(no subject)
In a campus cafeteria, Harry sat waiting for Hermione to emerge from a sea of students filing into the building looking for sustenance. He thought about the substandard school food and in contrast, wondered how Severus was doing with the cantankerous chef he was cooking with at that very moment.
"Harry!" Hermione called in greeting, delighted that her directions were adequate. "I see you found it OK," she gave him a kiss on the cheek before setting down her overstuffed bag, which looked heavy enough to pull her arm out of its socket. "I packed us a lunch. I'd hate for your first impression of Uni to be of the stuff they refer to as food." It was a wonder Freshman girls managed to gain the extra weight she'd heard all about, but then she was still living at home and not in a dorm room.
Harry helped her with the thermos of soup as she unwrapped sandwiches. "Sorry about last night." He quickly erected a Notice-Me-Not spell to allow them to speak freely.
"No, I’m sorry. I had no idea he didn't know. I thought with him going today to cook, that he'd have to have known about it at least the day before, to be sure his schedule was clear," she took a sip of soup and grimaced.
"It's alright, not your fault… much," he said with a wink. "Do you want me to warm it up some?" he asked, seeing her reaction to the soup. "It's a Hogsmeade weekend, and Albus made sure to sign up a certain Head of House to volunteer to chaperone.”
"Volunteer?" she laughed a moment, then recalled how things were when she left the previous night.
“Angry as he was, he was used to Albus doing things like that; Sev never guessed that we had set it up to provide an excuse for him."
"Are things okay between you?"
"Yeah, I guess. We made up and he feels bad for how he acted without getting the facts, but I don't think he realizes how much his 'I'm an adult' comment irks me," Harry took a rather forceful bite of his sandwich. "I think the only reason I didn't throw a fit and ask him to leave was because it was about me being an adult and that would have defeated the purpose. Maybe not, but then I haven't been an adult all that long," he said, ignoring the muttered 'if at all' he heard Hermione say into her hand, covered by an obviously fake cough and clearing of her throat.
"How was Ron last night? He seemed to take us kidding him pretty well," Harry wasn't sure how embarrassed Ron was about his drunken ‘rescue’, however unnecessary it was. Hermione once again covered her mouth so as to hide her mouthful while laughing.
"He's over it. You know Ron; he makes a bigger fuss out of things because we expect him to. He did confide in me that he probably wouldn't have taken it so well had he not been fully dressed, with you completely starkers."
"No?" he snickered, “I probably would have dropped into bed fully dressed like Ron, only I spilled a glass of firewhisky on me and stripped down before climbing into bed. More likely I spelled them off without thinking, since I can't find those clothes now," he blushed, thinking he'd better be careful what magic he performs under the influence. "I should have known it was Severus who helped out with that. You know, I have several pairs of Slytherin pajamas now," he thought about the scene Severus would have walked in on, with Neville asleep on the sofa, soft porn on the telly, and Harry in bed wearing nothing at all with Ron snuggled up tight behind him, fully dressed complete with shoes mucking up the bedsheets.
Hermione filled Harry in on recent events or lack thereof at the Burrow, along with speculations regarding the burgeoning relationship between Ginny and Neville. The Weasley extended family was so huge she was starting to get panicked about the guest list for their upcoming nuptials, though they weren't even to take place for quite some time yet.
"Not that I don't love wedding planning and all," he said sarcastically. "But would you hate me if I changed the subject a bit? There's something I wanted to run by you and I know you have a limited amount of time before your next class," he gave her a bright smile in response to the face she was making in addition to sticking out her tongue at him. "Yeah, that's mature," he said before sticking out his own tongue.
"Since my boring life is too tame compared to the wealthy, cavalier bachelor you are, please feel free to change the subject," she said with a wave of her hand.
"Good, now that's settled," he began with a winning smile just to annoy her, "Are you going to eat that?" he asked, pointing to the last sandwich and took it without waiting for a reply. "I've an idea about how to pay Kieran for all his time and efforts."
"Ron and I were talking about that," she interjected. "I know he spends a lot of time training you, but you also spend even more time learning, and no one is paying you for putting your life aside to rid the world of Voldemort. I know it sounds selfish, but we're all doing what we can, so why are you so bent on getting him paid? Hasn't Severus put years of his life in service? Most people don't even acknowledge him as on our side, much less thank him for his efforts."
"I know, but like you said, everyone does their part, and Severus' is just a lot bigger. I know he will never feel as if he's done enough. But, this is about Kieran. Training aside, he spent a great deal of time and effort trying to help me release the magic I was unable to access. I know it didn't actually work, but truth is, he spent not only a lot of time, but also gave up tons of opportunities to earn money because he needed to recover from healing me. His income took a huge dive during the treatments. Besides, the idea I have isn't exactly handing him over some gold. Um… how do you feel about getting naked?" he asked, and hoping she wouldn't hex him straight off, quickly went on to explain his plan.
"Excuse me?" she blurted out and would have had the attention of the surrounding students had the spell not protected their privacy.
"Actually, now that I think about it, you'd probably wear the white gown," he said more to himself than her. "How would you feel about HCR? Healing for Complete Rejuvenation? Remember the ads in the back of the ladies’ magazines?"
"Are you out of your mind?" her eyes bugged. "Do you have so little memory? That has been exposed as a wretched procedure, and often, harmful quackery! Even done well, the amount of recovery rarely justifies the stress and pain." Just the thought of Harry in such bad shape, mid-flashback, had her getting emotional.
"It would have been a lot easier to cope with if I'd taken precautions like Severus had suggested. You could do meditation and use some type of approved muscle relaxant before, with calming droughts before and after," he explained, hoping to sound encouraging. "I don't really expect it to be that much of a big deal for you, since I don't recall you having a lot of serious injuries in the past. It's not like Kieran would be trying to release stored magic or work on every little injury you'd ever gotten."
"Well," she hedged. "In the ads, they claim it only takes one visit, but it took you over a month," she didn't forget that after all that suffering, it wasn't even what had been the cure for releasing Harry’s stored magic.
"Had you um, had any big injuries as a kid?" he was worried what she might be concerned about and didn't want it to be a bad experience. "I'm sure getting petrified sucked, but I don't recall you getting hurt too much during school.”
They talked about how certain things improved with scar tissue gone, and how she'd had a lot of dental work done, and didn't want any of that changed. They went over a good story plan should they go through with it. Albus, the master-manipulator, wouldn't have any trouble telling Kieran about a muggle-born witch who was pressured by her pureblood soon-to-be-in-laws who wanted her to have a HCR treatment, appeasing them that she was at least healthy and fit to produce heirs. Of course, just to spite her in-laws, she decides not to go for the treatment with the charlatans she'd read about, but rather to go to someone they would consider 'less reputable', yet still a Healer referred to her by someone she could trust.
In the end, she didn't outright refuse, but agreed to do some homework. She would call a bunch of the Healers in the HCR ads, get answers regarding treatment, what to expect and how much it cost.
~'~'~'~
Severus Snape walked through Hogsmeade, looking dramatically different from his usual self, in a set of crisp white robes. He'd had the most enjoyable afternoon. He hadn't been sure what to expect from the chef he would study under, but was quite pleased. The chef himself had been unsure and had even admitted to planning on making it a difficult day for the 'cooker of medicines'. Once again Severus was reminded of the fact that his lover had an interesting affect on people. They either loved him or hated him. Perhaps the chef had felt both of these emotions at one time or another. Apparently, Harry had made a good impression on them during the Warding, which had changed the chef's attitude toward Severus dramatically. He was also a little embarrassed by the chef's reaction when he'd learned that Severus didn't work for a company similar to a muggle pharmaceutical, but in fact worked at a school, teaching and 'cooking medicines' for children. It was disconcerting to have a stranger praising him for the good work he does, unaware of the other work he has and still does, with some frequency.
Severus had been shocked by several things that came up while the two men took a break and spoke of the Warding in which Harry had participated. The chef hadn't met many of his daughter's future in-laws and was stunned to learn that magical folk lived as long as they did. He mentioned a kind old wizard he'd met, and referred to him as Albut Dumbludoure, the grandfather of Mr. Fawkes, who’d arrived in time to assist Fawkes’ return home.
All the time Harry told him about the precautions he'd taken regarding the Warding, he hadn't mentioned he also had Albus escort him safely home. 'I really do have to make it up to him,' he said to himself. He made a point of seeing Harry soon, plus noted he had the added benefit of the upcoming full moon to look forward to, when he knew he could count on Harry staying with him in his chambers.
While passing a few shops overrun with students, Severus thanked the deities he’d gotten out of chaperoning in favor of a great day in the kitchen. He smirked at the small deception that Albus and Harry had arranged to be sure he would have the time free of other demands. Deciding he was in no hurry to go back to Hogwarts, Severus Apparated to Diagon Alley. While there he picked up a few ingredients and several new spices he'd cooked with earlier. Passing by the Magical Menagerie shop, Severus stopped in to check on his latest newt order.
A large glass enclosure held several interesting snakes. He thought of Harry but remembered that he'd always ended up freeing snakes he'd been given in the past. Down near the floor was a small tank with two brightly coloured snakes sporting red, black, and yellow bands. A sign on the front read 'Scarlet Kingsnake - Not for sale'.
"Wow!" exclaimed a young boy next to Severus. "Look Dad, see the stripes, that means it's poisonous!" he called out, but didn't get his father's attention from across the store.
"They’re not poisonous," Severus corrected the child, and decided it was more fun when he could take points, too. "A coral snake, which is poisonous, has a yellow ring on either side of the red as well as the black. This snake is a mimic, which means he just wants to scare you into thinking he's dangerous," he watched the boy think that over for a moment, never taking his wide eyes off the snakes.
"So his best defense is to kinda lie and make himself look scarier then he really is?" said the boy, surprising Severus with his logic. "Like my stupid brother," the boy mumbled and ran off. "Dad, can I get a lizard?!" he called out, deciding he didn't like the snake so much after all. Severus looked up to see the father, a wizard he recalled from Hogwarts, but couldn't recollect what House he'd been in.
"How come yer not selling those ones?" the child asked the store clerk, pointing to the scarlet kingsnakes. Severus stood in line behind the wizard and the boy, waiting his turn.
"She'll be for sale after her season, but the male won't last much longer. He's missing a fang, can't catch the mice, but snubs his nose at the dead ones. He's got great colours, so I'll keep him alive long enough breed," explained the wizard behind the counter.
"That's mean! Can we get him Dad? That way he won't die." It was interesting to see the child change his tune towards the snake. 'Probably won’t be a Slytherin,' Severus said to himself.
"Son, if you took care of that snake, you would have to feed it mice. Are you willing to kill a little mouse once a week?" the father asked, shocking the child.
"Um… what do lizards eat?"
~'~'~
In the flat over Jennings Antique shop, Harry sat at the kitchen table in a clean set of clothes, his hair still somewhat damp from his earlier shower. It had been a vigorous workout with Kieran, but he felt great. Harry couldn't get the smile off his face, feeling very proud that he'd gotten the better of his trainer once or twice today. He summoned the salad dressing for his light meal. He knew Severus had spent the day cooking and was secretly hoping that he'd get to sample some of today's fare.
When a post owl tapped at the window, Harry was excited to see the restaurant label on the package. "Yes," he hissed happily while unpacking the food. He'd offered food and water to the owl before opening the window again to release it, only to find a black bird gliding in his direction. His first notion was that it was a crow, but as it flew closer, Harry saw that it was a bit different than he'd first thought, and was probably a raven.
Harry pointed his wand at the raven, checking its package for hexes before allowing it to enter. Once the bird was close enough, he could tell the box had been warded by Severus, and wasn't sure which package he was more excited about opening. Taking a close look at the bird he hadn't seen in a while, Harry decided to close the window before it could take off again.
"Hello, handsome," he greeted the bird, getting a squawk in reply. Giving the packages a once over, Harry asked the bird, "Which one should I open first?" the raven's head tilted to one side and back again. "You're no help," he complained and decided to open the one that was most likely to hold food.
"Well, I'm starving, so you win out," he said holding up the restaurant box. "Hungry?" he asked, getting no response from the bird. It seemed that there was another bird in the flat that had a different answer. Hedwig flew into the kitchen to investigate the new smells. Harry watched closely for her reaction to the raven and found it interesting that she reacted very little to the newcomer. "Shared a perch in the past?" he asked, getting no response from either bird.
With an appreciative look at the plateful, Harry dove into his dinner with relish. He hummed around his fork, his taste buds in a state of bliss. Some of the food could easily be eaten without cutlery, though it would be messy, and Harry was happy to fully indulge in the fun of finger-food in the privacy of his own home. With the next bite, his eyes closed, licking his lips, getting every last drop of sauce. He continued to eat in this manner until the raven cawed.
"Did you want me to open the window for you?" asked Harry as he was finishing. "I was hoping that if you stay too long, Severus will come looking for you," he said with a smirk and sucked the sauce from his fingers one by one, licking the web between each finger.
Harry cleaned the kitchen with an interesting mixture of magic and muggle style. Taking a small stack of mail, he sat back down at the table. In a very short time he penned a thank you note to a fan who had made a donation to a local charity in his name, replied to a short postcard from Gwen Jennings, and declined two proposals of marriage. He was pleased to see the raven hop easily onto his offered arm when they adjourned to the sitting room.
"Accio movie," Harry held up his hand, waiting for the DVD rental to arrive from the bedroom. "I should ask Severus what your name is," he said to himself and held up the shiny disc for the bird to examine. "Can you see yourself? See, told you, you’re handsome," he winked at the bird and set up the player, waiting for the movie to start.
The raven clicked its beak and flew to the back of the sofa and pecked at a loose thread.
"Don't eat the couch, it's not mine and I'm on borrowed time here as it is," he told the bird, getting no response, but hadn't expected one. "Hellooo," he crooned at the telly where there was a very sexy man with a deep tan and golden brown hair which was cut very short on the sides, but fuller on top, where it was almost spiky. He wore an overly tight pair of blue jeans and a muscle shirt so flimsy it looked like it could be torn away with very little effort. "I wish I could have been there when they painted those pants on," said Harry, then summoned a butterbeer.
He hummed appreciatively when said sexy man, who Harry now mentally referred to as 'buff boy' bent over to do Merlin only knew what. After about half a minute the doorbell rang. In all of that one minute, buff boy had managed to get a lot of grease on his hands and a small smudge on his face.
"It's John. Are you out back? " called the newcomer, who hadn't waited for the door to be answered. "How's it coming?" he asked, looking over what must have been a repair in progress.
"I'd like to be coming, but just can't get this hot enough," complained buff boy.
"We've never had trouble getting it hot enough before," John said breathily, and wiped the smudge of grease off buff boy, while licking his lips seductively. Harry didn't find John all that attractive, rather hairy and all, but was mesmerized by the size package he was sporting, if the bulge in his pants were anything to judge by. In the movie, John bent way over, turned one screw and deemed the repair complete. "I'm all finished here, but if you want, I'll stay around, just to be sure things heat up," he suggested and Harry groaned at the pathetic acting, with drivel for dialogue. But the bodies were entertaining.
Before long, buff boy was clean and peeling off his jeans while the water in the newly repaired hot tub heated up. Harry adjusted himself and settled further into the sofa, stretching out his legs.
"The water still has a little time to go, but the sun sure is hot," moaned buff boy, who began to slather sunscreen over his rippling muscles.
"Maybe you should help him with that, John," said Harry sounding very much like Severus' sarcastic self.
"Maybe I should help you with that, " said John, making Harry laugh at the predictability. Harry pulled off his shirt and mumbled his desire to have a bit of help himself. He watched the impromptu rubdown while rubbing his own washboard stomach, lazily dragging his fingertips up over a nipple before descending again to explore his well-muscled quads. Harry's breathing became heavier as buff boy slicked up his hard cock with copious amounts of sunscreen with one hand and nearly buried four fingers of his other hand in John's eager hole.
In contrast to the eager porn boys, Harry continued to tease himself, slowly caressing his inner thigh which still had a denim barrier. "Nicesss," he hissed when John's entrance relaxed enough for buff boy's ten inches to breach him. "Toy," Harry called out, startling the bird who gave up on picking a hole in his furniture. A medium sized dildo whizzed through the air into Harry's outstretched hand. It began to buzz when he slid the toy across his straining cock, causing him to shiver. He closed his eyes in concentration for a few seconds and his jeans seemed to evaporate right off then appeared folded on the coffee table. "Off," he said breathlessly, causing his silken pants to slowly move down his legs until he could pull out one leg, and didn't bother removing it from the other ankle. He'd yet to fist his cock, which stood at attention as he watched buff boy pull out in time to climax on John's hairy arse.
"I guess Severus isn't coming looking for you, huh?" Harry asked the bird, getting a 'caw' in reply. "Do you think he'd worry about my well-being if I sent him a note saying I need you? " He chuckled at his own joke and ignored the bird, in favor of lubricating the dildo. He teased his entrance with the toy and after minimal preparation slid it home. With his toy set at a low vibrate setting Harry went back to teasing himself. His still slick fingers fondled his sack and leisurely explored a vein pulsing on his shaft. Leaning up on one elbow, he could just reach a nipple to squeeze and twist with one hand while his other continued making his cock twitch with need.
On the telly, John's arse hole was stretched and drizzled with seed. Buff boy cleaned him off, licking up all traces of his release. Harry's eyes remained glued to the telly and caressed his pucker around the toy, imagining it was Sev's tongue. Drops of pre-come dripped from the head of his cock when Harry finally wrapped his full hand around his member and gave it a squeeze. He resisted bringing himself off too quickly and rubbed himself with long even stokes until he was close to coming.
"~Fuck me~," hissed Harry, eyes closed and for a moment he thought someone was doing just that as the dildo suddenly pulled out of him. With eyes now wide open, Harry looked up to find the raven gone. White-clad arms reached over the back of the sofa, lifting him up. "Took you long enough," Harry said with a smirk. Harry had felt sure it was Severus, some type of sense he couldn’t name, and was honored that Sev trusted him enough to reveal his Animagus form, especially since Sev had been adamant about not even admitting he had the ability.
Severus kissed him hard and turned him around, swiftly bending him over the back of the sofa. A hasty lubrication spell and he was buried balls deep.
'Gah' didn't easily translate into Parseltongue, but that didn't stop Harry from hissing out a stream of obscenities and many inarticulate sounds while Severus pounded into him with vigor.
"Bloody tease," grunted Severus with a particularly forceful thrust. "Licking and sucking on your spoon, fork and every finger, moaning like a Knockturn Alley whore over your pudding," Severus gripped Harry like a vice and tilted his hips to allow for a better angle. Pulling Harry back just as hard as he thrust in, he hit that glorious sweet spot with punishing force. Harry let out a scream when his climax overtook him, coming the moment Severus' cock hit its target. His body slumped over the back of the sofa, but Severus kept a hold on his hips to keep him from falling while he tended his own need.
"It's your own fault," he could hardly hear Harry's words muffled by the sofa cushions. "You wouldn't reveal yourself, so I assumed you wanted a show," he let out a groan when Severus hit his prostate again and silently questioned if he was being punished or rewarded for a job well done. "~The blood's rushing to my head~" he hissed and then clenched his arse around Severus and carefully tried the magic fingers spell, for the first time without a wand. Severus rocketed over the edge, coming with a resounding shout.
Definitely a reward.
Severus slumped over slightly, but quickly stood up when the pendant tucked under his wand holster alerted him that Harry was in pain. "Why didn't you tell me I was hurting you?" he asked and tried to recall if the sensation had just begun, or if he had not recognized the signal of pain while in the throes of passion.
"What?" Harry allowed Severus to pull him up, grateful what with all the blood that had rushed to his head. He so enjoyed it when Severus wrapped his long arms around him.
"Was I too rough?" he asked in concern.
"Hmm," Harry nuzzled his neck. "No way," he said with a contented sigh. "You know how great it is to feel well shagged.” Harry spoke against his neck, kissing his way up to Sev’s chin.
"Harry," warned Severus. He didn't want Harry to blow off pain as if it weren’t important whether he'd been hurt or not.
"Sev, I was too lost in the sensation of your great cock pounding into me to notice much else," he said with a grin. "Sometimes," he admitted. "When you really get into it, your grip is a little forceful, but damn it feels bloody good when you fuck me hard," he accentuated his words with a bite to his lover’s neck. He made sure to suck a little, leaving a mark that sadly wouldn't stay for long since it was obvious as Hell. "Maybe you should kiss it and make it better," Harry suggested, resting his hands where Severus had held his hips.
Severus leaned over and was surprised when Harry moved his hand aside to find prints where his own fingers had marked Harry's hips. He pulled his wand from its holster only to be stopped by a firm hand.
"Don't, I wanna see," Harry went to the bedroom where he had a full-length mirror. He admitted to himself that he was sore. "I think it's hot," he told Severus, who was standing in the doorway. Harry could see his lover was torn. Severus despised the thought of hurting his young lover, but admitted he'd always enjoyed marking Harry as his. "Accio," Harry summoned a potion vial and downed its contents.
Content that he could no longer sense any pain from his Harry, Severus joined him in front of the mirror and wrapped his arms around him. He pinched a nipple and then slid his hands down Harry's torso until his fingertips were covering the bruises. Their eyes met in the mirror as Severus kissed his shoulder and the back of his neck. Harry wriggled against him until Severus tightened his grip, pulling Harry back, mimicking their earlier positions. "I'll never get tired of fucking you," he purred against the shell of Harry's ear, "marking you…" he squeezed his hands again, enjoying the shivers he always managed to cause. "Mine," he latched onto Harry's neck, biting and sucking, adding a new bruise to claim Harry as his own.
Glancing up, he found Harry's eyes closed, his head tilted to one side, looking so content. ”Kiss me,” whispered Harry when he eventually opened his eyes.
Severus teased his lips with barely a touch before pulling away again, causing Harry to give chase, and pull him close. Lips pressed together for real this time, slow and gentle. Harry thought that if you could categorize kisses like dances, this would be a slow song, so slow that your feet didn't move, you simply swayed to the music, unaware of anything else.
Harry was only vaguely aware that the kiss had left his lips as he could still feel the sensations where Severus had continued. It appeared that Severus was going to kiss his bruises 'all better' after all, if the direction of his movement was an indication. Opening his eyes, Harry watched them in the mirror. He loved the sight of them from the viewpoint the mirror provided, both naked and pressed together.
It tickled when Severus licked the finger marks, causing him to shiver and hiss. The sounds Harry made only became more interesting when he felt Severus' tongue bypass his hardening member to go lower, suckling his balls.
"Gah. Sev, please," his legs quivered, "You can't bugger me while I'm practically standin' on my head and then… Oh, damn that feels good… please, I gotta sit down," his legs nearly gave out when Severus took him in his mouth and swallowed around his shaft.
"Hmm?" Severus had the audacity to look up innocently at Harry as he hummed, causing his young lover to grip his head and shoulders for balance.
"Bastard," panted Harry with a large grin. He yelped when Severus stood up, taking Harry with him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "I want the mirror so I can watch," he licked his lips and saw Severus take a quick look around, notice his wand was not in reach, so instead pick up the heavy floor mirror to place it where they could see it from the bed.
"Comfy? Anything else I can get you, a pillow perhaps?" Severus asked sarcastically, and began to crawl across the bed as if stalking his prey.
"You can suck my cock," he gave himself a squeeze, milking out a few drops of precome which were promptly licked off. Severus had enjoyed poking fun at him, but they both knew he was grateful to have his knees off the hard floor. He had a good view of Harry's face in the mirror, learning which moves caused his eyes to close; he loved the sight when Harry was close because he'd bite the side of his lip when he tried to hold out longer but was failing miserably. It was when Severus looked away and doubled his efforts that Harry looked down again to see his hardness disappear into Sev's hot mouth. It was that sight along with the sensations that sent him over the edge, one hand twisting the sheet, the other gripping long black hair, as he spilt his seed.
After a languid kiss to share Harry's flavour, Severus pulled the blankets over them and summoned his wand to place it under the pillow. He let out a contented sigh when Harry spooned up close, wrapping his arms around him.
Somewhere in the kitchen was an unopened box hissing ~stupid dead mouse~.
Tbc