Thank you to the beta of this chapter- Born-of-Elven-Blood

Chapter Twelve - Confession

Harry stared at the clock, listening to every tick it made, watching as the second hand slowly made its way around only to start again when it got to the twelve.

Five minutes soon became four minutes, and four minutes became three, and any minute now his friends would be knocking on the door.

And with each minute that passed by Harry regretted more and more the decision to see his friends.

He wanted to go and hide in his room until they left, let Snape deal with them, but for some reason he didn't understand, he didn't want to disappoint his professor.

All Professor Snape had asked of him was to see his friends, nothing else, and after all Snape had done for him these last couple of days he felt like he should at least try to do what the man asked of him.

There was a knock at the door. Harry felt like his heart would jump out of his chest. He hadn't been this nervous since his first Quidditch game.

He quickly made his way back to the couch and sat down, taking in a couple of deep breaths to calm himself as he watched the professor answer the door.

Snape didn't even have time to say a word before the two Gryffindors pushed passed him and made a beeline straight to Harry. Hermione wrapped Harry in a tight hug, oblivious to the way he flinched at the contact.

"We were so worried!" Hermione cried, hugging Harry even tighter. "Are you alright? What happened?"

Both Hermione and Ron had agreed not to ask Harry any questions before knocking on the door. But the moment Hermione saw Harry, everything else flew out of her head in a heartbeat.

"Hermione...let him take a breath," Ron spoke, pulling Hermione off their friend before she could earn a stern warning from Snape.

Hermione quickly sat down on the couch along with Ron across from Harry.

"Sorry," Hermione muttered, looking down at her feet. The three fell into an awkward silence.

"...I did the homework you sent," Harry said finally, handing the papers to Hermione. "Also the...stuff is in there for the… thing"

Hermione gave a quick nod, understanding the code Harry was speaking in. "Thanks... I will get these to the professors," she said with a small smile. Another round of silence hit the room.

It was nearing minute three when Hermione broke down into tears. "Harry...please be honest with us. We are your friends and we care about you very much, we won't judge you." She cried as she took Harry's hand in hers. "We know that things have been hard on you lately. Did you...did you go into the Chamber of Secrets to harm yourself?" More tears streamed down her face. "It's ok if you did. We won't judge you. We just want to help Harry!"

"What?" Harry asked, shocked. "No...no...I would never! I didn't go down there to...to kill myself!" he told her, aware that Snape was hearing everything that was being said from the kitchen. "Is that what people are saying? That I tried to off myself?" he asked, afraid of the rumours that might be going around the school.

"It doesn't matter what they are saying mate," Ron spoke up at last. He always said the same thing when Harry got upset about articles in the papers and it always helped to calm him. It helped to know that not everyone believed what was being said about him.

"We just want to help...please talk to us," Hermione softly pleaded, squeezing Harry hand a little.

"...I want to… I really do, but I can't..." Harry replied haltingly. "It's not because of you. Something

happened..." he tried to explain, looking over at Snape.

"Does it have something to do with Umbridge?" Ron asked.

"No…" Harry was hesitant before he spoke again. "During my lessons with Professor Snape… a memory that had been magically hidden came up"

"It's Voldermort then?" Hermione asked.

"No it has nothing to do with him… it was Lockhart… during our second year..." And before Harry knew what was happening, the words came spilling out. "He raped me!"

Harry hid his face and cried out at the shocked and horrified expressions that washed over his friends' faces.

Snape was quick on his feet, pushing the two Gryffindor's up and out before either of them could say a word. Slamming the door, he made his way back to Harry and was surprised when the boy wrapped his arms around him.

"He… he raped me… over and over again… and I couldn't do anything to stop it!" Harry cried. "I can still feel his hands… touching me..."

Snape wrapped his arms around the child. He had never been good at offering comfort, never having received any as a child, but he couldn't leave Harry with nothing, not when the boy was seeking solace of any kind.

"It's alright...he can't hurt you anymore."

Harry only shook his head. "He's still with me… I can feel him… I can hear him, speaking to me..."

"I know...but the pain will fade..."

Harry didn't say another word, just wept in his professor's arms until exhaustion overtook him.

Snape picked the child up and carried him to bed, tucking the blankets around him. He was glad that the child had finally opened up. Now maybe he could begin to heal.