Harry hated it when Snape called him "Potter." There was so much contempt and alienation in that word that it seemed to him as if Snape was deliberately protecting himself from him with that word, like a shield. Harry generally didn't like comparisons with his parents, and from Severus's lips, those comparisons sounded even more painful. During his school years, he responded with anger to the attacks of the Potions professor, defended James's honor, not even suspecting what history this man carried with him. Now he knew, and it only made his soul heavier. Harry could no longer hear - "a copy of his father", "his mother's eyes". He was no longer a boy who tried to understand who he was in this world. And yet his mind returned to this painful topic over and over again, because he understood that, looking at him, Snape saw in him the shadows of the past, and not himself. Lily's eyes, James's appearance, a shadow of memories… Harry unconsciously tried to prove to Severus, to himself, to those around him that he was not just their son. He was a man who had been through the war, had seen many deaths, was ready to give his life to save his close friends, had survived and not broken. But in Snape's eyes, it seemed to cost nothing. His gaze, as always, was cold when turned to Harry, always contemptuous. As if those minutes in the screaming hut had never happened. As if everything had remained at the same level. But at the most unexpected moment - when Harry hands over one of the ingredients for the potion, and lingers his gaze on the sharp features of the man, he catches something. Barely distinguishable. The gaze of onyx eyes meets Harry's. This gaze… It seems to Harry that they look into each other's eyes forever, but it is only a couple of seconds. And in these couple of seconds, he saw what he dreamed of seeing for the last couple of years, to see affection in these eyes. Not contempt. Not indifference. Snape saw Harry in him. The real one. Always saw… That's what made him keep his distance. He says: "Potter", so as not to say in a voice full of affection and warmth "Harry". It's easier that way. It's cruel, but it's necessary. He can't show weakness. Because recognizing Harry means breaking the protection in his wall that he's been building for years. He does this not only out of memory for Lily, but also out of respect for the life of the one he's protected for many years… He has no place in the life of the chosen one.