Harry Potter gets smart and takes control - The Goblet

Chapter 80: Witch Weekly

Their day did not improve. In potions that afternoon, they got more interesting, if unpleasant news. Pansy stopped at their desk flanked by a snickering Tracy Davis and a smirking Malfoy, Crabb and Goyle.

"You might find something to interest you in there, Granger!" Pansy crowed tossing a magazine at Hermione, who caught it, looking startled, causing the Slytherins to snicker.

At that moment, the dungeon door opened. Snape stormed in, "sit down." He called effectively ending any conversation before it could start.

Malfoy and Crabbe went to their seats, but Goyle and Pansy lingered, mouthed the words, "sorry!" before hurrying off.

Harry glanced up at her, surprised, but she was ignoring him. He could sense her discomfort. She felt guilty and torn; her magic was shifting.

Interesting.

Harry glanced down at what Hermione been given. It was a witch weekly magazine. Harry quickly pulled his books out as Hermione hurriedly stuffed the magazine in her bag. Harry hoped that the small exchange was not noticed by Professor Snape.

"Pay attention!" Professor Snape snapped.

Harry flinched, his heart pounding and saw Professor Snape staring at them. Harry swore mentally. He'd been going so well too, and now Snape was mad with him again. Across the dungeon, Malfoy snickered and took the opportunity to flash POTTER STINKS across the dungeon at Harry.

"Pay attention," Professor Snape said again sharply, and Harry wondered if that last comment was directed at him or Malfoy.

At least he hadn't gotten detention.

*

Severus watched Potter as he worked on his wit sharpening potion with Granger. The boy's potions had really improved, he was easily top of the class, along with Granger, and the Malfoy brat now. The boy was starting to show hints of his mother's talent.

But the boy was flinching still. Not that Severus blamed him, he thought with a shudder. He'd seen the boys scars. He was all too familiar with those kinds of scars. It made his own back twitch in sympathy, just thinking about it.

Something would have to be done about it.

He sighed. The flinching had seemed to be getting better during the boy's detentions.' Now, however, the boy was jumping and flinching again. Not that Severus could blame him with everything going on, but.... he didn't think it was just those abominable articles in the paper, though they surely hadn't helped. He wasn't sure what had happened though. Something had spooked the boy before them. He just came into detention one evening jumpy and flighty all of a sudden and he was still twitchy, even several weeks later.

Admittedly it had started to calm down again before that ruddy article. Severus wanted to wring that reporter's neck! It was a pity he needed to stay out of Azkaban. Someone really ought to hogtie the bloody Bitch. She'd been a few years below them in school, but she'd been a notorious gossip and a nasty one at that.

Still, with the boy's detention's finished he'd need to come up with a way to actually talk to the boy. And with the boy's vast improvement in potions, Severus couldn't even realistically give him detention. He refused to frighten the boy by giving him another unnecessary unearned detention.

They needed to talk about occlumency and quite possibly, more importantly, he needed to talk to the boy and mend fences, to make sure the boy was okay. Or at least managing. The boy needed more people in his corner, and by the looks of it, the boy was starting to drown.

But they had to talk about occlumency before anything else could be risked, but Occlumency required trust. And the boy clearly didn't have any of that.