Author's Note: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters. I am in no way affiliated with J.K. Rowling or WB.
Harry Potter and Severus Snape. Mentions of Harry/Ginny.
It had been years since Harry had come to the Hogs Head. He had come today simply out of desperation. He had needed to get away from his head. In his head, Harry had been dealing with a lot. This included his failed marriage to Ginny Weasley-Potter. They had three children together; Albus, James, and Lily. They were all fine and well, but it was Harry who had been left to sort out his feelings. He loved his children, and he did love his wife. However, Harry's sexuality had always come into play. He wasn't sure whether Ginny had known when they married that he liked men, but either way they married. And it wasn't until Harry caught Ginny with Blaise Zabini that Harry realized they were both extremely unhappy. Upon finding out, he had left Ginny; providing for their children but living in the vacant space above George's shop. It was messy; but everyone knew what Ginny had done. No one hated Harry. They all knew what kind of mess he and Ginny had gone through; all head their tongues in favor of both their wishes.
There was no bad blood between anyone. And that cheered Harry up. But regardless, he knew there was no 'staying together' after she'd cheated on him. Blaise wasn't even Ginny's type; Harry knew that. He was simply the first single guy who had shown any interest in her. It was partly Harry's fault. Now that all of his children were in Hogwarts, Harry had put all his time and effort into work; leaving Ginny to care for the rest of the things he was putting off. He spent little time with Ginny; the occasional night perhaps, but nothing of note.
Harry picked up the glass of firewhiskey and downed the half-a-glass left. He sighed and tipped his cup towards the bartender, requesting more. Presented with another glass of firewhiskey (and the galleon he owed chipped into the bartender's hand), Harry drank and sloshed the firewhiskey as he set the glass down. Sighing, he wiped at his mouth (in a drunken motion) and looked around. The only person in the pub left was an unsightly witch with quite the sneer on her face. She moved closer. "Fancy a deal?" She asked her voice hoarse. Harry shrugged. "What do you have in mind?" He asked, trying to remember what the pair was talking about.
"I was thinking you'd fancy one of my potions. You are Harry Potter, yes?" She asked and he nodded. He had seen this woman somewhere; where though he wasn't sure. Was it at the Ministry? That must be it, he decided. She tried to smile a bit, but the sneer was still present. "I have several you'd like, being that your marriage failed." She grinned. She gave him two bottles. "A galleon and seven knuts." She said, nodding. "I'll give you both. But be sure you don't mix the two. The first is a dream potion. You'll find that it will give you a dream that will help you realize your direction and your deepest wishes. The second is one that will give you whatever your heart desires. But it only works for a brief period of time."
He pulled his money bag from his pocket and counted out a galleon and seven knuts and handed the witch the money. He stood, draining the rest of his firewhiskey. He nodded towards the witch as she warned him again not to mix the potions. He shrugged and walked outside, then disapparated to the flat above George's store. He sat down on the couch, looking at the potions. He couldn't remember exactly what the witch had told him they did; nor could he remember who the witch was. In his drunken mind, the words mixed together. He took both bottles and poured the contents into a cup. The mixture made an ugly color; the first having been a pink and the second one a blue. He shrugged and downed the whole mixture. He immediately passed out.
He kept his eyes closed as he woke up, holding his head. In the foremost part of his mind, there was a square that looked vaguely like that of a muggle drive-in screen. It began playing a movie, one which Harry was the star. The movie showed the things that had happened since his birth; omitting one thing of note. Severus Snape hadn't died in his seventh year during the war. Harry noted it simply because of the love he had in his heart for Snape. As the movie continued though, Harry noticed one other thing. He and Ginny had never gotten married. At the end of the movie, it showed Harry at the head table in the Hogwarts dining hall. He was apparently staff.
Waking up, Harry moved slowly. He gingerly sat up as there was a knock on the door. Harry muttered, "Come in." And the door swung open. Looking up, Harry saw a peculiar sight – Severus Snape looking down his nose at Harry. He sneered. "Looks like you got a bit out of hand with the firewhiskey last night, Potter." He said and laughed. Harry stood up, hugging Severus. Snape looked offended and pulled away. "What is this Potter?" He asked, feeling very strange indeed. Harry blushed and sat back down. "I don't know." He muttered, looking down at his hands. "Very well. Since it's the weekend, I guess I shall take your guard duty today. However, tomorrow you will have to be rested." He said, wrapping his black robes around him as he turned. "S-snape?" Harry asked, frowning a little. "Yes, Potter?" Snape asked, without any indication that he even wanted to know what Harry had to say. "Where am I?" Harry asked, looking around. Snape smirked. "You should know by now Potter; you're in your room. And I expect that Headmistress McGonagall will be expecting you at dinner tonight." He nodded, tipping a potion into the basket on the table. "Remember to drink water with this potion. And this is the last time I shall help you out of your hangovers. You need to remember you work at a school. You remember; you used to attend." He smirked again, and it was at that point Harry realized how Severus had aged. Harry knew he'd aged without looking; he was the same age he had been yesterday. However, his life had changed drastically. Without another word, Snape turned and walked quickly from the room.
A while later, after the potion and many glasses of water, Harry sat on his bed, sipping water and reading from the book he'd apparently written: Fighting the Dark Lord and Winning: A tale of one man's bravery and stupidity. He'd written it three years before. At the end, he had been noble about taking up the position of teaching the Dark Arts at Hogwarts. Harry shook his head; he had all this notoriety (An Order of Merlin First Class, A member of several groups, a Quidditch World Cup trophy) but it appeared he'd never figured out love. He sighed; even this strange world he was living in was one in which love hadn't come. He decided to try and figure out what had happened that night. It wasn't every day that one was transported to an alternative universe; one in which he was single and a Hogwarts Professor.
The only break that Harry had taken since arriving in the library was to go to dinner. He followed the students (most of whom greeted him as Professor Potter) to the great hall. He sat in the empty chair next to Snape, and conversed with Hagrid and Professor Longbottom. (Neville seemed thrilled that Harry was interested in talking to him, apparently with time their friendship had faulted. Since his arrival three years ago to Hogwarts, Harry had talked to Neville about three times). Snape sometimes said something polite to Harry, and each time, Harry was surprised.
After dinner, Harry returned to the library. The books he'd laid out were still there. He poured over them until he came to the conclusion. The mixture of the two potions he'd taken had caused a reaction that no one but a man named Cornelius Cornwater had found; the combination created an alternate universe. It had erased what had once been and had catapulted him into a different life. This life indeed showed him his greatest desire; but missed one of the greatest aspects of life: love. Cornwater had to figure out his new life and had never learned to fully love someone again. Harry sighed as he closed all the books up and put them back before heading back to his quarters. There at the door, Harry saw Severus coming out of his own room. Severus was wearing a pair of sleep pants and a black shirt. Harry smiled and waved a bit, feeling less nervous. Severus blushed and grabbed a caldron outside his door. He nodded at Harry.
Feeling strange about the exchange, Harry went to his room. He sat on the bed, sipping some pumpkin juice and wondering what had just happened. He decided he was bored, and went two doors over, to Neville's room. He knocked and Neville greeted Harry. Once inside, he and Harry played a couple games of wizard's chess. Apparently, Neville had invited a few other teachers over. Luna Lovegood and Severus Snape also knocked on the door; both were pleasantly surprised to find Harry there. The four played Wizard's Chess and talked for a bit before Neville and Luna bugged off, supposedly tired. As Severus and Harry walked back towards their rooms, he told Harry that Neville and Luna were an item and probably wanted alone time. Harry however, wasn't keen to be alone again. He smiled as they stopped at his door. "Snape, would you like to come in?" Snape nodded. "Sure." He went inside and the two sat on Harry's couch. They talked about everything: friendships, relationships (both of which had to end the conversation rather quickly – they were both inadequate in that department), and school. Harry decided to tell Severus something he hadn't ever mentioned allowed to anyone.
Taking a deep breath, Harry looked at Snape and bit his lip. "Severus, I feel like we are colleagues. And I hope that this doesn't change your mind about being my… my friend." He said, looking down. "I… I am attracted to men." He finished, feeling himself sagging under the pressure and yet feeling empowered at the same time. Snape smiled, a reaction that Harry hadn't expected. "I know this Harry." He said, his voice rather kind. "We have had this talk." He said, meeting Harry's eyes with his own. "I don't know what's gotten into you. We have had this talk before." Smiling, Snape put his hand on Harry's leg. "You surely remember our kiss?" He asked, his eyebrow rose. Shaking his head, Harry frowned. "No." He must have missed that. "It's okay Harry." Snape moved his hand quickly and stood, moving towards the door. "No… don't go." Harry said, feeling his heart deflating some. "I… I'm sorry. I don't mean to…" He finished lamely. Snape turned, meeting the dark-haired man's eyes. He moved closer, pinning Harry up against the wall. Their lips met, Snape putting his hands on Harry's hips. The kiss deepened and Harry felt a familiar pull in his gut. He was aroused. Feeling the arousal through their clothes, Severus pulled away, smiling. "I see you remembered our chemistry." He said, before winking and turning away. As he left the room, Severus said "Goodnight Potter; have sweet dreams of me." He chuckled and the door shut, leaving Harry stunned but exhilarated.