Come Home!
Location: Pancake House, Snape-Potter Flat
Time: Post night at Bart's and Narcissa's
Characters: Harry Potter, Severus Snape
Status: Semi-Private
Summary: Harry wants Severus to come home, but Sev's not so sure that's a good idea. cuz he's dumb!
Severus hadn't slept much the night before and was awake with the sun. He forced himself to wait a until a reasonable hour before calling Harry and asking him to meet him for Breakfast at the pancake.
Harry pulled his cell out of his pocket as carefully as he could an slid out of bed, leaving Bart's snoring body alone. He walked down the short hall to the bathroom and shut the door and locked it before answering. "Hello?"
"Morning, Harry. Were you able to sleep?"
"Yeah," Harry answered with a yawn. "You?"
"For a couple of hours. I was calling to see if you'd like to meet me for breakfast at the pancake house. We could talk?"
"All right. When?"
"Will 9:00 suit you?"
"What time is it now?" Harry asked, blearily rubbing his eyes as he fumbled for the faucets on the sink.
"Just after 8:00 . Did I wake you?"
"Yes, can we meet sooner?"
"Of course. I can meet you now if you'd like."
"Just let me shower first."
"I'll be waiting, take your time."
"Sev, your text from last night...."
"Yes?"
"Were you serious?"
Severus sighed. "Yes, Harry."
"I'll see you at 8:30 then."
"I'll be there." Severus disconnected the call.
Snape sat at a booth next to the large window, so he would see Harry when he arrived. He sipped his disgustingly weak tea and waited, hoping Harry didn't change his mind.
Harry's feet hit the pavement with a dull slap as he ran towards the pancake house. Two things keeping him going, one being the thought of air conditioning, and two being the fact that Snape would be there, unless he ran. He entered the building and skidded to a halt.
Severus had watched Harry go tearing past the window, and he was inside the door before Snape could get fully to his feet. And amused smile on his face, he waved Harry over to the booth.
Harry smiled faintly, still breathing heavily as he slid into the booth and let his forehead hit the cool tabletop. "Why's it so hot?"
"I imagine it has something to do with that fact that it's summer," Severus said, chuckling. "Why were you running?"
"Because I was running late," Harry answered into the tabletop.
Snape slid his water glass across the table to Harry. "Drink."
Harry stared at the cup for a lazy second before sitting up straight and drinking it down in five gulps. Sheepishly, he stared down into the empty glass. "Er.."
Severus held up a hand, getting the attention of the waitress. "More water," he said. It came out more like an order than a request.
Harry flushed and looked down at his place setting. Idly, he picked up his knife and spun the tip against the napkin.
"I made a mistake," Severus said quickly before he could censor himself.
"Yeah, you did," Harry said, not looking away from his knife.
"How badly?"
"Pretty badly."
"Irrovocably?"
"No." Harry set down his knife when the waitress came back.
"Hello, my name is Pam." She looked at Harry. "Can I get you something to drink hon? Coffee, tea, orange juice?"
Harry smiled pleasantly. "Coffee, please."
She nodded and looked at Snape. "Another cup of tea?"
"Yes, and try not to spare the actually 'tea' part of the beverage," he said drolly.
Pam rolled her eyes and grinned at Harry. "Bright ray of sunshine isn't he?" before walking away.
Harry sniggered at Snape's surly expression.
"What? The tea is weak and bland," he complained, frowning at his cup. "Do you know what you want to eat?"
"Uh, pancakes?" Harry offered, swiping a menu from behind the napkin holder
"As it is a pancake house, I would assume they could accommodate you." Severus reached for a menu himself and scanned the items. Something light, as his stomach still wasn't settled.
"You never know about that. They could run out of flour."
Severus snorted. "The crepes look edible."
"They've got banana pancakes!"
Severus smiled, amused. The waitress returned with coffee. She poured Harry a cup then pulled out a pad. "What can I get you gents this morning?"
Harry smiled, embarrassed, before ordering the banana pancakes he got excited about.
Severus ordered crepes with strawberries. The waitress left them alone in an awkward silence.
"So..."
"What do I need to do to fix this?" Severus asked, his finger tracing patterns in the grain of the table.
"Apologize."
"I thought I had done that."
Harry met his eyes. "Not to my face you haven't."
They stared at one another in an extended silence before Severus finally spoke. "I'm sorry."
Harry sighed. "So am I."
"I don't think you can understand what seeing...that...did to me," Severus said quietly.
"I think I can, yeah."
"I wish I could explain," he said tiredly. "I know you believe that I don't trust you, but the truth is, that I do."
Harry arched a brow. "Sure."
Severus stared at a spot just over Harry's shoulder. There was obviously no way to explain, to make him understand, and it was pointless to try. "I don't think I'll be going home for a few days," he said instead.
"Where are you going?" There was no masking the honest surprise in Harry's tone.
"Nowhere," he assured Harry. "If Narcissa has no objection, I'll stay with her for a few days. I can't wave a wand to fix this, to fix myself, and obviously I need to before we get married."
Harry gripped his coffee mug. "Sev..."
"I don't know what else to do. I can't go home and pretend nothing is wrong, that this never happened. Something has to change."
"
You can't change yourself."
Severus snorted. "Nobody else can either."
"No, you don't understand," Harry argued. "You can't go changing yourself."
"How can I not? Look what I've done to you. To us," he said, leaning his head against the back of the booth and closing his eyes.
Harry scrubbed his cheek with his palm. "It's not all entirely your fault."
"But I did the one thing I promised you I would never do and that was walk away," he said, opening his eyes and meeting Harry's gaze.
"That wasn't what hurt."
"Then what did?"
"The fact that you wouldn't talk about it at all."
"I was afraid I would hurt him if I stayed. I only allowed myself to get my wand back from House earlier this morning."
Harry gaped. "You stayed with Narcissa all night without it?"
"Things were bad enough, and I didn't want to do something foolish I could never be forgiven for," Snape answered honestly.
"Like what?"
"Like injure the boy."
"You wouldn't though."
"Harry, I was angry enough, and more than capable of making sure he never touched you again," Severus told him, his voice harder than he'd wanted it to bed.
"But you wouldn't do it," Harry repeated.
"I honestly don't know, Harry."
"You wouldn't."
"You think too well of me. There are very few things for which I would give up my wand. The fact that I did so should tell you something."
"It tells me a lot, but not why you feel you have to change."
"Because I've hurt you. Again," he said through clenched teeth. "I don't want to be the person who puts that look in your eyes."
"Which one is that because this one is annoyed."
The waitress returned with their plates of food and set them on the table. "Can I get you anything else?"
Severus shook his head and fiddled with his fork.
"I didn't know you liked strawberries."
"Really? I suppose we've never had reason to have them in the house. They're wonderful in crepes. Would you like to try them?"
Harry nodded and picked at the corner of Snape's crepes. He pulled off a strip of the super thin pancake along with a strawberry and popped it into his mouth. He wasn't sure how many boundaries he could push this morning, but he wasn't willing to let Severus spend another night away. Two was too many as it was.
"If you like them, we can try and make them ourselves one weekend," he said tenatively.
"You'd have to remember the strawberries when you go get food."
"Perhaps you had better come with me to remind me," he said, a small smile on his face.
"You might be horrified by the amount of chocolate products I demand you buy," Harry wanred.
"You think I don't know about the chocolate in your sock drawer?" Severus teased.
"No!"
Harry's face paled and then burned bright red.
Severus chuckled. "If you actually paid attention to your surroundings, you might have noticed that occasionally pieces are missing," he added, looking innocent as he took a bite of his food.
Harry laughed. "I guess you don't know about the stash down in the lab then do you."
Severus blinked. "What? There's chocolate in the lab? Where on earth have you kept it?"
Harry grinned. "Wouldn't you like to know."
"I tend to forget about your Slytherin side," Snape said, a hint of pride tinging his voice.
"Perhaps you shouldn't."
"So noted," Severus replied, raising his tea cup in salute. He sipped his tea, then stole a bite of food from Harry's plate.
Harry grinned. "When do you need to be in at work today?"
"10:00 at the latest. I should be there now, but I told the old bint I have a family emergency to deal with," Severus said, wiping his mouth on his napkin.
"You love her, don't lie," Harry teased.
"Yes, I sit in the Philosophy section and pine for her," Severus said, snorting.
"You do, I have seen the look of longing in your eyes many times."
"If you have, it's certainly not for her," he replied, rolling his eyes. "What are your plans today?"
"Nothing yet. Asking you again if you're coming home tonight is high on the list."
Severus frowned, tapping a finger on the table. "How about I come home after work, and we'll see how things go?" he said, knowing that if he went home and Harry was there, he wouldn't leave until he was thrown out.
"Promise?" Harry asked, trying to hunt out any insincerity.
He reached across the table and wrapped long fingers around Harry's hand. "You have my word," he promised, squeezing Harry's hand.
"Go to work, I'll pay the tab."
"I think not," Severus said, pulling his wallet out of his pocket. "It's customary for the person asking for the date to pay for said date," he said, setting some bills down on the table.
"Okay, you pay then."
Severus stood next to the table, looking at Harry thoughtfully. Finally, he leaned down and kissed him lightly on the cheek, leaving his lips pressed there for a few seconds. "I'll see you tonight," he said, his voice slightly uneven. Unable to look Harry in the eye after his slight loss of control, he turned and left the restaurant.
Harry twisted in the seat and watched as Severus Apparated from the front of the restaurant. He sunk back into his seat and stared at the food left on the table. He pushed aside his pancakes and reached for the remainder of Snape's crepes and ate the rest of them.
Time: Post night at Bart's and Narcissa's
Characters: Harry Potter, Severus Snape
Status: Semi-Private
Summary: Harry wants Severus to come home, but Sev's not so sure that's a good idea. cuz he's dumb!
Severus hadn't slept much the night before and was awake with the sun. He forced himself to wait a until a reasonable hour before calling Harry and asking him to meet him for Breakfast at the pancake.
Harry pulled his cell out of his pocket as carefully as he could an slid out of bed, leaving Bart's snoring body alone. He walked down the short hall to the bathroom and shut the door and locked it before answering. "Hello?"
"Morning, Harry. Were you able to sleep?"
"Yeah," Harry answered with a yawn. "You?"
"For a couple of hours. I was calling to see if you'd like to meet me for breakfast at the pancake house. We could talk?"
"All right. When?"
"Will 9:00 suit you?"
"What time is it now?" Harry asked, blearily rubbing his eyes as he fumbled for the faucets on the sink.
"Just after 8:00 . Did I wake you?"
"Yes, can we meet sooner?"
"Of course. I can meet you now if you'd like."
"Just let me shower first."
"I'll be waiting, take your time."
"Sev, your text from last night...."
"Yes?"
"Were you serious?"
Severus sighed. "Yes, Harry."
"I'll see you at 8:30 then."
"I'll be there." Severus disconnected the call.
Snape sat at a booth next to the large window, so he would see Harry when he arrived. He sipped his disgustingly weak tea and waited, hoping Harry didn't change his mind.
Harry's feet hit the pavement with a dull slap as he ran towards the pancake house. Two things keeping him going, one being the thought of air conditioning, and two being the fact that Snape would be there, unless he ran. He entered the building and skidded to a halt.
Severus had watched Harry go tearing past the window, and he was inside the door before Snape could get fully to his feet. And amused smile on his face, he waved Harry over to the booth.
Harry smiled faintly, still breathing heavily as he slid into the booth and let his forehead hit the cool tabletop. "Why's it so hot?"
"I imagine it has something to do with that fact that it's summer," Severus said, chuckling. "Why were you running?"
"Because I was running late," Harry answered into the tabletop.
Snape slid his water glass across the table to Harry. "Drink."
Harry stared at the cup for a lazy second before sitting up straight and drinking it down in five gulps. Sheepishly, he stared down into the empty glass. "Er.."
Severus held up a hand, getting the attention of the waitress. "More water," he said. It came out more like an order than a request.
Harry flushed and looked down at his place setting. Idly, he picked up his knife and spun the tip against the napkin.
"I made a mistake," Severus said quickly before he could censor himself.
"Yeah, you did," Harry said, not looking away from his knife.
"How badly?"
"Pretty badly."
"Irrovocably?"
"No." Harry set down his knife when the waitress came back.
"Hello, my name is Pam." She looked at Harry. "Can I get you something to drink hon? Coffee, tea, orange juice?"
Harry smiled pleasantly. "Coffee, please."
She nodded and looked at Snape. "Another cup of tea?"
"Yes, and try not to spare the actually 'tea' part of the beverage," he said drolly.
Pam rolled her eyes and grinned at Harry. "Bright ray of sunshine isn't he?" before walking away.
Harry sniggered at Snape's surly expression.
"What? The tea is weak and bland," he complained, frowning at his cup. "Do you know what you want to eat?"
"Uh, pancakes?" Harry offered, swiping a menu from behind the napkin holder
"As it is a pancake house, I would assume they could accommodate you." Severus reached for a menu himself and scanned the items. Something light, as his stomach still wasn't settled.
"You never know about that. They could run out of flour."
Severus snorted. "The crepes look edible."
"They've got banana pancakes!"
Severus smiled, amused. The waitress returned with coffee. She poured Harry a cup then pulled out a pad. "What can I get you gents this morning?"
Harry smiled, embarrassed, before ordering the banana pancakes he got excited about.
Severus ordered crepes with strawberries. The waitress left them alone in an awkward silence.
"So..."
"What do I need to do to fix this?" Severus asked, his finger tracing patterns in the grain of the table.
"Apologize."
"I thought I had done that."
Harry met his eyes. "Not to my face you haven't."
They stared at one another in an extended silence before Severus finally spoke. "I'm sorry."
Harry sighed. "So am I."
"I don't think you can understand what seeing...that...did to me," Severus said quietly.
"I think I can, yeah."
"I wish I could explain," he said tiredly. "I know you believe that I don't trust you, but the truth is, that I do."
Harry arched a brow. "Sure."
Severus stared at a spot just over Harry's shoulder. There was obviously no way to explain, to make him understand, and it was pointless to try. "I don't think I'll be going home for a few days," he said instead.
"Where are you going?" There was no masking the honest surprise in Harry's tone.
"Nowhere," he assured Harry. "If Narcissa has no objection, I'll stay with her for a few days. I can't wave a wand to fix this, to fix myself, and obviously I need to before we get married."
Harry gripped his coffee mug. "Sev..."
"I don't know what else to do. I can't go home and pretend nothing is wrong, that this never happened. Something has to change."
"
You can't change yourself."
Severus snorted. "Nobody else can either."
"No, you don't understand," Harry argued. "You can't go changing yourself."
"How can I not? Look what I've done to you. To us," he said, leaning his head against the back of the booth and closing his eyes.
Harry scrubbed his cheek with his palm. "It's not all entirely your fault."
"But I did the one thing I promised you I would never do and that was walk away," he said, opening his eyes and meeting Harry's gaze.
"That wasn't what hurt."
"Then what did?"
"The fact that you wouldn't talk about it at all."
"I was afraid I would hurt him if I stayed. I only allowed myself to get my wand back from House earlier this morning."
Harry gaped. "You stayed with Narcissa all night without it?"
"Things were bad enough, and I didn't want to do something foolish I could never be forgiven for," Snape answered honestly.
"Like what?"
"Like injure the boy."
"You wouldn't though."
"Harry, I was angry enough, and more than capable of making sure he never touched you again," Severus told him, his voice harder than he'd wanted it to bed.
"But you wouldn't do it," Harry repeated.
"I honestly don't know, Harry."
"You wouldn't."
"You think too well of me. There are very few things for which I would give up my wand. The fact that I did so should tell you something."
"It tells me a lot, but not why you feel you have to change."
"Because I've hurt you. Again," he said through clenched teeth. "I don't want to be the person who puts that look in your eyes."
"Which one is that because this one is annoyed."
The waitress returned with their plates of food and set them on the table. "Can I get you anything else?"
Severus shook his head and fiddled with his fork.
"I didn't know you liked strawberries."
"Really? I suppose we've never had reason to have them in the house. They're wonderful in crepes. Would you like to try them?"
Harry nodded and picked at the corner of Snape's crepes. He pulled off a strip of the super thin pancake along with a strawberry and popped it into his mouth. He wasn't sure how many boundaries he could push this morning, but he wasn't willing to let Severus spend another night away. Two was too many as it was.
"If you like them, we can try and make them ourselves one weekend," he said tenatively.
"You'd have to remember the strawberries when you go get food."
"Perhaps you had better come with me to remind me," he said, a small smile on his face.
"You might be horrified by the amount of chocolate products I demand you buy," Harry wanred.
"You think I don't know about the chocolate in your sock drawer?" Severus teased.
"No!"
Harry's face paled and then burned bright red.
Severus chuckled. "If you actually paid attention to your surroundings, you might have noticed that occasionally pieces are missing," he added, looking innocent as he took a bite of his food.
Harry laughed. "I guess you don't know about the stash down in the lab then do you."
Severus blinked. "What? There's chocolate in the lab? Where on earth have you kept it?"
Harry grinned. "Wouldn't you like to know."
"I tend to forget about your Slytherin side," Snape said, a hint of pride tinging his voice.
"Perhaps you shouldn't."
"So noted," Severus replied, raising his tea cup in salute. He sipped his tea, then stole a bite of food from Harry's plate.
Harry grinned. "When do you need to be in at work today?"
"10:00 at the latest. I should be there now, but I told the old bint I have a family emergency to deal with," Severus said, wiping his mouth on his napkin.
"You love her, don't lie," Harry teased.
"Yes, I sit in the Philosophy section and pine for her," Severus said, snorting.
"You do, I have seen the look of longing in your eyes many times."
"If you have, it's certainly not for her," he replied, rolling his eyes. "What are your plans today?"
"Nothing yet. Asking you again if you're coming home tonight is high on the list."
Severus frowned, tapping a finger on the table. "How about I come home after work, and we'll see how things go?" he said, knowing that if he went home and Harry was there, he wouldn't leave until he was thrown out.
"Promise?" Harry asked, trying to hunt out any insincerity.
He reached across the table and wrapped long fingers around Harry's hand. "You have my word," he promised, squeezing Harry's hand.
"Go to work, I'll pay the tab."
"I think not," Severus said, pulling his wallet out of his pocket. "It's customary for the person asking for the date to pay for said date," he said, setting some bills down on the table.
"Okay, you pay then."
Severus stood next to the table, looking at Harry thoughtfully. Finally, he leaned down and kissed him lightly on the cheek, leaving his lips pressed there for a few seconds. "I'll see you tonight," he said, his voice slightly uneven. Unable to look Harry in the eye after his slight loss of control, he turned and left the restaurant.
Harry twisted in the seat and watched as Severus Apparated from the front of the restaurant. He sunk back into his seat and stared at the food left on the table. He pushed aside his pancakes and reached for the remainder of Snape's crepes and ate the rest of them.