After dinner, the quintet headed to the spare rooms near Harry and Severus' quarters.

"It's very nice of Professor McGonagall to let us stay nearer to you two," Hermione said, after she, Ron, and Draco got themselves settled.

"I've requested that any guest coming to see Severus or myself be allowed to stay near us, instead of having to traipse through the entire castle," Harry said, grinning. "It also means Severus has somewhere to send me when I'm being asinine."

The look in Harry's eyes was, fortunately, lost to everyone else in the room.. There was a slightly haunted look, as if he was trying to hide something from everyone.

Hermione, Ron, and Draco chuckles at this. Severus entered the room with tea. He was feeling somewhat out-of-sorts, have very little positivity in his history with Harry's friends. He set the tea on the table and took a seat next to Harry on the couch.

"How have you been handling your transformations, Severus?" Draco asked. "I don't recall you being away from work for more than a day."

"From what Harry has told me, Poppy believes that this moon affected me more so than usual because it was the anniversary of my infection," Severus said. "I intend to do some research on this matter."

"If you'd like, Professor Snape," Hermione said. "I could help with your research a little. I believe the Ministry has some extensive, little known, reference material. I would be more than happy to copy some of it and owl it to you."

"That would be greatly appreciated, Hermione," Severus said, inclining his head to her. "And, if you'd like, you can call me Severus."

Hermione nodded, as her face went through a few shades of red. Ron looked at Severus in disbelief.

"How is working as an Auror, Ron?" Harry asked, scooting a little closer to Severus.

"It's alright," Ron said, putting an arm around Hermione. "It's been pretty boring lately, though. After we rounded up all the rogue Voldemort supporters, not a lot has been happening. I'm essentially a desk jockey now."

Severus had stiffened slightly when Harry moved closer to him, completely flat-footed and unsure of himself. He blanched when Ron put his arm around Hermione, unsure of Harry's expectations for him.

"I'm pretty happy about my decision to go to the Ministry," Draco said. "With the help I've gotten to help clear my name, and the job I subsequently got, I'm able to prove that I'm must more than my father ever was."

"What's great to head, Dray," Harry said, smiling brightly.

"Dray?" Severus said, caught off-guard.

"You never told him, did you?" Draco asked Harry.

"I haven't gotten around to it," Harry said. "I haven't told those two either."

"Well, do you want to tell them, or should I?" Draco asked, shaking his head and smirking.

"Well, Draco and I are cousins," Harry said, cautiously. "We found out when I was helping him out og the Death Eaters grasp."

"Apparently, the Evans line is descended from a well hidden Squib in the Malfoy lineage," Draco said. "What blood purist would ever admit to being related to a "filthy" Squib in those days."

"When my mum was sorted at Hogwarts, Sirius had already had a suspicion that she was more than just a random muggleborn," Harry said. "While I was cleaning Grimmauld, I found a file about the Evans lineage."

"My great-great-great-great granduncle Randolph disappeared from the Malfoy family records right around the time Ralph Evans instated the Evans lineage," Draco said.

"There are still Malfoy traits being passed along the line, but they aren't as prominent," Harry said. "Sirius must have noticed something about my mom that prompted his research."

Severus, Hermione, and Ron said in silence, looks of surprise and disbelief on their faces. Harry and Draco exchanged sheepish looks and waited for the imminent explosion of questions.

After a short silence, Severus slowly turned to Harry.

"You are distantly related to my godson?" he asked, fighting to keep his voice from raising.

"Yes," Harry said, visibly frightened. "But I've known less than a year, Severus."

"Why was I not informed of this when you discovered this tidbit of information?" Severus asked, his voice clipped. He was imperceptibly fighting to control his wolf and slowly losing.

"I never really had the chance. We've been rather busy. With classes, teacher duties, and dealing with Gefhar, there hasn't been much of a chance," Harry said, shying away from the older man. He had seen Severus like this before, but it still scared him senseless.

Upon hearing it's name, Severus' wolf backed down. The fear in Harry's voice also was a factor.

"I'm going to our quarters, Harry," Severus said. "I'd like to have a private word with you."

Harry just nodded as the older man left the room.

Draco moved to sit next to his cousin, who was visibly shaken by Severus' actions.

"What was that, Harry?" Draco asked, gently.

"Severus tends to be a bit touchy for a few days after a full moon," Harry said quietly. "Most times, we're alone, but it seems much worse. I've found that mentioning his wolf helps him regain himself."

"Is that why you said "dealing with Gefhar," Harry?" Ron asked, leaning forward a little.

"Yes," Harry said. "I named him Gefhar because it means danger in another language. Since his wolf has a name, Severus named my Animagus form Arc."

"How do you cope with his out bursts?" Hermione asked, after moving to give Harry a hug.

"I usually stay over here," Harry said. "It gives him some space, but I can be close enough to help in case something happens."

"How often does he have episodes like this?" Ron asked, obviously worried for his best mate.

"This is the fourth time it's happened," Harry said, looking down. "I've noticed that it's happened every three months since he was infected. This was, unfortunately, the worst time."

Hermione wrapped her arms around Harry, who finally gave into the urge to cry. The four sat in relative silence for a long while.

Once Severus entered his own rooms, he felt extremely ashamed of himself. He had almost lost control of his wolf in front of his mate's friends.

"How am I going to make this up to Harry?" he asked the empty living room.

"Dobby knows how Professor Severus could attempt to make up to Master Harry," the house elf squeaked, appearing from the kitchen.

"What can I do, Dobby?" Severus asked, desperate for something.

"Master Harry has told Dobby that he does not know much about his family," the elf squeaked. "If Professor Severus wants to give Master Harry some information on his family, Dobby is sure Master Harry would be most happy!"

"Would you be able to help me, Dobby?" Severus asked, immediately interested in this task.

"Dobby is most happy, Professor Severus asked for help," the elf chirped. "I knows where to start looking!"

"Thank you , Dobby," Severus said, earning a watery smile from the elf. "We should start on this as soon as possible."

"Yes, Professor Severus," Dobby said, bowing. "Dobby will get started right away."

With a small pop, Severus was alone. He went over to his desk and began writing letters to anyone he knew that knew the Potters or the Evans.

"Thanks for being here for me, guys," Harry said, once he stopped crying. "I should really go talk to Severus before he gets even more upset with me."

"You're more than welcome to come back here tonight, Harry," Draco said. "I know how stubborn Severus can be."

"Thanks, Dray," Harry said, smiling slightly. "I think I should be alright."

After getting hugs from his friends, Harry left to go back to his and Severus' quarters. He stopped outside the portrait and took a couple deep breaths to steady his nerves.

"Magnus," Harry said, causing the portrait to swing open.

Her nervously entered their quarters. When he didn't find Severus in the living room, he relaxed a little. Harry sat on the sofa and closed this eyes, letting himself relax more.

"Harry?" Severus asked, after he entered the living room a short while after he heard the portrait open and close.

Harry opened his eyes and was greeted by a very sheepish looking Severus Snape.

"Yes?" he asked, sitting up a little.

"I know I couldn't apologize enough for what happened before," Severus said, kneeling in front of his younger mate. "I just want you to know that I regretted my actions immediately. I just hope that you would be willing to forgive me."

Harry regarded Severus slowly. He took in the vulnerability in his eyes, the kneeling position, and, most of all, the fear that was in his voice.

"I don't know, Severus," Harry said, carefully. "You acted like a right arse. In front of my best friends. Just because I hadn't found the time to tell you some minor thing about myself."

Harry glared at Severus, who started to shrink in on himself.

"However," Harry said, lifting Severus' chin to look into the older man's eyes. "I do know that you fought very hard to prevent your actions. I know you're very sorry, and I accept your apology and forgive you."

Severus smiled widely as tears started rolling down his cheeks. He threw his arms around Harry and felt Harry's arms wrap around him.

A/N: Yeah, I was having a kind of crappy night at work, and I guess I wanted to write myself some angst. Not exactly something I had originally planned for this, but it works, and opens up a couple new avenues down the road.

I don't know where the whole Draco and Harry being distantly related thing comes from, but it could be fun to write out the family history as the story goes. I plan on mentioning more about Sirius' research eventually.

Also, there was no flashback/dream sequence in this chapter, but I don't think there was a good place to put it.

Thanks for reading!
-Freake