room but neither Draco nor Lucius were there.

"Is Lucius around?" he enquired and Narcissa raised a pale eyebrow at him.

"He has just returned from a meeting," she told him, her eyes flicking upwards, "He's... In a bad way. He will see you if it's something to do with—"

"No," Severus cut in, "It can wait. Thank you."

Before Narcissa could reply, Severus pulled his head out of the fireplace and muttered a Charm to block his Floo off for the night. He didn't need anyone bursting into his front room and finding Harry Potter there, especially not someone who would hand the boy over to Voldemort without a second thought.

Harry was still in the armchair when Severus stood up, brushing ash off the shoulders of his robes. He was blinking up at Severus with confusion clearly written on his face but he seemed unwilling to ask the question outright. Severus had a suspicion Harry didn't want to make the events real, that he was still hoping he might wake up and find it had been part of a particularly complex nightmare.

"It seems," Severus said as carefully as he could despite his own inner turmoil, "That your nightmare was not a dream, but a vision."

All colour drained out of Harry's face and he started in horror. Severus had never seen Harry quite so pale and he had certainly never seen his scar so red and raised. He could see the vivid redness through the ruffled mess of Harry's hair, something that he had never seen before.

Severus suddenly crossed the room in three swift strides and pushed Harry's tousled hair away from his forehead, placing two fingers beneath his chin so he could see the lightning-bolt shape better.

It was definitely agitated and, when Severus touched it, the scar seemed to split and a drop of blood blossomed at the surface and slid down towards Harry's nose. Severus brushed it away with his thumb as a fresh wave of panic rolled through him. This was not normal.

"Harry, stand up," he ordered in his calmest voice but Harry still had fear written on his face when he obeyed. Severus pulled another handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to Harry. "Press this against your scar and follow me."

Severus walked quickly to the door to his Potions lab, throwing it wide open and motioning for Harry to come down with him. The familiar chill enveloped him as he marched down the stairs to basement level, lighting the torches with a wave of his wand and turning behind to see if Harry was in need of assistance.

"This is just like the dungeons at Hogwarts," Harry muttered behind him as Severus reached the bottom of the stairs.

"The dungeon is an ideal place to brew because of the temperature," Severus informed him, placing a hard-backed black chair in front of the long workstation and propelling Harry into it. Talking to Harry about simple things made him feel slightly more in control so that he could gather his thoughts together. "You should know this—or you would if you had listened in my class."

"Just because I didn't manage to brew properly wasn't to do with not listening," Harry replied and Severus was alarmed to notice the handkerchief Harry was holding to his scar was nearly covered in blood, "It was because I had something going on or Neville did something or Seamus or one of the Slytherin's pulled some kind of prank or—"

"Yes, yes," Severus snapped, peeling Harry's fingers away from the handkerchief and tossing it aside to examine the scar, "I expect better marks this year or we might have to—"

Severus cut himself off this time, becoming distracted by the weeping scar. He couldn't tell what had triggered profuse bleeding but he knew that it wasn't good and that he could ask why after he had stopped it but an idea was already unfolding in his mind.

Slowly, carefully, Severus levelled his wand with Harry's scar and said, very clearly: "Claudicatis."

Nothing happened. If anything, more blood leaked out and Harry seemed to have become aware of the bleeding now. Complete panic was obvious in his green eyes as a droplet of blood ran down his nose and Harry brushed it away, looking at Severus with his mouth open, ready to ask a question.

The horror overtook Severus then. He didn't show it, remaining cold as he tried several more healing spells to no avail, knowing it was fruitless before he had even tried. A simple healing spell would be no help, a cursed wound like Harry's scar would need something strong and potent, a potion of some kind, but Severus knew that there wasn't one invented and tested by the Ministry. But there was no other option.

Cursing violently under his breath, Severus swept across the room and returned with a pot of paste. It was something he had been working on for over a year, a paste to help the victims of his own Sectumsempra spell, and it wasn't tested properly yet. It wasn't Ministry approved either, Severus still hadn't got round to sending the papers to the Office of Potions Inventions but Harry was bleeding badly and there was no other option. The risk, he reasoned, was minimal. He had used it before, on himself, and there had been no nasty side effects and he needed to stop the bleeding.

"Stay calm, Harry," he instructed in his best no-nonsense voice as he unscrewed the pot lid and dipped two fingers into the thick, blue paste, "This may sting."

As gently as he could, Severus slathered the cream onto Harry's forehead. Harry winced and the boy's mouth thinned but Harry said nothing and remained still as Severus waited, his dark gaze fixed on the area Harry's scar normally was. Although he was staring intently at the boy's forehead, he could see that Harry was trembling like a leaf and reached out to place one slim hand on the boys shoulder, reminding Harry that he wasn't alone. Harry's hand suddenly lifted to touch Severus' wrist and he hung on as though Severus was physically holding him together.

Slowly, the cream was absorbed by Harry's forehead and his skin shone through. His scar looked normal again, if a little redder than usual. But it wasn't open, bleeding or burning and so Severus allowed himself to be contented once he had cast several diagnostic spells on it, searching for any residual dark magic and found none.

"It's okay, Harry," he reassured the boy once he was satisfied the scar wouldn't being to bleed again, "It's alright now, your scar is fine."

"Why did that happen?" Harry asked, tentatively touching his scar with two fingers. Mercifully, the old wound didn't reopen again.

"I have a theory," Severus told him, motioning for Harry to stand, "But I'm still working on it. We can discuss that tomorrow. For now, you need sleep."

To his surprise, Harry shook his head firmly.

"I don't want to sleep," he said in a strained voice and Severus realised that the whole incident—the vision, the bleeding—had made Harry unwilling to allow himself to connect with Voldemort again. Severus could have kicked himself, it was obvious.

"Alright," Severus said, not picking Harry up on his tone and wondering if he had gone completely soft, "We shall have a cup of tea."

Harry nodded his consent to this plan and they left the basement together, Severus extinguishing the lights and sending Harry up the steps first. Whilst he boiled the water, Harry pulled two tea-cups from the cupboard and leant against the counter.

"What was that paste, Sir?" he asked as Severus dropped a teabag into each cup.

"It was a little something I invented," Severus replied but, upon seeing Harry's face, elaborated. "It's a salve, really, although I refer to it as a potion. It stops bleeding by forming a layer of skin over cursed wounds and it hasn't actually been Ministry tested yet so I must ask for your silence on the matter."

"Yes, Sir," Harry replied, watching as Severus busied himself with the tea kettle and milk, "Thank you, Sir."

"If you have asked for me to call you Harry," Severus said, levitating the two cups towards the front room, "I suppose we should find someone a little less formal for you to call me whilst we're here. However if Weasley comes up to me and tries it, you will both be picking frogs for a year."

He did offer Harry a small smirk that took the sting out of his words and the boy offered him a wan smile in return as he took a seat and accepted the blue cup that Severus directed to him.

"Now," Severus said once the sweet tea was coursing through him and giving him a surge of energy, "You asked me how this happened. I couldn't tell you why it definitely happened, this is just a theory, but I think that the strain of the vision and the force it took to pull you out of the Dark Lord's mind led to the curse on your scar reacting by releasing some dark magic that is left over from the moment he tried to kill you. Technically, this type of dark magic is locked away and is unable to be detected but something in your connection with the Dark Lord triggered it to be released. The bleeding was just your body's way of trying to get that magic out of you in order to protect you but, obviously, a cursed wound does not work like that. And then there's the fact you've been in contact with so much dark magic, you would have to fully bleed out for that magic to drain away. Blood magic is a ridiculously complex part of the Dark Arts."

Harry had grown steadily paler throughout his speech and Severus felt the urge to take back all his words but, at the same time, Harry needed to know these things. He was being set up to fight the most powerful dark wizard of all time—he couldn't go on without information like this. He was ridiculously under-prepared as it was.

"What do we do about it?" Harry asked quietly, studying the contents of his teacup intently.

"You put all your efforts into learning Occlumency," Severus told him firmly, "And I shall endeavour to be a better teacher than I have been in the past."

The small look Harry shot in his direction was enough for Severus to realise that Harry was still slightly hesitant. But there was no point in pushing the boy; he would trust Severus when he was ready. Severus realised, with a jolt, that he was prepared to wait for that moment.

"I assume you still do not wish to return to bed?" Severus asked, settling himself back against the cushions, "Some sleep would do you good, you know."

Harry shook his head firmly, setting his empty cup aside and pulling his knees to his chest. He was still draped under the blankets from his bed and, for the strangest reason, he reminded Severus of a small child.

"Very well," Severus said with a note of finality, "We shall sit here together. Why don't you move onto the sofa? Then, if you do drop off despite your intentions, you can lie down."

For a moment, Harry said nothing but then he unfurled his limbs and crossed the room to join Severus on the old couch. He sat at the opposite end, still wrapped up, but it was a start.

"W-Will you stay with me, Sir?" Harry asked in a hesitant voice, "If it's not too much to ask. I just feel—"

"I will," Severus cut him off, not wishing to make Harry feel awkward whilst feeling stupidly pleased Harry wanted him to stay. He wondered what was happening to him, and why he had been so blind to Harry in the past.

He sighed. Since both their dignities had been shredded to pieces, Severus decided that he may as well broach the topic he had been putting off.

"Harry, you do know that your Aunt and Uncle should never, ever have called you a freak, don't you?" Severus asked in the most conversational tone he was capable of, "You are not a freak."

The conviction he spoke with startled himself as well as Harry and he briefly caught sight of the conflicted expression on Harry's face before the boy turned his head away.

"Yes, Sir," Harry said in the direction of the door.

There were a few minutes of silence where Severus watched the flames in the fireplace dance, his socked feet stretched out in front of him. The clock on the mantelpiece seemed to be ticking rather loudly in the quiet before Harry cleared his throat.

"Thank you, Sir," Harry said quietly, managing to look at Severus this time, "For everything. You know. The Hearing, staying with me, just... everything."

"You are more than welcome," Severus responded, equally as softly. Harry smiled, the corners of his lips just tugging upwards before he sank back comfortably, much like Severus had earlier.

When Severus turned to glance at Harry again, ten minutes later, Harry had dropped off and was fast asleep in the most uncomfortable angle Severus had ever seen. He was surprised, he had to admit, for he would never have expected sleep to come to Harry so easily but he reasoned that the ordeal must have taken it out of the boy. He had obviously hidden how stressful it had really been.

Silently, Severus rose and adjusted the boy as carefully as he could, shifting Harry so that he was lying fully on the couch. Harry adjusted himself as Severus moved him, rolling onto his side. Severus lifted his glasses off his face and tucked the blankets properly around him before stroking his hair without really thinking. He then sat down on the armchair, leaning his elbows on his knees, and watching the first signs of light bleed through the curtains.

His entire summer had changed. He was no longer aiming to convince Albus he would make a suitable Defence Against the Dark Arts or working out the Dark Lord's actions. He wanted to make Harry trust him, to give Harry someone to depend on. Harry needed someone to look out for his own interests, not for those of the entire Wizarding world, and Severus found himself wanting to do that for reasons he couldn't fathom. Maybe, just maybe, it was because he had spent five years thinking the worst of the boy and he wanted to make up for it. Maybe it was because Harry was so much more like Lily that Severus imagined.

But he knew, really, that it was because Harry reminded Severus of himself and that Harry was likeable when he wasn't breaking every school rule and risking his neck. And Harry just needed someone. Harry had shown that when he had reached out to Severus and hugged him, clinging to the person he felt would protect him. It all just demonstrated to Severus that Harry was a child in need and that was enough.

That was enough.

Just a short chapter, sorry for the wait! Next time, Severus confronts Albus about Harry's vision and Albus' reaction to it whilst Harry gets a letter off Ron...

Now, I really need your help on something. I want to give HarHarry some kind of love interest, but I really cannot decide who it should be. So please, please, please tell me in a review who you think Harry would go well with! Ginny, or Hermione, or someone else?

Thank you all so much for reading, reviewing, and favouriting. I appreciate everything so much and I hope this chapter didn't disappoint.