Title: The Art of Necromancy
Author: Artemis Luna Diana
E-Mail: artemislunadiana@yahoo.com
Rating: R
Pairing: Harry/Severus
Time: begins right after GoF
Summary: Harry returns to Hogwarts to spend the summer. Out of sheer boredom, he scours the library for books to read and stumbles across a book that will change his life…
Disclaimer: I own not a thing
WARNING!!!! THIS IS A SLASH STORY!!!! IF YOU DON'T LIKE SLASH OR THIS PARTICULAR PAIRING… LEAVE NOW!!!!
Chapter Nine: St. Mungo's
Harry sat eating breakfast in the kitchen listening to Dobby. It was rather upsetting to hear how Ron and Hermione had reacted. Dobby said they wandered the school, seemingly permanently lost. Harry quickly lost his appetite.
He left the kitchen and wandered down to Snape's quarters. He knocked briskly on the frame of the portrait. Two seconds later, he heard a crash and a muffled curse. Harry wondered if he should just open the portrait. He started to lift his hand to cast a spell when the portrait swung open to reveal the irritated occupant… two minutes after the crash.
Snape took one look at him and slammed the portrait shut.
Harry raised a brow. "Well," he said aloud. "Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning."
Harry knocked again.
"Go away!"
Harry stifled a laugh. In only a few days, Harry had discovered, to his ultimate surprise, that Severus Snape, bane of every Gryffindor, was N-O-T a morning person. Of course this meant that Harry had to wake him up early; it was the principle of the thing.
Harry knocked again, this time calling through the closed portrait. "Rise and shine, sleepyhead!"
The portrait was wrenched open again. "What do you want?" Snape asked slowly, enunciating every syllable in his anger.
Harry took the time to take in the view before responding. As Harry had just woken him, Snape was dressed only in a pair of loose pants. 'Probably thrown on so as not to abuse anyone's sensibilities by answering the door naked,' Harry mused. The lithe, lanky body usually hidden by his robes was bared to Harry's view. He licked his lips appreciatively and dragged his eyes from Snape's body to look the man in the face.
"We're taking a trip, today," Harry finally replied, a slow smile creeping across his face.
Snape grunted and turned, walking back in his rooms. Harry followed him in before the portrait could shut. Snape walked into his bedroom. Harry couldn't resist… he followed him in. He noticed the pile of sheets and blankets on the floor. "Fall out of bed this morning, Severus?"
Snape glared at him and went to his bureau and began extracting clothes.
Harry smiled devilishly. "Oh, you don't have to dress, Severus. You can stay just like that. I won't mind at all."
Snape growled low in his throat. "I never gave you permission to call me Severus." He stalked into the bathroom.
"Do you make that interesting little noise when you're having sex?" Harry asked before Snape could shut the door.
Snape's mouth dropped open in shock before he recovered and slammed the bathroom door.
Harry smiled. He glanced back at the pile of bedding on the floor and sighed. He'd never been one for mess. A quick flick of his wrist and the bedding lifted off the floor. A few moments later, the bed was perfectly made and Harry crawled up on it, sprawling out on his stomach to wait for Snape, his eyes on the bathroom door.
It was rather unfair that he knew that Snape was naked in that damn shower.
***
Snape leaned his forehead against the wall of the shower. This was getting bloody ridiculous. He was just about ready to give in and shag Potter senseless, and the damn boy hadn't even been back a week! All those long looks, little hints, and sexual innuendos flying all over the place, and that was when they were in front of people! When they were alone, Potter dropped all pretenses and every other word out of his mouth was sex! Okay… that was a bit of an exaggeration. But damn it! He hadn't even been awake for five minutes and he was already hard! Left in a constant state of arousal was driving him mad!
"He's doing this on purpose!" he hissed viciously, trying to will his erection away.
Snape still hadn't come to grips with what his feelings were towards Potter, and despite that, he still wanted to shag him senseless. Snape had never been one for casual loving. He much preferred to think out every possibility before giving into his body's desires. Harry Potter wasn't allowing him time to think. At this rate he'd probably shag the boy in Albus's office and not even realize it until it was over!
Snape began cursing in every language he knew, coming up with a few very inventive… colorful phrases. 'Do you make that interesting little noise when you're having sex?' Snape flipped the water to ice cold and began cursing anew, this time including Albus for putting him in this situation in the first place.
***
Harry and Snape walked into St. Mungo's in silence. Harry: because of what he felt coming from within the building, and Snape: because he was still attempting to get the image of Harry Potter sprawled across his bed out of his mind.
When they entered the building, they were greeted by a young medi-wizard. "Is there something I can help you with?" the man asked.
"No. We are here to see a few patients. We know are way," Harry replied quietly and walked past him; Snape following along.
"Excuse me, sirs, but you aren't allowed to roam the hospital or pass through the lobby without signing in," the medi-wizard stopped them.
Harry turned around and purposely raked a hand through his hair so that his bangs lifted from his scar. The eyes of the medi-wizard rounded. "Harry Potter?" the man asked shocked.
Harry smiled slightly. "Yes?"
"You go right on ahead, sir! I'm sure no one will mind."
"Are you sure? I don't want you to get in trouble…" Harry trailed off.
"It's no problem, sir, you just go right on!"
"Thank you…" Harry paused, waiting for the man to supply his name.
"Jason McGregor," the man replied, flattered that Harry Potter had asked his name.
"Thank you, Jason."
Snape and Harry walked out of the lobby and entered the first floor hallway. "I'm impressed," Snape said, and he was. "It was very Slytherin of you."
Harry smirked. "Remind me to tell you about what happened when I put the Sorting Hat on."
"What?"
Harry grinned. "Let's just say Gryffindor wasn't its first choice."
That stopped Snape in his tracks. Potter in Slytherin?!
***
It wasn't until the reached the third floor that they found the patients calling for Harry. Their screams for help were making him dizzy. He shook his head to clear it and lurched unsteadily to the first room. Snape noticed immediately and grabbed his arm to keep him from falling, guiding him to the room.
Inside was a young woman who had obviously been in some sort of accident. Harry guessed it was a fall from a broom. He could sense they had already tried to mend the ribs with magic and even forced skelo-grow down her but her ribs weren't mending like they should. He held up his hand and the same pulsing, golden glow surrounded it.
Snape heard the woman's shallow, ragged breathing even out. He winced when he heard an audible pop. One of her bones and popped itself into place. The bruises and scratches were nearly healed due to the actions of the staff of the hospital, but Harry went ahead and finished mending them anyway.
"Take me to the next room," Harry said softly. Snape guided him out.
The more rooms they went to, the stronger Harry became. It was the reverse of what Snape had been expecting, and finally he commented on it.
"The multiple cries for help is what weakened me," Harry explained. "I told you about the compulsion." He waited until Snape nodded before continuing. "Imagine that compulsion multiplied by the number of patients in this hospital. Your magic is pulling you in every direction, wanting you to heal everyone around you. Do you understand now?"
"Yes," Snape replied softly. He hadn't really thought about what being around so many injured would do to Potter. 'What would he do on a battlefield?' Snape wondered.
"I'm actually a little surprised I didn't pass out. Fredrick wrote that he passed out twice when he was overwhelmed by those calling for healing."
Snape studied Potter. It seemed every time he turned around, the teenager was surprising him in one way or another.
They found the Longbottoms on the fifth floor. Harry studied them carefully. He wasn't sure if there was really anything he could do to help them. He was more adept with physical healings, he hadn't attempted a mental healing yet. He took a deep breath and held up his hand; there were still many more left to go, and there was no sense in wasting time.
***
TBC…