Chapter 30: Tell Me No Lies

Late in the evening had usually been Snape's favorite time of the day. There were no more classes, no students due to curfew with the exception of those students that were unlucky enough to have detention and even then they made themselves scarce. Late in the evening is also the time Snape could usually find Hermione Granger prowling the halls during her Head Girl patrol. He relished those times and they almost certainly ended with the witch writing beneath his animalistic thrusts in one form or another. The Potions Master had been making his way down the long darkened corridor in anticipation of possibly relieving one of the more gritty animal fantasies that had played thus far in his mind. When he heard the sound of labored breathing and muffled agony. Snape arched an eyebrow at this and proceeded to follow the sound his keen ears picked up with relative ease.

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The Corridors, Hogwarts, Wizarding World...

The cries became more frequent then were followed by a condescending, high-pitched, girlish tone rang out. That shrill of a voice had belonged only to one person that irritated Snape more than any Potter or Black past or present, future not withstanding. He narrowed his obsidian eyes as he took in all that was happening just beyond the large wooden door belonging to the pink puffin stuff toad woman. Snape smirked at his insult of the contemptible cow and froze when he heard the unmistakable and familiar whimper of one Harry James Potter.

What the hell is that toad faced dolt up to now?

Inside...

"Write Mr. Potter." said Umbridge in her usual shrill tone.

Harry Potter gritted his teeth and put the horrible blood quill to paper knowing full well every stroke of it would cause insane amounts of agony upon his own hand.

"I must not tell lies." said Umbridge in a triumphant tone.

Harry glared murderously at the wretched creature. If he could there was no doubt that he would have killed the toad faced psychopath.

"Again Mr. Potter." instructed Umbridge taking time to add more dirty sugar to her black tea.

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Outside...

Snape had, had enough. He had not liked nor had he thought very much of Harry Potter but blatant abuse to a child was more than he could stand. The Potions Master wanted to charge in and beat the insane witch into a bloody mass but knew full well that wouldn't go over so well with either the Ministry of Magic nor Dumbledore. The wolf raged inside him as if desperate to save the boy. It was an odd sense given how much Snape wanted to kill the boy due to his arrogance since he had known him.

PROTECT POTTER. PROTECT HER POTTER.

Quickly Snape formulated a plan and for once his beast blood rage would come in handy. Without a single second thought Snape went crashing through Umbridge's office and glared rather murderously at Harry Potter who had been so stunned by Snape's arrival that dropped the blood quill.

{Play along.} said the voice of Snape echoing loudly in the young green eyed wizard's head.

"There you are, Mr. Potter." spat Snape clearly not needing any motivation to have contempt for the boy. "Tell me boy, was it your laughable conclusion of thought that lead you to believe that you can just skip out on a detention that I have given you at your leisure?"

Umbridge looked back n forth between Snape and Harry.

The Potions Professor seemed to be in quite a foul mood and Potter tensed up the minute the dour wizard appeared. It seemed that the boy who lived had his fair share of enemies among the staff long before she had arrived and rightly so, he was an arrogant little shit that got lucky far too often.

"I-I'm sorry Professor." said Harry trembling as he dropped the newly re-obtained quill once more. "I-I..i-it slipped my mind."

"Professor Snape is it?" asked Umbridge turning her attention to the Potions Professor as a gleeful smile appeared upon her toadish face.

Snape suppressed the urge to roll his eyes.

"What?" he asked turning his attention to the drab woman in pink.

"I believe the fault lies with me." she said in that high pitched girlish shrilled voice of hers.

It was like someone clawing at a blackboard in Snape's ears. The wolf began to salivate at the prospect of ripping her in two just to make it stop.

"I don't give a rat's ass where the fault lies." said Snape in his usual irate manner. "Potter knew very well I had him booked for detention for the next month and a half and deliberately chose to attend yours as a way to get out of mine."

Umbridge turned her attention to Harry.

"Is this true Mr. Potter?" she asked.

Harry hesitated knowing it would make her believe this all the more. Snape had been surprised at how well the Gryffindor could go along with the lie, he was almost as good as a Slytherin...then again he was nearly sorted into the house save for begging the hat to place him in Gryffindor.

"Remember what we've learned Mr. Potter." said Umbridge becoming as cold as a frozen pond in an instant. "One must not tell lies."

"I-Yes." replied Harry putting on his now infamous Gryffindor speech. "S-Snape hates me and has set out to make my life hell since I first arrived...I thought that I could get away from him."

"Well." said Umbridge delighted to have part in Harry Potter's suffering. "You thought wrong...you may take him Professor Snape...no doubt you'll have something a little more appropriate in mind for the boy...given your history."

Snape simply glared at them both with rage behind his obsidian eyes.

"Get moving Potter." spat Snape in a near on dangerous growl.

Harry didn't have to be told twice noting the tone Snape spoke in. Both the wizards left Umbridge and Snape escorted Potter down to the Slytherin dungeons his massive pale hand gripping his agonized hand were the blood quill left it's mark in his flesh. Snape walked at speedy pace. The wolf in him was raging and the images of his abusive father beating him into a bloodied heap upon the kitchen floor came at him in various flashes.

Snape had been so angry by the time they reached his private quarters that he could hardly breath and spoke in short aggressive sentences.

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Snape's Quarters, Slytherin Dungeons, Hogwarts...

Harry watched his Potions Professor struggle with himself before he gripped the stone wall viciously. His heart was racing and his blood boiling in his veins as the images seemed to intensify. The green eyed wizard had been quite stunned by what had just witnessed.

"Her Potter." growled Snape clawing at the wall. "No one touches Her Potter."

The boy had misheard him believing the Potions Master to be saying his name with what little Snape said coming out as: "Harry Potter."

"No one touches Harry Potter."

It was strange that Snape seemed to care about him at all. Before all this he would have suggested that Umbridge and Snape would have been buddies if not best buddies when it came to inflicting punishment upon him of all people. Now he was utterly confused.

Snape regained enough of his composure to think of his next course of action.

"Sit Potter." he growled.

Harry did as he was told without question. Snape inspected his hand with an arched eyebrow touching the boy gingerly careful as not to cause too much pain.

"Blood quill marks?" said Snape proving just how well versed he was in The Dark Arts. "This one is very old, almost six centuries old...will leave a nasty set of scars."

The dour wizard made his way back toward his private shelves and reappeared with a few potions in his arms. One Harry knew was for healing and the other two were a mystery.

"Pain Potion and Invisibility Potion." said Snape explaining the orange and almost white golden phial. "Take this for future bouts of pain should hit you about midnight if I recall correctly...and of course you know what invisibility potion is for seeing as you're so fond of that damned cloak of yours...a pity you don't have it with you now...use this to get back without drawing attention to yourself."

Harry took all this in still rather surprised that Snape of all people was helping him.

"Don't look so surprised Potter." said Snape in a casual tone. "It seems that we have a common enemy...I hate the toad faced bitch more than your father and godfather put together...any chance to out do her is mine for the taking."

The green eyed Gryffindor couldn't believe it, but he was actually smiling.

Snape broke the amused moment and reverted back to his usual self.

"Go on get the hell out of here, Potter." he said. "And if word of this gets out...your precious little house won't see a house cup for the next century."

Harry simply smiled and put away the potions Snape had given him.

"T-Thank you sir." he said meaningfully.

Snape rolled his eyes.

"No need to get sentimental Potter." he replied waving his hand dismissively.

Harry left the room with a warm smile on his face. Snape made his way over to his stash of fire whiskey. He poured himself a drink and sighed. This was not how he saw this year going. Helping Harry Potter, Salazar would turn over in his grave if he knew a Slytherin came to the rescue of a Gryffindor from another Slytherin.

"Could I get any more pathetic?" he asked aloud to no one in particular as he sank into his favorite arm chair by the fireplace.

The images of his father and life back at Spinner's End still playing over in his mind.

No one should have to go through something so cruel.

Not even if that someone had been Harry Potter.