It's Purely Carnal

Chapter 10

(AN: SO, would you guys rather have really short chapters a few times a week, or long chapters about once a week? Tell me what you think.

But THIS IS CHAPTER 10! I didn't think I'd have enough response to this trippy-dream-turned-story to bother getting this far, but I did, so yay for you guys! Everyone of you who reviewed is amazing, and I love you for it. Keep giving me your feedback – I welcome all of it. Review or PM me, I'll try to respond fairly quickly. So sorry this is slow, but I had a long week, and I wanted to make chapter 10 good!)

When Harry woke up, he smiled when he saw that he was up before Severus. That was a rare occurrence. He stretched.

He got out of bed, causing Severus to wake. He stretched and got out of bed too, shooting a look at the clock – not quite seven. It was early, but neither would be able to sleep again now. Harry walked over and stopped in front of the mirror, grinning. Severus, now clean and dressed, stood behind him.

"Is the new mark…satisfactory?"

Harry laughed. "Beautiful."

!*!*!*!

Severus watched the thin body stretch again, and his stomach flipped. Harry shot a look back at him, implying that he was trying to be as devilish as possible.

Snape growled slightly and kissed the smirk off Harry's face. When they broke apart, there was a grin on both their faces.

Severus touched the mark on Harry's neck, making him shiver. "Glad you like it. Now, you ought to dress."

Harry yawned, looking around for his wand. Severus picked it up off the table near the bed and handed it to him. "Thanks." Harry cast the now familiar cleaning spell on himself. "I'm sure Dumbledore will be showing up here any minute."

"At least it's Saturday."

Harry rooted around for his bag he kept in his lover's room. "He'll probably make me – and you – go back to classes on Monday."

"Most likely." Severus handed Harry the elusive bag.

"Thanks." He pulled out a rather wrinkled shirt – no robes on Saturdays. He frowned at it.

Severus cast a spell to remove the wrinkles, and pulled out a pair of pants and boxers for Harry.

Harry grinned sheepishly. "How did I survive without you?"

Severus smirked. "I imagine Ms. Granger had something to do with it."

"Probably."

!*!*!*!

Once he was dressed, Harry sighed. "So, I never really got the details of what happened to me last night."

Snape smirked again – it was an infuriating but attractive look. "You should be more specific – a lot of things happened to you last night."

Harry chuckled. "I mean with Ron and the others."

Snape's eyes darkened. "I can assure you I don't wish to talk about that."

"Come on, Sev! Someone's gonna tell me eventually; why can't you?"

Snape sneered. "It doesn't warrant mentioning."

Harry frowned.

!*!*!*!

Oh, the boy was being too damn adorable. "I refuse to talk about it."

"I'll just go ask Dumbledore." Harry actually started towards the door, but stopped when Severus sighed.

"Harry, there's little to tell."

"You don't have a clue what happened, do you?" Harry grinned. A slight flush of color appeared high on Severus's cheeks.

The damn boy. "Do you really think that Mr. Weasley and his friends were forthcoming with the details?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "I figured you'd walk in, wand blazing, and use Legilimency on them."

If only. "Dumbledore imagined I would be rather…harsher than necessary."

!*!*!*!

Harry chuckled at the image. "That would be interesting."

Severus nodded. "I admit that I was not in the clearest state of mind."

Harry dropped into an armchair. "Admit it, you were pissed off."

"I was angry."

As he had a right to be. Harry opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a knock at the door. He sighed. "Ten Galleons that it's Dumbledore."

"I am not foolish enough to take that wager. And you have enough Galleons; you don't need mine." Snape smirked and headed for the door.

!*!*!*!

Dumbledore stood outside Severus's room, questioning what was happening behind that door. Was it a mistake to show up this early?

He braced himself when the door opened, but relaxed when he saw both Severus and Harry out of bed and dressed. "Good morning, Severus, Harry." Harry grinned, and Severus nodded slightly. "Are you both ready to come and speak with Mr. Weasley?" Snape sneered. Dumbledore frowned at him. "Severus, are you going to be civil?"

Severus rolled his eyes – perhaps Harry was rubbing off on him just as much as Severus was on Harry. "I make no promises, Albus."

Harry grinned. "He will, Professor."

Albus chuckled at the insanity of this young man speaking with such assurance on the behavior of Severus Snape. "I'm sure you can control him better than I can."

Severus rolled his eyes again and swept out of the room. Harry laughed, and followed him out.

Dumbledore wondered why Harry was so happy, and then remembered that he'd spent the night with Severus – and judging by the mark on his neck, they'd both enjoyed it.

!*!*!*!

When all three of the men stepped into Dumbledore's office, Harry reached into Severus's pocket – shocking everyone else in the room – and took his wand. The Potions master made no objection, but judging by the tightening of his mouth, he was not happy.

Harry took a seat, glancing quickly towards Ron and the others. He saw Ron (obviously), Geoffrey Hooper, Cormac McLaggen (Harry didn't know much about Cormac, but he'd heard the stories like everyone else), and Kenneth Towler. It was a rather ragtag group of boys, and Harry couldn't help smiling.

!*!*!*!

Severus, on the other hand, scowled openly. If it wasn't for Harry taking his wand, he might have done something that he would have regretted – maybe.

!*!*!*!

Dumbledore took a seat behind his desk. He stared at the four boys, who were alternatively trying to make themselves as small as possible to hide from Severus, and look as threatening as possible to Harry. The effect was rather comical, and Dumbledore hid his smile behind his hand.

He then sighed. "Mr. Weasley, are you going to tell us what you did to Harry, or do I need to have Severus brew some Veritaserum?"

!*!*!*!

Severus scowled. "Veritaserum, Albus? Why not simply use Legilimency?" He raised an eyebrow at the boys, who paled at the thought of what the angry Potions master could do to their minds.

!*!*!*!

Dumbledore knew that Severus would more likely end up scrambling the boys' minds for spite than getting the information, so he shook his head. "Perhaps you ought to get the Veritaserum, Severus."

He scowled, but stood. He cast one more glare at the boys, Ron in particular, before swooping out of the room.

!*!*!*!

Harry grinned at the way Ron and his friends immediately became more confident when Severus left the room. They started glaring at him again, and only stopped when Dumbledore raised a hand.

Harry half-listened as Dumbledore talked to the other boys. They didn't say much, so Harry wasn't all that focused.

When Severus walked back in, he sat up straighter. He smiled at the pot of tea Severus conjured up, and watched him pour four cups and add the Veritaserum. He noticed that Dumbledore peered closely at the liquid, as if to make sure it wasn't poison. Severus smirked. Dumbledore nodded, and floated the cups over to each boy.

They all exchanged glances, and refused to drink. Dumbledore cocked his head. "I suppose we could have Severus convince you to drink it."

Even without his wand, Severus cut an impressive – and dangerous – figure. One by one, starting with Cormac, and leaving Ron for last, they each drank the cup in front of them.

Dumbledore nodded. Harry smiled slightly.

!*!*!*!

Severus glanced at Dumbledore. He took a step towards the boys. "Now we might be able to get some answers." The boys nodded furiously. "Now, tell me exactly what you did to Harry."

Ron, pale in contrast with his red hair, swallowed heavily. "We attacked him."

"With spells?" Severus looked with disdain at the boys. He didn't think they had enough magic to take Harry down in a fair fight.

"Partly. We also hit him a few times."

!*!*!*!

Harry listened as Ron explained to Severus the spells they'd used, and why they'd done it. It hurt Harry to hear that the attack had been directly related to Harry dating Severus, and more specifically, a man, even if he had known it already. Severus got visibly angrier as Ron related what had happened in a monotone. Harry was glad he'd taken his wand, even if he would have liked to see Severus attack his once-friend.

!*!*!*!

Eventually, Severus had heard enough. "Are any of you at all sorry?"

The four exchanged glances. It had become clear throughout the conversation that Ron was their leaders of sorts. When he shook his head, all the others did as well.

Severus scowled. "Albus, what do you suggest for these boys for punishment?"

!*!*!*!

Albus was lost. These boys needed punishment – that much was obvious – but nothing would fix the homophobia that seemed to be ingrained in their minds. He knew that their parents would have to be informed. As far as Albus knew, all of these boys came from tolerant families with no ties to the Dark Arts – there was nothing dangerous in these families. He knew that Molly and Arthur Weasley were unaware of Harry's sexual preferences – and that he was in love with Severus – but he was sure that they would react all right. They loved Harry, and he had a strong belief that they would be extremely angry with Ron. The strange thing was that these boys weren't necessarily against Severus and Harry; they were against Harry with another man.

!*!*!*!

Harry watched as Albus whispered something to Severus and left the room. Severus took a seat near Harry, and tried to both glare at the other boys and look at Harry.

"Albus is calling all of these boys' parents."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Is that his idea of a punishment?" When Harry looked over at Ron, he realized that it might be a good idea. Molly Weasley was one person he wouldn't want to make angry.

"It's the first step."

"Are they coming here?"

"Quite likely."

Ron and the other boys exchanged glances again.

!*!*!*!

They paled even more when Dumbledore came back into his office with all of their parents.

Each boy squirmed under his parents' glance. Molly Weasley looked especially angry, and Harry couldn't help smiling. He had the smile knocked off his face when Molly Weasley nearly hugged him to death, however.

Severus smirked, but found himself rather flustered when Molly hugged him as well. Harry laughed aloud.

When Molly released Severus, she took a threatening step towards Ron, who flinched. She scowled and took a seat next to her husband and Harry, patting his hand.

!*!*!*!

The other parents slowly took seats after less enthusiastic greetings for Severus and Harry. Albus kept a straight face, but inside he was rolling with laughter. The best way to punish teenage boys – call their mothers.

Albus gave the meeting over to Severus, after a quick warning not to be overly dramatic.

Severus's first response was a smirk, then he grinned slightly.

"Albus, am I ever dramatic?"

Harry didn't stop grinning for five minutes.

!*!*!*!

Dumbledore, along with the rest of the parents, were pleasantly surprised at how Harry handled himself. Even while listening to the details of how he was attacked because of whom he was dating, he managed to keep himself from getting angry. Dumbledore suspected it was because of Severus – his anger was certainly enough for one relationship. Albus would never have expected Harry to be the calm one, but when you measured him against Severus, he had to be.

After Albus finished giving the more specific details on what had happened, the parents were upset. Molly Weasley looked ready to murder her son, along with the rest of them. She continued to pat Harry's hand, despite his discomfort. Severus continued his glaring at the group of attackers, who shrank in their chairs from the combined force of the most terrifying teacher in school and the most terrifying mom in school.

Albus was at a loss. A simple detention wouldn't solve this problem, and he knew that it wouldn't satisfy Severus, Harry or the parents.

!*!*!*!

Suddenly, Molly snapped her fingers. "Harry, my dear, you must come stay with us for winter hols!"

Harry exchanged a quick glance with Severus. "Thanks, Mrs. Weasley, but I was planning on staying at Hogwarts – with Severus."

"He can come as well!" She turned and shot a killer look at Ron, who shut his mouth and sank back in his chair.

Severus raised an eyebrow. "Madam, perhaps you missed the part about your son attacking Harry…?"

"Nothing will happen to you two while I'm around, I promise!" She looked at Arthur, who nodded slightly. He looked shell-shocked.

Albus grinned. "I love it, Molly!"

Severus rolled his eyes. Of course Albus did. "This is not a punishment for Mr. Weasley and the others."

Harry heard Severus's implied 'it's a punishment for us,' and almost agreed. "Professor, I don't know-"

Albus interrupted him. "I'm sure these boys' parents will be punishing them, and I can assure you, Severus, that they will receive strict punishment here as well."

!*!*!*!

Severus took several steps towards the desk, and lowered his voice. "Albus, I don't wish to spend my winter holidays with the Weasley family."

"What else will you be doing, Severus?" Albus leaned back, content.

"I have classes to prepare for the new semester-"

"You've had your classes prepared since last year ended."

"What if I wished to go somewhere?"

"You know perfectly well that you and Harry would stay locked up in your room all holiday."

True. "Albus-"

"It's been decided, Severus. Harry needs interaction outside of you, you know."

Snape narrowed his eyes. "You know this will be a disaster."

Albus' eyes twinkled. "I'm sure Molly will give you and Harry a shared room."

Severus clenched his wand hand, and wished in vain that he could curse Albus and not be sent to Azkaban. He had the wandless power for it… "That is far beyond the point."

"Admit it, Severus – that was your first worry upon hearing the plan."

!*!*!*!

Harry had the impressive vantage point of being able to see – and hear – all of Severus and Dumbledore's conversation. He watched Severus's eyes get darker. Harry held on tighter to the wand.

When Severus grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the room, all Harry could do was laugh.

!*!*!*!

"Harry, I will end up cursing every member of that family if I have to spend my holiday with them."

"Severus, calm down. I'm sure it won't be that bad."

"I imagine that no one in that house will be happy with the two of us sharing a room, whatever Albus thinks, and I refuse to spend it separated."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Severus. Do you really think Dumbledore will change his mind? I'm not thrilled about this either, but unless you want to go on the run – and be chased by Aurors all holiday – we probably don't have much of a choice."

"I'm sure in a fair duel I could easily subdue Aurors without Dark curses."

"Aurors wouldn't fight fair. They're scared of you."

Severus smirked. "As they should be."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Right. Come on."

Severus briefly considered refusing to follow Harry back in, but the horror of what Harry would agree to just to spite him was staggering, so he went back in to keep what was left of his sanity.

!*!*!*!

After making sure that Harry and Severus wouldn't just Apparate away before winter hols, Albus let the families go. He didn't envy the position of those boys right now. There were some angry parents – especially Molly. Albus couldn't help laughing at the image of Harry and Severus staying with the Weasleys. He would have to drop in there sometime during hols…

(AN: Yeah, chapter 10! Hope you like it, sorry, it's so AU/has such a fucked up timeline, sorry it was late, sorry it wasn't ten thousand words, etc, etc… Just kidding, I love you all. Please review and rec, if you can. And I really don't know how I can reconcile the fact that it's nearly Christmas break in the story with what time I thought it was. It was far too good of an idea to pass up. And it will be brilliant. EDITED 7/8/2011 to fix Dumbledore's magic drinking abilities while being non-corporeal, and for a few odd sentences.)