To Lay A Dragon
All of the delectable characters belong to JK Rowling.
Chapter 7
A/N: Hi everyone, The Mystery begins so Pay Attention! I hope you have been doing so. The characters and brief information about every character introduced is important to the plot. When the plot begins to unfold in the next chapter, those who have paid attention may just solve the mystery prior to its revelation. Ah you didn't realize there was a mystery to be solved! Well Fan fic doesn't allow us to put 3 categories and it is foremost Romance and Humor so I selected those. But you have the fun of a little mystery to solve along the way.
A warm thanks to those of you who reviewed, I really appreciated them.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Severus Snape had spent the five years of his prison sentence in relative seclusion from the other prisoners. Reforms to Azkaban included the creation of a large general hall where the prisoners were allowed to freely intermingle with other inmates during an eight hour period each day. One need only request an escort to the room by an Auror. The room had various magical games and an exercise area for the inmates to use as well as numerous rather hard couches for them to sit upon.
It was a vast improvement in conditions, but as Sirius had argued while the reforms were being implemented, while the changes might make one's stay more pleasant, they would also serve the purpose of providing social interaction. This would serve to assist the prisoners upon their release, facilitating readjustment to society. And it wasn't as if being locked away from the world for a number of years without one's wand could be described as enjoyable even under the most pleasant circumstances.
Snape had gone to the hall on the first day of his incarceration. Unfortunately, the only two people that hadn't looked at him with disgust when he walked in were Crabbe and Goyle. The thought of spending even one minute in their company was abhorrent to the ex-professor and he had ignored their greeting and left, never to return.
Connected to the hall was a huge library and inmates were allowed to carry books back to their cells for reading. Snape spent most of his time reading and writing at the small desk provided in his cell. The books had been carefully selected, appropriate for prisoners, but to his surprise he found many of them quite interesting.
For four years his monthly visits from Draco and the Aurors that came by to bring food or lead him to the showers were his only contacts with humanity. However, at the beginning of his fifth year of incarceration that had changed.
Snape remembered the day very clearly. An Auror had called him from his cell and led him to the visiting rooms. Draco had visited just two weeks before and Snape was a little mystified as to why the lad would return so soon. However, when the door was opened and he stepped inside he froze. It was not Draco, but rather one of the last persons he'd ever expect to see.
Granted, he expected to see no one, but to say he was shocked would be to put it lightly. Since then he'd had two regular visitors; Draco once a month and his new visitor who came with increasing frequency and presently nearly every other day.
Visits were not limited; however, it was rare to find a visitor who came on more than a weekly basis. This particular visitor certainly held the record for the number of visits to a single prisoner. Snape would never admit that he enjoyed the visits of his frequent guest, but some of his writings hinted otherwise.
When the Auror Guard called for Snape, two days following Draco's visit, he knew it must be his frequent visitor. He made no special ministrations to his appearance; his visitor seemed to like him just as he was. He merely arose and followed the guard to the visiting rooms.
'The boy is back,' the Auror murmured to Snape on their way to the room.
Snape glowered at the Auror's back and his demeanor sagged a little, but he continued into the room.
'Good Morning Professor,' Draco said when Snape plodded into the room with drudging steps.
Snape didn't sit down nor did he respond; his eyes had fallen upon the package Draco had brought with him.
Draco followed his eyes and lifted the box of chocolates toward Snape. The outer wrapping had been torn away by the Aurors during testing, but the lovely box they were in as well as the delicate wrapping containing each chocolate were still in place.
The candies were badly folded however; each piece had been unwrapped, tested and then refolded into its paper before being replaced. The Aurors hadn't taken much care, so the paper coverings were not nicely twisted as they had been, but they still looked quite nice.
Snape snatched the box from Draco and gave him a curt nod.
Draco supposed that meant 'thank you very much, I appreciate your taking the time to get these fine chocolates for me' though Snape said not a word. Upon reflection he realized it more likely meant, 'give me the chocolates and get the hell out', but he didn't press the issue.
Draco smiled at the ex-professor and watched as Snape scowled in response before turning and leaving the room.
Draco sighed. He really hadn't expected anything else, but really, he had taken the time to get the damn chocolates, the least he man could have done was verbally acknowledge what he'd done for him. He arose and called for the Auror to see him out. The familiar feeling of depression was beginning to crawl over him, but it was nothing that couldn't be fixed by an invigorating Quidditch practice followed by few stiff drinks.
Snape went back to his cell and had no more than set the chocolates on his desk when an Auror was once again calling for him indicating that he had another visitor, Snape knew for certain who it was. This time there could be no mistake; it was his frequent visitor. He looked at the chocolates, noting their disheveled appearance and with a snort he turned and quickly followed the Auror.
Snape's face was set in a permanent scowl, but the sneer of his lip that generally accompanied it lessened as the door to a visiting room was opened and the Auror stepped aside for him to enter.
Snape walked into the room with what anyone seeing him might have called eager steps, but then came to a sudden halt when his eyes fell on the room's occupant. It was not his regular visitor at all. The sneer returned to Snape's face, eight fold; loathing and rage eked from every pour of his being and his eyes were reduced to two thin slits of hatred.
'Snivelus,' Sirius Black said jovially, his smile wide and his eyes sparkling with mockery.
Snape opened his mouth, closed it again into a thin line then turned without a word and quickly and left the room, slamming the door behind him.
Sirius broke out in gales of laughter and it was a few moments before he could calm his mirth enough to rise and call for the Auror.
Sirius had been aching to do that for years and even though it had been even more sporting than he'd imagined, he wouldn't do it again. Only because looking at Snape filled him with revulsion. Oh how he hated that man and it rather delighted him to see his longstanding enemy locked up for his sins. The man deserved it!
Sirius' own incarceration in the past had been much worse – and he'd been innocent! He wondered if Snivelus realized that it had been Sirius who was principally responsible for making his stay so much nicer.
He hoped not.
The Auror led Sirius to another room where he joined Remus who was already in deep conversation with Peter Pettigrew's mother. She had been charged with assisting the death eaters by attempting to hide Peter for several days near the end of the war.
It was quite untrue, the woman hadn't even known her son was in her house; he had been in his animagus rat form nearly the entire time. It was Peter himself who had implicated his mother, albeit somewhat unwittingly. He had been spotted by Aurors on one of the few occasions he had transformed into a human to take food from the kitchen and eat it in the yard. The Aurors that found him had given chase, killing him in self defense and then arresting his mother under the assumption that she had been in complicity with him.
Both Remus and Sirius who had spent time in Peter's home as youngsters and had gotten to know Mrs. Pettigrew quite well and had become quite fond of her at that time. They believed her tale, knowing how deceitful their old friend, Peter had become in the end and had attempted to vouch for her, but to no avail. She was given a six year sentence and they made it a habit to visit her and bring her small gifts whenever they were in London.
Remus knew that Sirius had made a short visit to Snape; he'd tried to dissuade him from doing so, but he had to admit to himself that he hadn't tried all that hard. Remus had little liking for Snape, but it was not in his nature to taunt a man when he was down. Nonetheless, he knew the feud between Sirius and Severus went much deeper than any he had with the ex-professor. Severus and Sirius' hatred for one another was built on years of bad blood between them and at varying times in the past, both had had the upper hand.
Remus recalled how horribly Severus had treated Sirius when he'd escaped Azkaban and there was a part of him that was rather happy that Sirius had finally made up for it today – childish as the whole situation and his feelings were. He was certain from the flushed excitement on his love's face that he had been successful in causing Snape some level of humiliation. He gave his boyfriend a knowing glance when he arrived before turning back to Mrs. Pettigrew.
Severus Snape returned to his cell and sat at his desk. He began writing what would become a long, nasty treatise on Sirius Black, full of venom and profanities. He carefully went through each and everyone of Black's bad characteristics; in short, all of his characteristics. His hatred of the man knew no bounds; equaling Sirius' hatred for him. It had been one of the saddest days in Snape's life when he'd heard that the man had somehow cheated death and returned from his fall through the veil.
He'd hadn't actually seen Sirius in over seven years, but not seeing him for the rest of his life would have been far better as far as he was concerned. It irked him that Sirius no longer had the maniacal, sunken, one-step-from-death look he'd had the last time he'd set eyes on him, that was shortly after Black's release from Azkaban. Sirius' body had filled out again, his face had regained much of its youth and the wide smile had revealed sparkling white teeth – a large improvement over the yellowed and corroded molars he'd sported when last he'd seen him.
It made him begin drawing on memories from their days in Hogwarts together; Black had been oh so good looking then as well – on the outside. But it was just a façade for the offensive, vile, and foul nature that Sirius harbored on the inside as far as Snape was concerned. That went for his idiotic friends James Potter, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew as well (if he had stopped to think about it, he would have realized that Black would likely agree with his thoughts on Peter – but Snape's mind was lost in the past.)
Four against one. His treatise broadened in topic to include all four Marauders.
He knew exactly how jubilant Black had been sitting on the 'free' side of the visitor's room and watching Snape enter to find him. He'd heard the laughter as he left and the only thing that kept him from lashing out with rage was the thought that Black had undergone much worse when his Arse had sat in Azkaban for twelve years with the Dementors tormenting him.
The thought helped. A little. His furious writing helped a lot more.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It had been two days since Harry had spent the evening at Draco's house; something he recalled frequently and with growing feelings of lust. He was a little in wonder at just how much more he enjoyed relations with men in comparison with women.
He'd not decided to dump women from his life, or his bed altogether just yet, but he did find that his mind was quite singularly concentrated on the male physique over the last two days. Specifically the Slytherin's physique, but as that was the only one he'd known so intimately, it was not surprising to him.
Replay of the evening in his mind was enough to bring him to a full blown arousal and as embarrassing as that might be in certain situations, he couldn't seem to stop himself from thinking about it. Both in the practice changing room and at home with his guests, he'd found himself abruptly leaving the company of the others to either will his erection away or relieve himself.
Lust is a terrible thing at times.
Harry hadn't seen Draco since; he'd had practice in the day and then immediately returned home to spend time with Sirius and Remus. His guests had gone out both days while Harry was at practice, but were always there to greet him when he arrived home.
Thus Harry had been unable to go the Unicorn as usual or spend time with his friends. He didn't mind at all; his godfather and Remus only came to town about twice a year and he missed them horribly in between. But that fact didn't stop his mind from wandering quite irrationally off topic from time to time.
His constant memories of one of the best sexual encounters of his life had left him with a desire to see Draco in the flesh once more. He was quite certain that he had become somewhat infatuated with the Slytherin due to what they had happened between them. He was also quite certain that was why he couldn't seem to get Draco and his body parts off of his mind.
Harry had been with many young women and a couple of times he'd been with the same woman more than once. Those couple had been more enjoyable than the rest and he'd had the same lingering feelings about them as he had now for Draco. It drove him to repeat sex with the girls in the past and it was driving him to do the same with the Slytherin. He was certain that like with the girls, his infatuation would eventually wear off and he'd move on.
But his moving on would definitely include men this time around. His new found passion for a masculine body ran far too deep to ever give it up. At present, he found himself less interested in the female body than he had at any time in the past. That didn't bother him so much; after all, one was always more fascinated with the new than the old.
Sirius and Remus hadn't bought up the topic of Draco again and yet Harry almost wished they would. There was a strange desire within him to talk about the Slytherin, a natural part of the infatuation he supposed.
On the second evening, Harry went out for about two hours while his guests took a 'nap'. He was glad they were not about to ask where he was going because he couldn't say and he really did not wish to be evasive with them.
When he returned home from his little excursion, he was gratified to find them still – napping – and they didn't come down for another half an hour. They never knew he'd left. Harry invited Ron over and the four of them spent the evening eating and then talking together in the den.
Harry enjoyed the conversation, but the entire time his mind kept seeking ways to unobtrusively bring Draco into the conversation. The nagging need to speak about him continued to pester him, just as it had when he'd met especially nice young women in the past. He couldn't do so without it seeming out of place however, so he didn't.
By evening's end, Harry found that his pent up thoughts about Draco had left him in an excitable state. When Ron left and his guests retired, he decided that despite the time, he would go out. It was nearly midnight and he had practice the next morning, but he knew he'd never get to sleep with all of the churning and turning of thought going on in his head.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Draco had gone bar hopping alone after Quidditch practice. His depression began lifting after the first two stops, but his mind had begun to wander to the topic of one Harry Potter and that spurred on his continued desire to drink.
He moved to a third bar, and then a fourth, having a beer or two at each and it was well into the evening by the time he picked himself up and trundled to a fifth. He held his liquor better than most, but he was already a little fried by the time he reached the Mutton on Hand, a small non-descript little bar in the center of London that few frequented.
Draco pushed the gate-like swinging doors of the bar inward and slipped inside. He stopped a moment as his eyes adjusted to the dim lighting and was about to move toward the bar when two people sitting at a side table caught his attention.
He stood immobilized, staring at Harry and Ginny talking in an intimate fashion over a couple of drinks. Hadn't Harry told him he was 'all over that' when it came to Ginny? Yet the two of them seemed to be thick as thieves at the moment. Ginny was talking, her eyes caressing her drink and her fingers tapping the tall glass. Harry was looking at her intently, with what could only be called a caring expression.
Draco turned on his heel and quickly exited the bar. He stood a moment outside and wondered why seeing the couple together seemed to bother him. Then he grudgingly admitted to himself that the sight had more than bothered him…it left him feeling inexplicably pissed off.
By the time Draco finished his second beer at the next bar he entered, he'd convinced himself that there was no reason why Harry and Ginny shouldn't be talking together in a bar. Harry was very close to all of the Weasels and likely met with them all from time to time.
At night, in a little frequented hovel like the Mutton on Hand, in an obscure part of the city.
He carried himself off to the Unicorn for a little further convincing.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When Harry entered the Unicorn he didn't expect that any of the players would be present. The bar itself was open 24 hours a day, year round, but after midnight on the week nights, there were generally only a few hard core drunk wizards about.
Thus when his eyes fell upon Draco, tucked away alone at one of the side tables, his heart skipped a beat…or two. He walked a little more rapidly than was casual toward the table where the Slytherin sat nursing a beer and sat down across from him.
Draco looked up slowly and he frowned slightly when he spotted Harry's rather exuberant face before him. Draco was bombed. He'd been drinking since he'd returned from Azkaban, first with the players and then with just Blaise and finally alone. Blaise had tried to get him to leave, but he had refused vehemently, pissing Blaise off in the process. His best friend had stormed out, sending him to the devil in the process.
Harry realized at once that Draco had drunken himself into a stupor. The red-tinged eyes, slackened cheeks and slow movements were a nice clue.
'Been drinking a bit, eh?' Harry commented.
'You…suck,' Draco managed.
'Do you mean that figuratively or literally?' Harry asked, chuckling a little.
Draco grinned at his glass, 'that moronic, demon Blaise sent you didn't he?' Draco slurred. The words had been nearly indiscernible.
'As a matter of fact he did not.'
Draco looked up again slowly, pursing his lips, 'twizlethith…' he murmured just before his head slumped onto the table, his drink spilling in the process and forming a nice puddle about his face.
Harry moved immediately to Draco's side and lifted the lad's face from the table. It was dripping with beer and Harry quickly drew his wand and cast a drying spell. He hoisted Draco up from the his seat and pulled him into a supportive embrace before lifting his wand again and apparating.
Harry heard the barkeeper yelling as they disappeared, 'Hey! No apparating from the-' but the voice petered out and soon they were standing in front of Draco's home. Well, Harry was standing; Draco was sort of slumping, his entire weight supported by the Gryffindor.
Harry waved his wand at the door causing a rapping to sound upon it and shortly a little elf pulled the door open.
The elf frowned, 'wat's toward here?' he demanded, looking worriedly at his employer slumped in Harry's arms.
'He's passed out from drink is all,' Harry responded while moving into the house, 'I am going to get him to bed.'
The elf closed the door and then moved to help carry Draco upstairs.
'Well this is shameful,' the elf complained, 'he's never arrived in such shoddy shape before!' he looked at Harry with accusation in his eyes.
'I found him at the bar like this,' Harry said a little defensively.
The elf said nothing more and they managed to get Draco into his room and settle him onto the bed.
'I'll just go fix up a reviving potion,' the elf said, not waiting for Harry to respond, but scurrying quickly away.
Harry began loosening Draco's clothing and then stripping it away down to his boxers. When the elf returned, he assisted in holding Draco's mouth open so the elf could pour the liquid in and then Harry used his wand to work the lad's throat muscles. He laid Draco gently onto the pillow when it appeared he had downed the potion.
'There now,' remarked the elf, swinging the large potion bottle in his hand, 'he'll be right as rain before you can nab a mermaid from the lake.'
Harry frowned a little at the elf; nabbing a mermaid could take days…he imagined it must simply be a saying among the elves. It appeared that was so, Draco was already moving his head about the pillow and his eyelids began to flicker.
Suddenly Draco began coughing rather wildly and Harry lifted him to a sitting position.
'Um, a mite too much Gableroot,' mused the elf.
Draco's coughing died down, but the activity seemed to bring him back into the realm of the living. He frowned heavily at the elf then at Harry.
'What the hell is going on?' he demanded.
'Oye, and a bit too much of the Setooth Elixir as well, can right wipe out a memory if-'
Draco's roar cut the elf off, 'Minigini, shut up!' he cried at the elf and then he turned angry eyes toward Harry, 'what has happened?'
'You blacked out at the Unicorn, a bit too much to drink I presume,' Harry said rather nonchalantly.
Draco looked at him a moment before sighing and falling back onto his pillow. The anger had faded from his face and he threw a hand to his brow and began rubbing his temples.
'I can mix ye up a bit of Dagwood Elixir, that should get the old memory jogging again!' the elf declared, his tone joyous.
'My memory is perfectly sound, Minigini, please just get out.'
The elf's buoyancy died and his brow creased downward, 'that's all the thanks Minigini gets for draggin' ye back from the brink o' death? Spiteful little-'
'Just go, Minigini,' Draco's voice sounded tired.
Minigini stood fuming for a moment before turning to storm from the room. The little elf could be heard muttering something about ungrateful jackanapes as he departed.
Harry chuckled a little, 'well saving you from death was a bit of an exaggeration, but he did likely save you from a grand hangover in the morning.'
Draco sighed again, 'I suppose he did. I'll have to thank him for that later. However, I really had no desire to be brought out of my stupor tonight.'
Harry frowned a little, 'not doing so good then?' he asked.
'Just a shitty day,' Draco replied.
'Well we all have those.'
'Undoubtedly.' Draco looked at Harry a little musingly then, 'what were you doing at the bar, I don't recall you being there earlier.'
Harry shrugged, 'couldn't sleep. It's a good thing I couldn't considering the state I found you in when I arrived.'
Draco grinned slightly and narrowed his eyes, 'maybe so, but as I said, I was quite content.'
'Well I could hardly leave you there to contently drown in your liquor. You knocked your beer over when your head hit the table and then contentedly began breathing it up.'
Draco laughed, 'did I?'
Harry nodded chuckling a little as well.
'Well ta for the rescue.'
'Welcome,' Harry continued to chuckle, 'anything else I can do for you?'
Draco lifted his eyes and met Harry's green orbs with a rather unfathomable look. 'Not really,' Draco said finally.
Harry's trademark smile appeared and he leaned over and kissed Draco briefly, then pulled away again, his face scrunched up with disgust.
'You taste of potion,' he murmured, wiping his lips with the back of his hand.
Draco laughed a little, 'that's what you get for taking liberties.'
Harry's smile returned, 'well if you are alright now, I'll head back to the pit.'
Harry began to rise, but Draco's lust had begun bubbling up when Harry had kissed him. The kiss had also reinforced some of the thoughts he'd been trying to convince himself of earlier. He refused to allow himself to consider why he'd been trying to convince himself of anything where Harry, his fuckbuddy, was concerned.
Draco reached out and caught the Gryffindor's arm, 'stay?'
Harry's expression moved from mirth to something else and his eyes began to twinkle, 'well perhaps for a bit, but I have to return home early.'
Draco nodded and began looking about him.
'What?' Harry asked, noting Draco seemed to be searching for something.
'My wand.'
'Ah,' Harry reached down and found Draco's pants; he pulled the wooden stick from the weapons pocket and handed it over.
Draco aimed the wand at himself and sent a silent incantation.
Harry lifted his brows.
Draco shrugged, 'just a simple breathalyzer spell. Come, tell me what you think of this flavor.'
Harry chuckled again as he leaned slowly forward.
Please review, I'd love to hear your impression of the story so far. Thanks.
