A/N: Sorry this update has been so long coming, a lot of stuff has been going on in my life and I got side tracked by a bunch of other stories but I have not given up on this mess of a thing I wrote. So I went back, re-read it all, checked the day-by-day timeline for book six and essentially reworked my timeline so it's going to be a bit different then I originally planned because I messed up the summer timeline so I have to improve a bit. Also, we are getting closer to figuring out what is going on and you get to see Stacy and Minnie in this chapter. I give you fair warning, the characters are going to be a little OOC in this chapter because I have to get back into it and get in the right mind set, just hold tight and we will have them back to rights shortly.
WARNINGS: Scene of a sexual nature between two men, lemon, talk of abuse, totally made up stuff about magic and wand lore, artistic license strikes again! Hope you enjoy.
Read and Review and I will try and get the next chapter up by next week.
NOT EDITED BECAUSE I WANTED TO GET THIS POSTED AS QUICK AS POSSIBLE, SORRY!
Chapter Fourteen
A Time to Learn
A single drip falls from the faucet and the ripples are faint, the sound soothing. Mist swirls in the air, the water is hot, steaming with the promise of pain relief. Oils and salts have been added, meant to aid in the healing of damaged bodies. The smells are heavy, sweet like flowers and herbs, the walls shine with built up moisture.
Two people, two lovers, rest lazily in the water of the tub, the thing having been transfigured to make room for both. The elder rests in front, his head relaxed against a shoulder as the younger gently runs a rag over the bruised but bare chest.
"Your ribs too?" the youth asks softly, lips coming to press against the top of a head of dark hair.
"Mm." is the only response he receives from his companion.
"How long will it take to get you back on your feet?"
"I'm already on my feet. With the right potions and rest, I shall be returned to my proper state in a matter of days."
"We shouldn't do anything until you are, I'm sorry I hit you. Your face looks a bit bashed up."
"That will fade as well. How is your shoulder?" the older man muses as his eyes crack open to gaze at the tiled walls of the tub.
"Sore, but alright. I think I broke a finger…"
"And...your backside?" the man asks softly.
"Fine" he says as he runs his lips down to the man's ear.
"Mm, good." the elder says, his voice laced with fatigue.
The silence continues, both exhausted, both aching and bruised, their bodies are broken, but their minds are awash in satisfaction and contentment.
"Where shall I sleep tonight, Professor?" the younger asks, though his tone is rather telling of his jesting.
"Where do you think?." the man says back, eyes closing again as he revels in the heat that is soothing his rather tormented body.
"You'll need room, I don't want to bother you while you rest."
"Don't be foolish. I think you are simply playing some child's game. You know where I expect you to be. Don't make me order you."
"Yes, Sir."
More silence, and another drop slips from the faucet, the mist continues to swirl around them and the smell presses into their senses, continues to create a calm and quiet environment that pulls them closer towards sleep.
"Do we have enough bandages?" the youth asks, hands running up and down the elders bare chest and stomach.
"Enough to last a lifetime." the man sighs out, the truth of the matter on why he is so well stocked in such things not lost on either of them.
"I'll see to you then...if you see to me." the youth offers and he kisses the man's temple, brings the rag up to gently run down the man's face.
"Yes." the man says softly, and then his head turns just a little, his breathing growing slower and the youth admires him for a long moment, green eyes running the length of his battered body before he places another kiss to the man's head and then comes to rest his chin there, arms tightening around shoulders as he breathes deep and lets out a trembling sigh.
PAGE BREAK
Severus and Harry take the next few days easy, cleaning each others wounds, using salve and potions to help expedite their recovery. Harry's shoulder heals quickly, his ripped knuckles only taking a day or so to return to their previous state.
Severus, however, takes much longer to heal. Harry near pampers him, bringing food to the man's room, changing his bandages, messaging his aching muscles, helping him to shower and checking on the man's experimental potions which are still sitting in the dark of his wardrobe resting.
For the life of him, the Professor cannot understand how they could go from what they were in the woods to what they are now. They still had not talked about it, though Harry had been so adamant. And with his birthday only two days away it seemed to him rather strange the young man had not broached the topic.
Still, Harry was attentive to his needs, took his requests and orders in stride. Though Severus was not one to lay in bed and moan about his situation, he could hardly get out of it as Harry was quick to press him back in.
"I am not an invalid, Potter! Stop treating me like-"
"The sooner you are better the sooner things can get back to normal, stop fighting me and just lay down!"
It was bitter work to lay there day after day and not rip his hair out, but Potter spoke the truth as the longer he allowed his body to rest the quicker he would in fact recover. Given Potter's pentiant for being a self-taught nurse, Severus had no double he would be fully recovered in only a few days.
"Did you write Mr. Weasley's mother, as I asked?" Severus had inquired from his place on the bed as Harry set a tray of food next to him and Harry shook his head.
"Yes, Sir."
"And?"
Harry shifted up onto the bed and began to eat his own lunch, "I told her I wouldn't be round this year, that I planned to remain here and work on my meditation and Occlumency. She understood, said she'd send my gifts and wished me well." Severus didn't say anything in response, his fingers, now mostly healed, taking up his own sandwich as dark eyes studied the boy before him.
On Wednesday Severus was well enough to rise, shower and dress on his own. His body still protested and there was a minor limp to his walk but he felt as if the worst of his recovery was behind him. All bruises now gone from view even though he could still feel several of the worse ones hidden below the surface of his skin.
He felt physically good, felt ready to resume his role as spy, guardian and now….lover. They'd not had sex again since their impromptu tumble after their fight. Their emotions and urges seemingly burnt out after such a turbulent argument. They'd not even touched each other in anyway that could be considered remotely sexual. In fact, save for a few rather chased kisses and sharing a bed they had done better in the last three days at refraining from their rather taboo relations then they had the past month.
In the morning they had breakfast and sipped on coffee while Severus browsed the paper and Harry read a book. It was only after about a half hour into their quiet morning that Harry asked a question.
"Sir, do you enchant the papers?" He asked as his eyes continued to look at the book in his lap.
"Why do you ask?" Severus inquired slowly, not even dropping the paper as Harry finally glanced up.
"When I was at the burrow….Hermione and Ron….they showed me a paper...I saw what happened to Millennium Bridge….I realized….none of your papers...they don't seem to be magic-"
"Because they aren't. This neighborhood is predominately muggles. If I want The Daily Prophet I have to send for it special. It would not do to have such a thing lying around, even if they are enchanted against muggle eyes. Most things I would wish to know are found just as easily in a muggle paper as the Daily Prophet, one simply needs to know where and how to look."
Harry didn't say anything to that, had nothing he could say honestly. The man didn't seem to be trying to hide anything and sounded about as honest as you could get. Still, Hermione had said some odd things about the Union of Opposites, things that completely went against what Severus had told him previously. Harry was reluctant to bring it up however as such a thing could start an argument between them. The fact their last argument had left his professor bedridden and Harry with a dislocated shoulder he thought it best to wait.
There were still things he wished to talk about though, in regards to their fight in the woods….the things Severus had said, they way he had acted. It had been terrifying, the man's raw magic something akin to overwhelming. It put things in perspective, how strong Severus really was, how gifted he was and how much he held back.
"Professor, can I ask you a question?" Harry said softly into the room.
"You just did, Potter." The man said from behind his paper and Harry smirked at the man's snark.
"In the woods….right before I ran off...how did you do that? I mean, project your magic? I could actually feel it, but it wasn't like a spell...it felt like it was just….energy...raw energy. Like it wasn't even magic to begin with."
Harry's eyes studied the paper that still resisted before his professor, and the silence that followed was telling of the man's thoughts on whether or not to explain. However, after a few more seconds Severus slowly lowered the paper, folded it and set it aside before he met Harry's eyes and said indifferently, "That's because it wasn't."
"How do you mean, Sir?" Harry asked, his fingers wrapping around the top edge of his book at he stared at his professor with interest.
Severus stared at him a moment, clever eyes studying him before he joined his hands together and crossed a leg over his knee, "Potter, do you know why witches and wizards are given a wand when they come of age and start school?"
Harry stared a moment and then shook his head no before Severus nodded, "I thought not. You don't seem the type to have much interest in wandlore."
"No, Sir." Harry said softly as he waited for an explanation.
"When a witch or wizard uses magic, they do so by using the energy within their own body. They guide it from their core, out their arm and into the wand, which always contains...what?" Severus quizzed softly and Harry thought about it a moment before he said, "A magical core."
"Correct. Five points to you." Severus says with a smirk and Harry rolled his eyes, "Unicorn hair, Dragon's heart string or a Phoenix feather…. All creatures that at their core are made up from the very essence of magic. The wand chooses the wizard, and while it's never been certain as to why, some theorists think it's because they can sense which wizard or witch will be the most compatible with their own core. The energy from your core must merge with the core of your wand perfectly or….like Mr. Finnigan, things do tend to go very wrong."
Harry digested that a moment before he swallowed and then asked, "So...what I was feeling from you, the waves of raw energy-"
"It was my magical energy coming through me without the filter of my wand."
"So….really….wandless magic is just the ability to utilize the magic inside you without the need for a funnel."
Severus inclined his head in agreement before saying, "Consider your wand a lighting rod and your energy the electricity. It will funnel it, refine it, make your magic more stable and focused. It can take years to learn how to hone your magic without the use of a wand, honestly, what you saw of me was based more in my rage than actual skill in the area. You've done the same, yourself."
"What? When?" Harry asks in confusion, "The night you had that rather atrocious nightmare, when you kissed me so boldly-" and Harry blushed and looked away while Severus continued, "Before I was able to wake you, your magical energy nearly destroyed your room. I do recall a chair leg sticking out of the wall and the window being shattered. It's not uncommon for magical children to have such incidents when they are young as well, thus why getting their wand and coming to school is so important. Without the proper training young witches and wizards would no doubt hurt or kill people by accident everyday."
"So...that was….just your magic reacting to your emotions….you really were mad…"
"Livid." Severus said in a deadpan, his eyes turning hard as he stared at the boy before him, Harry daring to glance up before he looked away in regret.
"I am sorry." Harry offered, gently closing the book and setting it aside before he ran a hand down his face and dropped his elbows to his knees.
"You wish to talk about it….yes?" Severus asked softly, his eyes still hard but his face remaining a neutral unresponsive mask.
Harry felt his heart clench at seeing him so, having hoped that once they had shared each other so intimately he would be more ready and willing to show the emotions that lay underneath. However, Harry had learned swiftly over the last month, you can never put the cart before the horse when it came to Professor Snape.
Harry simply nodded and rubbed his hands together slowly, nerves gently pooling in his belly though he knew he needed to get passed this.
"Very well. I suggest you start now, as later maybe too late."
"What?" Harry asked in confusion as Severus's hands tightened and he said, "Dinner?"
"Oh, right. Okay then, no pressure." Harry mused as he suddenly remembered it was in fact his birthday and they had made plans to go to London and visit Snape's favorite cafe before riding the train to get dinner.
It was still before noon but considering how their conversations had gone in the past, some bordering on four hours or more, Harry knew he should get down to it.
"Alright, well, you said somethings….when you...had me pinned down….and I want to know what you meant by them."
"Such as?" the man questioned slowly, his sharp eyes revealing nothing, "You mentioned someone….you said….you can't be like her, I was just curious Sir….who is, she?"
Harry glanced at him, studied the man's face but his professor revealed nothing as he continued to stare right back, seemingly unphased by the question.
"Perhaps it would be wise for me to answer that question after we go to dinner." Severus finally said, the amount of thought he had put into that response very telling of his reluctance to explain. Harry wanted to push but something told him that waiting would serve him better. So he simply nodded and said, "Okay. Then, the only other thing I want to talk to you about….is what you did to me….and what you might do to me in the future."
Finally Harry seemed to have said something that caught his professor off guard for the man gently cocked his head to the side and said rather softly, "You will need to be more specific."
Harry's heart was beating hard, his stomach twisting anxiously but he knew, they needed to talk about it, because honestly, after the life he had led thus far, having a relationship where fear was a daily problem... He just didn't want that, he had to know this man was not going to act against him like that in the future.
"I need to know, before this goes anything further, that any fights we have in the future….that you are going to be able to control yourself. You nearly broke my shoulder, used the knowledge you had about me...about what happened with Sirius against me….I understand that the situation was….difficult...and that this….relationship we've started is dangerous. But...someday….it won't be. I need to know that you can work through normal problems without….I don't want….I can't stay if I have to fear how you might react to any given thing. I love you, Professor, but I am worried that….we are too damaged….the things I said to you….the fact that I hit you….we both did things that….wouldn't be considered healthy in a normal relationship."
"Then you are merely worried about future instances of abuse." Severus said suddenly and though Harry was reluctant to do so, he nodded and met the man's eyes.
Severus stood then, slowly walking over to him and looking down as Harry gazed up before Severus raised a hand and gently cupped Harry's cheek, those green eyes locked firmly with his before he said softly, "I can promise that I'll never lay a hand on you again, consider that my word. But I will never be able to promise you that I can be anything more than what I already am."
Harry's lips parted as he asked softly, "And what are you, Professor?"
Severus swallowed, those dark brows slowly sliding up as he spoke softly, "Jealous, possessive, controlling, mean, spiteful….I am a bully….overly critical, even cruel. Those things….will never change. You'll have to either learn to accept that and help me to manage it, or let this and me go." and his thumb gently slide under Harry's eye, caressing his skin gently before he near whispered, "Could you, the chosen one, saviour of those neglected and suffering masses stand to share a bed with a man so set in hate and anger? Could you truly accept the fact that I would be more than willing to kill someone if they hurt you when I myself nearly broke your shoulder? How far, could you play along before you'd have to say 'no more?'"
As he stared into Severus's eyes, heard his soft tone and felt the man's hand caress his face al thoughts seemed to fade. It was a strange sensation, the man's words seeming to disappear as Harry's mind simply thought the word, Yes, Yes, Yes…. It felt odd, like it wasn't quite him, yet it was his thoughts…..but anything else faded and he couldn't stop staring into those eyes.
Harry felt like he was in a trance, felt like the room had shrunk away from them and that it was just he and Severus standing in the open space of nothingness. His eyes dilated wide, heart beating harder as heat washed over his face, "What magic is this-" Severus suddenly mused, looking down at him with confusion as Harry raised hands to cup the back of the man's head before pulling him down, Severus giving out a muttered, "Potter, wait-"
But Harry brought their lips together, gentle and tender and Severus's hands wrapped around him slowly, his mind fading from the conversation and turning towards something much more forbidden. Severus sunk down as Harry pulled, the young man laying back on the couch and Severus took the position on top.
As Harry kissed him fiercely Severus's hands came to the boy's pants, fingers yanking at the button and zip before yanking his pants and boxers down. His mind was on fire, his body already responding to the youth under him, "You want it now?" Severus suddenly asked, eyes taking in Harry's red cheeks and sparkling eyes.
"Now. Need you now." Harry said and his fingers fly down the man's tunic, unbuttoning it swiftly before yanking it open and pressing hands to the bare chest above him. The touch was electric and Severus, though focused on Harry, felt warning bells go off in the back of his mind.
Something's not right….focus….something….isn't…..right…..
But even as that voice sounded off in the back of his mind the most prominent thought in his head was winning out by volumes.
Take him now, don't wait, inside, get inside and feel….everything….feel everything, bite him, fuck him…. Do it hard…..
Severus shook his head, suddenly feeling more intoxicated than aroused though his length was stiff and burning hot.
Harry pressed up, bringing lips to his throat and Severus groaned out wickedly before he felt the boy's hand manage to slide down into his pants and grip his length. Severus jerked at the touch and felt his body seemingly release before the coffee mug on the table next to him exploded.
Both Harry and Severus jerked to look, panting heavily as they glanced around the room, "Was that you?" Harry asked and Severus suddenly pulled away and sat up, eyes continuing to glance around the room, "It was not me." Severus said softly.
"It wasn't me either." Harry said suddenly and then both were up and redressing. The clarity was suddenly stunning and Harry had to shake his head a few times and blink his eyes to try and shake away the rough transition.
Severu seemed no better, quickly rubbing his eyes with his free hand as he reached for his wand. Harry pulled his wand from his bag by the couch just as Severus pulled his from his robe and together they searched the main floor. They checked the few windows, the kitchen, out the back door and the front door before they finally decided to check upstairs. They moved slowly and silently, Harry following Severus, both with focused eyes and straining ears.
They searched Harry's room first, then the bathroom before ending the search in Severus's room, which was also empty. It wasn't until Severus finally took a breath and placed his wand back in his robe that Harry finally relaxed.
"What was it, Professor? Could you or I have done it without us realizing-"
"I doubt it. But, as there is no one else here and no signs of any…..Potter….check your trunk for your cloak." The man said suddenly, though his voice remained calm.
Harry's eyes grew wide before he moved back to his room with Severus hot on his heels, the young man dropping to his knees and flinging open the lid only to see his cloak reading inside where he left it. He touched it with his hand, even took it out and stood up with it before wrapping it around himself, "Am I invisible?" Harry asked.
"Yes." Severus said and Harry removed it, "Wasn't switched out then. Everything is where it should be. I don't understand-" and the young man looked to his professor whose brows furrowed with a slight hint of confusion before he said softly, "I need to make a call, please go to the kitchen and start lunch, I will join you shortly."
"Professor-" Harry started, the man turning back to look at him, "Do you….do you suppose it was...us….together….do you think we both could have done it?"
Severus stared at him a moment more before his eyes seemed to glance away and the thought ran through his mind readily before he glanced back, "To the kitchen. I will be down momentarily."
Harry nodded and reluctantly headed down, "Keep your wand with you, no funny business." Severus snapped as he entered his room and slammed the door behind him.
Harry just rolled his eyes and smirked before he descended the stairs.
PAGE BREAK
Severus preformed a fire call, as he did not want to have to send Harry to the burrow just so he could leave the house for a few minutes. If he wasn't in such a hurry he might have simply written a letter but as it were, he had little faith in how quickly the man might respond.
As far as Severus was aware Dumbledore should be in his office, should be in Hogwarts. He had not mentioned leaving again, so in theory, "Albus! Albus are you there?" he called out and after a few seconds he heard footsteps and then Dumbledore came into view, "Severus? My dear boy, isn't today Harry's birthday, I thought you two were-"
"Something's happened, Headmaster. I need to know if you have had any luck with that book. Have you found out anymore information?"
The old man came to kneel before his fireplace, gazing upon Severus's face with curiosity, "I have been rather busy, but I did find out a few particulars. First off, tell me, what has happened?"
Severus was reluctant to say, knowing he would have to share a certain amount of information with the man that he didn't want to, yet, Albus knew what Severus was trying to do, knew to expect certain levels of intimacy to occur between himself and the boy.
He swallowed and spoke with a straight face and serious voice, "Potter and I were….engaging in an intimate act when something overtook him. His eyes...changed….his very demeanor shifted. Prior to that we had been having a rather serious conversation, one that would not normally change so abruptly to something so...inappropriate….and…..and I felt it too Albus. It happened to me as well. It was as if I had been bewitched, near pressed into going further….the only thing that stopped us was Potter's coffee mug randomly shattering."
"Shattering?" the man parroted in confusion.
"Yes, shattering, as if someone had used a rather explosive spell on it. We checked the house from top to bottom, even made sure Potter's invisibility cloak was still in his trunk in his room. There was no one else there, and yet…"
Albus seemed to ruminate on this before he spoke softly as he leaned closer to the fire, "The new information I have managed to gleam in the short amount of time I have had would indicate that the Union of Opposites is not a standard spell or curse. It is, in essence, a true binding spell."
"What? In what way?" Severus questioned.
"The union of Opposites was used long ago to bind two persons of magic together, not in marriage, but in life."
"Explain." Severus ordered as his stomach shifted and his anxiety grew.
"Once they were bound, they were able to join their magical power together, and through each other become incredibly strong. Their souls were joined and one could no longer live without the other. They would become so incompessed and attached that they essentially became one person, unable to leave their counterpart for the rest of their lives."
"I don't understand, why would anyone-"
"Why does anyone do anything, Severus? For power, for control. You could just look at the effect such a Bind might have if it were to happen between someone like Voldemort and Myself….or….between two such as you and Harry. Once your magic joins together, you become more than what you were. The power of two."
Severus thinks on that a moment, wonders if that is what could be happening, only Severus can't really understand why Voldemort would perform a spell that could make Potter even more powerful, nor could he fathom how the demon would be able to enact it from so far away.
"As it were, I've little else that I have been able to uncover, such as the actual ritual needed to make such a Bind happen. Nor what type of persons would be needed."
"How do you mean?" Severus asked.
"Well, from what I could find it takes two very specific type of people. One of purity and one of sin. While that could be taken in a rather literal sense, I do not actually believe it is speaking of virtue and lust. There must be more, such a simple requirement would make the Binding spell much to easy to utilize and as I noticed during my research it was rarely performed at all, save for when two Wizards from opposing families were bound."
More for Severus to dwell on, more for him to aimlessly think about with no hope of finding a solution.
Dumbledore spoke again, "As for this feeling of being bewitched, are you certain it was not simply two lovers getting caught in the moment?"
Severus glared at the man and sneered, "Don't call him my lover. He is not...not….just….I am certain, this was not a random act of passion. Something happened to each of us, it was much too compelling to be real."
"If you are certain, then I would try and refrain from pursuing such moments of intimacy until we can find a solution, or the culprit."
Severus nodded slowly, agreeing that he and Harry should slow down, should wait until they could figure out what was the cause.
"Severus, one more thing while I have you."
"Yes, Headmaster?" Severus asked as he gazed up at him from the fireplace, "I will be going tonight, someplace rather worrisome. If I find I need assistance, I shall summon you with my Patronus charm. It would be best to deposit Harry at the Burrow, but given I am not sure when I shall return nor what you maybe doing, if you must bring young Harry with you, flu to your rooms in the dungeon and leave him there. Then come to me, understand?"
Severus grew confused, unable to think of what trouble the old man could possible get himself into that he would require such immediate actions to be taken, especially bringing a student to school over the summer. However, Severus gave up questioning Albus a long time ago and simply gave a reluctant nod and Dumbledore smiled gently, "Very good. I shall hope I have no need of you, but if I do, I look forward to seeing you in person. Have a wonderful afternoon and evening and give Harry my best."
"Most assuredly." Severus agreed and then he removed himself from the fireplace and stood. His mind was abuzz with thoughts and theories, his analytical reasoning trying to work out what could possibly be going on and how this could have anything to do with the Dark Lord. As he descended the stairs towards the kitchen he wondered if perhaps, there was a link between this Union of Opposites that Harry had inadvertently learned about, Voldemort's new plans for the boy and their seemingly sudden onslaught of feelings for each other.
That when Severus stopped, eyes wide and brow up as he stood in the doorway to the tiny kitchen and stared at Harry's back.
Our feelings have grown quickly, suddenly, have been aggressive and near irresistible….Potter is shy….awkward….he's not like that….he would never pursue...everything I know about the boy would indicate he would never advance first on someone like me, I'm too dominate….I am not….not his type….I am his anti-type. He would never….could never….love me. So why….how….after only a month…. Are we being pressed together….is this all….a lie?
His heart twisted and his stomach flipped at the very idea that Potter's feelings for him could be anything but genuine and as he stared at the boy who was busily preparing a meal Severus took a silent step back.
He took another as his eyes filled with dread, his emotions suddenly surging through him at the idea that it could all be a lie….a trap….something the Dark Lord had forced upon him the instant Severus had accepted this mission….
Seconds later he was crossing to a shelf and pulling from it a long thin book, a journal that had not been used in ages. He walked into the kitchen and sat down, summoning a pen before he turned to see Harry staring at him.
"Sit, Potter. I need your help." Severus spit out suddenly and the boy seemed taken aback but the harsh tone but complied nonetheless, turning off the gas of the stove and coming to sit across from him.
"What is it, Professor?"
Severus opened to a blank page and looked at Harry with narrow eyes, "I need you to think with me….I went to retreive you from your Aunt and Uncles on the 2nd of July. Nothing happened between us until the 5th of July, correct? That is when you kissed me for the first time, while I was sleeping."
Harry stared a moment and Severus barked out, "Well?"
The youth jumped at the tone and then nodded, "Yes, Sir."
"Good-"
"I kissed you twice that day, Sir. Once while you were dreaming and then when you put me to bed that night-"
"When you were drunk."
Harry nodded, confusion beginning to crawl firmly across his features, "Sir, what are you-"
"Silence, I need to focus, you need to help me remember everything that has happened since you arrived at my home. Now, the third time you kissed me what-"
"The next day?" Harry offered.
"Right, just after your nightmare." and Harry nodded, his hands coming to clasp together on the table.
"The next day, the very next day your friend is scooped up by her father and that night-"
Harry blushed as he recalled it, "We were drunk...I-"
"We know what happened, tell me, how did you feel prior to performing that action on me?"
"I was drunk, Sir. I was mostly focused on wanting to thank you-"
"But that? So suddenly….you'd only been here five days, Potter." and Severus saw the boy's face pale a little before he asked, "What are you getting at, Professor?"
"Look at it, Potter, focus, you've never shown any signs of such lurid behavior before you came here. I've seen you at school, saw your dreadful attempts during the Yule ball, you are never the aggressor, you are to soft for that-"
"S'cuse me?" Harry asked in utter bewilderment, "Don't take it personal, Potter. Think about it, think about who you are...have you ever behaved like this towards anyone….male or female?"
Harry went to speak but then stopped before he said softly, "No."
"Right, so you'd just start up this Don Juan behavior with the one man whom you've bickered and fought with for the last five years….you'd be the aggressor between the two of us?" Severus said as if it was obvious and Harry seemed to finally understand what the man was getting at.
"Are you...are you suggesting, Professor...that...all of this...everything that has happened….was planned? That...it isn't real?"
Severus was about to agree and explain when he was stopped by the look on the boy's face, utterly lost and devastated at such an idea.
"It feels….real...I love you...I know it...I feel it...you're….everything to me-"
Severus stared a moment before he felt his heart give another sharp jerk and the words made a heat stir in his stomach, "There….just there...what you just said...it's-"
"I don't believe it." Harry said suddenly as he stood and Severus stared in shock, "What is this? Just some way for you to shield yourself from the truth? You're looking for answers in all the wrong places. You don't want to accept the fact that I love you, don't want the burden of it. You think I am lying so you are making up excuses-"
"A month, Potter! You wanted to have sex with me within the first month of coming here...you claimed to love me in less than that! Think, Potter! This is not realistic! There is something going on and I think it had to do with that damned Binding spell your little friend told you about!"
This gave Harry pause, and he stared at the man as he rolled his lips together before he asked, "Did you lie to me." and he crossed his arms over his chest and Severus cocked his head to the side as he eyed the boy carefully.
"Did you lie about the Union of Opposites? Was there more to it then just some old marriage ceremony? Because Hermione told me something else-"
"Miss. Granger told you something else-"
"A bit." Harry said as he nodded his head and Severus now felt a tug of guilt and regret as he realized that he had just been caught in a lie, the first one since Harry had come here.
Severus took a deep breath, stood up himself and closed the journal before he said softly, "I thought it best not to worry you. Given the fact such information caused you to faint from shock, it seemed the lesser of two evils to-"
"To what, Professor? Keep me in the dark? Again? Like everyone always does, after I told you how much I hate it! After I explained how I'd rather know than not know! Now that you think our relationship is based on a binding spell and not actual care for each other!?" and Severus saw that Harry's anger was mounting, that his cheeks were growing red and his hands were fisting at his side.
"I've had no one my whole life until I came to Hogwarts, I've had nothing! I was never pampered, never wanted, never loved until I came to school! So forgive me if I come off as to sudden too soon when I finally meet someone who knows exactly how I feel! My twin in every way, even though we are so different…" and Harry stopped talking, stared at him a moment as the tears in his green eyes waited but didn't fall.
"My….twin flame-" he whispered suddenly and Severus looked at him in confusion, "What?" he asked. Severus watched as the young man before him seemed to think long and hard about something and then said softly, "Professor, can we go to London? I...I need to see someone and...I might be able to get us answers. It's still my birthday, after all...and I still want to spend it with you-" and Severus couldn't stop his brow from raising as he watched Harry come to stand before him.
"I...want to be mature enough to be able to accept your concerns, to hear you out. But...I won't lie. I want to tell you to shut up, to stop trying to come up with reasons to push me away. But...I can't not take this into consideration, not when I know how manipulative Voldemort can be. Still, even after you've told me your thoughts on the matter, I still want to do this. I want to feel you touch me." and Harry's hands slid up the man's chest, one coming to the back of his head the other to his shoulder.
Gently he pulled the man's head down towards his, Harry gently rubbing his lips against Severus's as he whispered, "Can't we just...allow ourselves a little happiness? Please?"
Severus's head swam with a small swirl of arousal, his stomach growing warm and his length twitching a little, the strange intoxicated and rather forceful pull from earlier not there. This felt real, felt natural and honest and true and so Severus pressed their lips together and kissed Harry tenderly. Their tongues twisted, their breaths shared and Severus ran his hands around Harry's waist, gently pulling up his shirt and running his hands up his back, soft smooth skin warm and pliant under his fingers and palms.
"Can we-"
"Yes." Severus said and he gently pressed Harry out of the kitchen and towards the couch. Harry slowly backed up willingly, allowing the man to guide him to the couch as they kissed and moaned.
Severus guided Harry down gently, their hands still exploring and bodies responding slowly to each other.
Severus pressed Harry's shirt up, his mouth abandoning lips to find a nipple which he then clamped onto and as his teeth nibbled Harry arched off the couch and gasped, "Touch me, please!"
Unable to resist such a plea, Severus was quick to pull at Harry's button and zip, freeing the young man's length and gripping it hard. Harry groaned again, his hands fisting into the man's hair and dragging Severus's head away from his nipple and back towards his mouth, "Please, I really want to….will you please...can we-" but Harry couldn't finish and his cheeks flooded with color and Severus felt his heart near explode at the sight of it.
That is the real Harry Potter, shy and easily embarrassed….wanting to ask me for sex and finding it so uncomfortable….this is the Harry I know….so shy and timid, yet brave and so foolish, I want him now, like this, while it's real-
And Severus yanks at the boy's pants, rips off his shoes, yanks at his own pants, not bothering to deal with the multitudes of buttons on his tunic as he grips the young man's arm and pulls him to turn over onto his stomach, pulling hips up as he presses Harry's head into the couch.
He's hard and ready, can see Harry's hands fist as his eyes close tightly and his blush increases, lips rolling together and Severus spits into his hand, wets the tip and first inch of his length before he presses it against the young man's entrance.
He moves slow, a hand wrapping around to grip Harry's length and slowly jerk him as Severus continued to enter. Harry moans and gasps, grits his teeth and gives a small yell as he is breached.
"Sh sh, relax, nice and slow-" Severus whispered, "Let me in, relax-" and this moment between them was incredibly tender, incredibly intimate and Severus felt his heartbeat pulsing harder, felt his mind buzz to life with chemicals and a hazy want for this young man, a true desire to keep this young man in his life, to dedicate himself to Harry and remain by his side, to keep him close and forever with him.
It was a romantic notion, near overpowering and in response his hands gripped those hips tighter and he pressed in the rest of the way, Harry letting out a rather soft cry at the desperate intrusion, "Yes." Severus groaned out and his body hummed and his eyes closed and he held himself rooted inside for several seconds before he started to move. His hand stroking Harry slowly as he pumped into him and at the sound of Harry's pants and small grunts his thought he might tumble over, but he held back, wanted to hear his partner come undone first, wanted to feel his body reach its peak while he was still inside.
"When I tell you, cum when I tell you-" Severus panted, "Yes…...Sir…." Harry managed out between thrusts and Severus picked up his pace, stroked Harry fast and the young man below him gripped the cushions of the couch, nails digging in as his face and the tips of his ears grew moe red, sweat broke out across his brow and goosebumps erupted over his flesh.
"Cum...now…" and Severus suddenly slammed into him and Harry fell over, yelling out as he did, Severus feeling that sweet ring of muscle clamp down around his length and he leaned over, pressed his chest to Harry's back and truly started to rut against him.
When he fell over he saw a white light, felt his whole body shiver and embrace the pleasure that swarmed through him as his teeth bit into the back of Harry's shoulder and he emptied his seed inside, shuttering and groaning as he sucked and bit down.
It was several minutes before Severus was able to press back up, before he could muster the strength to remove himself from Harry's body. When he did though Harry reached out a hand and pulled him back down, Severus complying and wrapping arms around his young charge.
"That was real, and you'll never convince me otherwise." Harry breathed out softly and Severus had to admit, had to embrace the reality, whatever had happened earlier, this moment between them had been different. So, despite Dumbledore's warning to abstain from such intimacies, Severus was going to embrace these small moments of perfect existance, of joined harmony.
Severus was going to disobey, was going to make the choice to do whatever he wanted, because for the first time in his life he felt the ability to experience something real and meaningful and he wasn't going to let it go to waste.
A/N: Sorry it took so long, and sorry this chapter is a little OOC but I have to get into the swing of this story. Have to feel it back out and get it under control. It ran away from me and I had a really hard time pressing it forward. It is a short chapter but hopefully the next one will be longer. Read and review if you would and I will try to have the next chapter up by next week.