Track 14

"No, no, no! Bloody hell, Potter, this isn't all that difficult!" Snape ranted as Harry butchered the lyrics for the umpteenth time. "Honestly, it's in English, for crying out loud! How can you not pronounce 'Smashing blue' correctly?"

"I'm sorry, sir," Harry mumbled, staring down at his hands in shame. He was trying - really, he was - but he was so nervous working with Snape that he just couldn't seem to get it right.

Snape sighed. "Fine, let's just...let's try it again." He handed Harry the lyrics. "Now, it's 'Whoa-oh, Smashing Blue', not 'Oooooh, Smarshing Blow'. Try to get it right this time, will you?"

"Yes, sir," Harry replied, looking down at the lyrics in his hand. "Whoa-oh, smashing blue, whoa-oh." He grinned. "I got it!"

"Bully for you, Potter," Snape replied, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "Now, can we move on to the actual Japanese?"

"Yes, sir," Harry replied, still grinning like an idiot.

"Good. Now, this next word is pronounced 'kah-wah-ee-tah'. Do you think you can manage that?"

Harry looked at the lyrics then took a deep breath. "'Kay-way-tah'." He looked up to see the man shaking his head, clearly frustrated.

"Weren't you listening, Potter? If you'd just listen when I pronounce it for you, we wouldn't be having this problem!"

"Sorry, sir," Harry mumbled again. He hated this almost as much as he hated singing. Here he was, making a complete and utter tit of himself in front of Snape, again, and all he could do was apologize. Damn it, why did it have to be so hard?

"Potter, focus," Snape commanded. "Now, listen carefully. It's 'kah-wah-ee-tah', not 'kay-way-tah'. 'Kah-wah-ee-tah'. Say it slowly first."

"'Kah'...'Kah-wah-ee-tah'," Harry repeated. Snape nodded in approval.

"Better. Now try to speed it up a bit."

"'Kah-wah-ee-tah'...'Quite-ah'," Harry said, then looked up at Snape, who had a small frown on his face.

"Close. Much better than your earlier attempt. Just try not to slur the syllables together like that. It's 'kawaita', not 'quite-ah'."

"'Kawaita'...like that?" Harry could have sworn he saw a tiny smile grace Snape's features, and he blushed.

"That will do," Snape replied indifferently, which Harry knew was high praise considering its source. "Now for the next word - 'tsumori'..."

"'Sumori'," Harry tried. Snape sighed.

"Not quite. If you would wait, I would explain that the first syllable is 'tsu', not 'su', and is pronounced differently. Now listen - 'tsu'. Not 'su', but 'tsu'."

"'Su'," Harry tried again, and Snape shook his head.

"No, no, no! 'Tsu'. Not 'su'. You have to start it with your tongue up against the back of your upper set of teeth. 'Tsu'."

Harry frowned, then tried again. "'Tsu'...is that it? 'Tsumori'." He grinned broadly when Snape nodded. He'd gotten it! "'Kawaita tsumori'," he tried. He laughed - he was finally getting it! "'Kawaita tsumori'!" he declared loudly, causing the other four people in the room to turn and stare at him. He turned back to his teacher only to see him covering his eyes with his hand.

"Are you quite through now?" Snape asked Harry, lowering his hand to glare at him. Harry blushed and nodded. "Good. Then we can move..."

"GARASU no BEDDO ni toraware no MOTION Tesaguri de shukujo wa kamikudaku..." Dean Thomas rattled off to the pair's left while Lupin looked on with a broad smile.

"That's excellent work, Dean. We'll have this song down in no time," he praised his student. Harry suddenly felt very stupid and inadequate.

"Excuse me," he mumbled, and headed for the door.

"Where do you think you're going, Mr. Potter? You're nowhere near done yet!" Snape called after him. Harry paused for a moment, then just shook his head and left without saying a word.

Sirius glared at Snape. "What the hell did you do to him?" he demanded.

Severus sneered. "Apparently, the great Harry Potter can't handle being surpassed by one of his inferiors," he retorted, crossing his arms across his chest.

Remus frowned. "But that doesn't make any sense, Severus. With the translation charm on him, he shouldn't be having any problems..." Seeing a look of guilt suddenly cross Snape's face, Remus realized what the problem was. "You never put the charm on him, did you?"

Snape turned away, refusing to meet the werewolf's eyes. "Perhaps I did forget...I am only human, after all..."

"You idiot!" Sirius raged while the two remaining students looked on. "How could you have forgotten the key component to this entire exercise?" He growled, then headed for the door. "I'm going after him..."

"No, Sirius," Remus spoke up, his eyes not leaving Snape. "Let Severus go after him." He gave Snape an expectant look.

"...Oh, very well," Severus said after a long pause and headed out the door in search of Harry.

Sirius gave his lover a wary look. "I hope you know what you're doing, Remus," he muttered. Remus just smiled sunnily at him before going back to work with Dean.

Harry had already made it to the nearest bathroom and had barricaded himself into a stall. "Kawaita tsumori, my arse," he growled as he threw a roll of toilet paper over the door. "I guess I really am just as stupid as Snape says...can't even pronounce the English part right...how pathetic..." He sat down on the toilet seat, resting his face in his hands. "It's no wonder he doesn't want to put up with me. I'm useless and pathetic, and I can't seem to do anything right..."

"Self-depreciation really doesn't suit you, Potter," a familiar silky baritone said from the other side of the door, and Harry froze.

"How long have you been standing there?" he asked quietly, not daring to move a muscle.

"Long enough," came the response. "Do you think you could come out of there? I prefer being able to see the person I'm speaking to."

Harry hesitated for a moment before unhooking the lock and slowly opening the door. Standing on the other side was Severus Snape, arms crossed and an unreadable expression on his face. Harry silently met his gaze as he stepped out of the stall.

"Lupin asked me to come find you," Severus began, averting his eyes. "Apparently, the reason you were having so much trouble was because I had...forgotten to place the translation charm on you before we began." He squirmed uncomfortably. "So, I guess...Ishouldapologize," he muttered, still not looking at Harry.

Harry got a sudden warm feeling with those words. He couldn't remember Snape actually apologizing, especially not to him. He smiled softly at his professor. "I'm sorry, too."

Severus didn't bother to ask what Harry was sorry for. "Are you ready to go back, then?" he asked instead, and Harry nodded. Without thinking, Severus held out his hand for Harry, who took it, and they left the bathroom together.