Title: Harry Potter and a Slytherin Love

Author: Yih

Author's Note: This is a SLASH HP/SS story with a very good friendship story for HP/DM. That's your warning, if you don't like slash then go read my other stories! I happen to be a very open minded individual and can see the beauty of both types of relationships. Isn't that fun?! I think it is ^_^;;.

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling ^-~ I wished I owned something, but I don't more the pity.

Next story? HP/DM, HP/LM, or HP/LV? You can vote in every review! LM leads the way!

THIS CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO XIKUM! She predicted this chapter!

~

12: Soul Bond (June 19, 2003 to June 23, 2003)

Joining of Darkness
The Homosexual Marriage of Harry Potter by Rita Skeeter.

The Wizarding World is in an uproar when the secret marriage of
the Boy Who Lived to a Death Eater was made public knowledge in
front of the entirety of the student body in Hogwarts! Rumors
had already been spreading rambunctiously through many a
conversations that Harry Potter was homosexual, but this
confirmation was a dreadful and dangerous shock. The
circulating gossip was that Mr. Potter was carrying on an affair
with Draco Malfoy, the only heir to the still disputed Malfoy
estate. Yet, the very man that Mr. Potter married is Severus
Snape, You Know Who's right hand man!

While rumors have run rampant before You Know Who's defeat two
years ago by Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, this is the obvious
sign that the Boy Who Lived has fallen to the dark side. What
else can it be? To allow the Boy Who Failed to hook up with a
known Death Eater in He Who Must Not Be Named's Inner Circle
after it was common knowledge that Mr. Potter failed in his
attempt to join the Dark Lord?

What is most puzzling is how Albus Dumbledore allows Death
Eaters and such would-have-beens like Mr. Potter to actually
teach at the prestigious school of Hogwarts. Despite defeating
You Know Who, there have often been questions about Headmaster
Dumbledore's state of mind over the last few years. How could
he have let the Boy Who Lived be corrupted by Death Eaters? How
could he allow the Boy Who Failed to return to teach at
Hogwarts? How could he allow the Boy Who Failed to marry a
Death Eater and possibly have the avenue to become the next Dark
Lord?

What is even more alarming is that Harry Potter has taken
Severus Snape's surname, making him Mr. Potter-Snape. By taking
his husband's name, it indicates the hold that the Death Eater
has on him. Perhaps, it's not quite Harry Potter's fault that
he's been manipulated by a cunning Slytherin. But the Boy Who
Lived has been known to resist the Imperius Curse, so why did he
succumb to Mr. Snape unless he was drawn to the darkness? That
is what we all fear, that he is drawn to the position left
vacant. With Severus Snape by his side, there's nothing
stopping the Boy Who Failed to become the Next Dark Lord.

~

It was plain scary to see the look on Severus's face when he saw the article in the Daily Prophet. Harry quickly tore the paper from Severus's hands when he saw the headline, but it was already too late since his lover had finished reading the slanderous article. The expression on Severus's face was murderous as he narrowed his eyes, scanning the crowd of students venomously. His earlier happiness that Harry wasn't ashamed of their relationship, willing to go public was vanquished by this---- this load of shit!

"Severus please," Harry pleaded, placing his hand on his arm to try to calm down the storm that was brewing in his lover, "not here. Come on," he urged, throwing a quick glance at Draco and Albus to do whatever they had to do to cover his classes and Severus's. When he got meaningful look from Albus and a jerky nod from Draco, he tugged Severus to a standing position. "Let's go somewhere else to talk about this."

Severus forced himself to calm down. It wouldn't do to get mad at Harry, none of this was Harry's fault--- well, it was his fault, his snide inner mind commented meanly. If Harry would only let Albus tell the truth of his involvement, none of this would have happened. But then again, he understood why Harry wanted to so desperately to get away from the insufferable expectations of the public. Even if it was a bad opinion, at least he wouldn't disappoint everyone like he felt he had before.

Once they had reached the safety of the dungeons, Severus started ranting out his tirade, "Those cunts! How dare they accuse you of being the next Dark Lord? I want you to let Albus tell them the truth, the truth Harry! I don't care anymore if you're made the poster boy for the Wizarding World anymore; I can't stand them thinking that low of you! I can't take it! Tell them," Severus begged, "tell them the truth. It's been two years, tell them."

Harry dropped his face down with defeat and his shoulders slumped. "You know why I don't want it. I know you no longer think I'm a Gryffindor brat," he murmured softly, lifting his head up to briefly show his amusement, "even if you still call me one. But you don't know how hard the fame was for me. I hated being in the spotlight, hated it. You didn't like me much for it either." A small half smile graced his lips. "I don't care what people think about me. You know that. This will be forgotten soon enough. I never was the great wizard the Wizarding World hoped I'd be. They had this silly thought that I'd be the one to bring down Voldemort."

It was like Harry to be modest. Hell, if he wasn't that was a cause for concern. But it was hard for Severus to hear Harry demean the sacrifices Harry made to bring down Voldemort. At the risk of his life, he had managed to provide the necessary means to an end--- the end of Voldemort. So what if it had been Albus that had cursed Voledmort into nonexistence? If it hadn't been for Harry, they never would have had the chance to vanquish Voldemort from the face of the earth. Didn't Harry understand?

It didn't matter if he hadn't exactly fulfilled the expectations of the Wizarding World, he was still a hero in the eyes of all those that knew what he'd done. Even to Remus and Sirius who only knew the bare details of what had happened had been overwhelmed by all that Harry had risked. No one knew the extent of how close Harry had come to being killed by Voldemort, no one knew how much Harry had suffered. Only he, Draco, and Albus knew--- only because they had been the integral center in the plot that had brought down Voldemort. Only that.

"You were the one that brought Voldemort down," Severus whispered emotively. "Albus might have said the spell, but you were the one that brought the Dark Lord down."

Harry smiled sadly at his lover. "I'm not going to let Albus say anything. He's already asked you know. He's even begged me to let him say any little tidbit that might sway public opinion. Even if the Daily Prophet is spewing out bad things about Albus, the whole of the public still considers him far beyond reproach. This will blow over, Sev."

"For me," Severus whispered gently. "Do this for me."

Harry's eyes met Severus's, the gaze exchanged between them was a battle of wills. Harry didn't want to; Severus wanted him to. If there was a dominant in this rather equal relationship, it was Severus. Severus was harder and more impossible--- but he never asked anything of Harry. He may have been the commanding presence, but he showered his care and support over Harry. He gave more than he ever took. Always.

"I can't."

"You can," Severus insisted, covering Harry's hands with his own. "You can."

Harry shut the gateway into his soul from Severus's penetrating gaze. "I can't," he replied softly, his voice threaded in pain. "It's too hard for me. I've tried to put the past behind me. I don't want to remember it, but if I come out and tell them the truth that we've been hiding from them all these years they will want to know. That means digging into me deeply, deeper than I want them to go, than I want to go ever again. Can't we just let the past be the past?"

"I have never asked you for anything, and I'm asking now. It's time the truth came out. I understand that it's taken time for you to recover, and you're making the right strides. But the problem with awful pasts is that they cannot be toss aside. They'll only grow and fester. I know because you know how hard it's been for me to look pass the past. If I can do it, you can do it. You've always been more adaptable, more changeable to the shifting situations than I have ever been. I know you can do this Harry, I have faith in you. I will be behind you every step of the way."

"What if I can't?" Harry asked in anguish. "What if it's too much? What if I crack?"

Severus drew his beloved into his embrace and pressed a tender kiss on his forehead. "Then I will be here to fix it. You don't think you'd get rid of me that easily after I've caught you?"

Harry rested his head against Severus's comforting shoulder. "I thought I caught you."

"No, I caught you."

~

Somehow Harry managed to twist Severus's arm into getting them to do the soul binding ritual before they came out with the secret truth behind Harry's involvement in bringing Lord Voldemort down. But the only reason Severus agreed to it was because he knew that Harry needed the reassurance that the bond would bring. Once soul bonded, always and forever together. Besides, Harry had already promised that Albus could issue the statement once the soul bond was complete and Severus knew when Harry gave his word--- it was done.

Severus had even convinced Harry to give an interview with a reporter with a trusted reputation of actually writing what was said instead of twisting it around into an abomination. This was the reporter Albus went to when he needed something to be said to the public. He could trust the reporter, after all the reporter use to be an Order operative and was one of Albus's good friends. The only thing Severus didn't like about the man was that he'd been a Gryffindor, then again he had to get over House prejudice. Harry said they were silly and Harry was right. But it was so very hard!

"Ready?" Harry whispered softly,

"I'm ready," Severus answered, smiling comfortingly at his beautiful husband. "I've been waiting for this for a long time."

"So have I."

It was then that Albus Dumbledore entered into the room, he was the only one that was going to witness the bonding between Severus and Harry. But Poppy and another trusted mediwizard were waiting outside incase anything went horribly wrong. One never knew with bonding rituals, even the simple blood bonds. Sirius and Draco were also outside waiting, they had insisted vehemently that they wished to see the ritual but understood it was safer for everyone if they did not.

The whiplash of a bond gone wrong had the potential to be fatal not only for those seeking the bond but those watching the bond. If anyone had the power to survive such a backlash, it was Albus--- the Defeater of Voldemort. But even he was cautious, wearing a special cloak that protected him like a shield. All the Professors in the school had placed powerful enchantments on the cloak to help safeguard their Headmaster.

"Ready to begin?"

Severus and Harry both nodded, stripping off their garments until both of them were as naked as they day they were born. Albus refrained from looking at them, staring at the vacant portraits on the wall. He had insisted that the occupants vacate the room for this private moment and most of them had been most agreeable. One was however not quite, but had finally been convinced that it wasn't good to be trapped in a destroyed portrait.

Once Albus noticed out of the corner of his eyes that they had nodded, he began to explain to them in detail what they were going to have to do to accomplish the bond. First they had to bond themselves physically together by blood. In a normal blood bond, that was the only thing they'd have to do. But a soul bond required one more step, much more complicated and deadly. The next step, they had to drop all their physical restraints and basically their souls would merge as their blood mingled together.

The fatal problem with this was that if their souls left their bodies incorrectly, they would be forever trapped in the between. And if their souls were too slow to join, then they'd bleed to death. Either way, this was the reason why scarcely anyone attempted the soul bond anymore. It was too much of a risk. Only the strongest wizards could pull it off. Harry and Severus were two of the strongest wizards that Albus knew. He knew they'd succeed.

"You must cut one another, cut the vein open," Albus began calmly. "It is to show your trust in each other as well as to complete the physical part of the bond."

They did what he asked. Severus took the sharp silver dagger and sliced Harry's wrist completely. As the blood furiously rushed up to spill to the ground, Harry took the knife in his other hand and slashed Severus's wrist with equal speed. They both stared at the blood for a moment before joining their bleeding wrists together. They began to feel lightheaded at the loss, for the blood was spilling out swiftly.

"You will begin to feel lightheaded," Albus continued soothingly, "once you feel lightheaded enough to faint, you must remember to let go of your body but not your consciousness. You will begin to feel one another when you've done this correctly. Once this happens, you must mold yourselves together and join together permanently. Once this is done to satisfaction, you will be forced back into your bodies..."

It was already happening, Harry and Severus felt incredibly faint, about to fade into darkness but they fought hard to keep their awareness and suddenly... they didn't have to fight they were conscious but not quite. It was strange to feel so light yet so alive. So aware of everything. Aware of each other. It wasn't difficult, it was too easy when their minds met each other hard. It was overwhelming and intensely violating as it was pleasurable.

Memories flew back and forth between them. Secrets and more. All they had to know, all that had to be revealed for them to become one body, one mind, one soul. This was necessary and was it hard, oh how hard it was.

Growing up as an outcast... being taught Dark Curses when he was a child... having his parents scream at him when he did them incorrectly... how they punished him when he was doing anything remotely fun.... then going to school... a place he thought would be his retreat... how he was tormented.... how he found some people that didn't... how he was led to the wrong path... because... because he wanted to be accepted... he didn't want to be seen as a greasy hair freak... he wanted power and respect... he wanted to be respected... even admired.

Early memories were harsh... being kicked around by his family... being a servant boy... living in a cupboard... then discovering a great secret... he was a wizard... not any wizard but the Boy Who Lived... how terrifying and exciting... how miserable and overwhelming... he didn't want the fame... he wanted to be normal and accepted... and he found that with his friends... but then Voldemort... how he had to drift away to protect them... how hard it was for him to pretend to be dark... how he wanted to just be normal... to be normal and to be loved.

"You must go back," they both vaguely heard Albus's words of warning. It was hard though, so hard to give up this freedom of being... being together and being entirely understood for once. Accepted and loved. Admired and respected. "NOW!"

Both Severus and Harry were slammed back into their bodies, and as soon as they were physically aware they blacked out from the immense blood loss and the intense pain of being forced back into their bodies. Albus quickly raised the alarm for Poppy and her colleague to rush into the room. They weren't the only ones to run into the room. Sirius and Draco weren't far behind them. It was all Albus could do to maintain his serenity and tell them that everything had gone as it should.

But it hadn't. Not quite at least. They had joined, but they had taken a little too long in the joining. That had been his fear. Even though they had been moving back to their physical being, Albus had had to force them back to make sure that they got back in time. But he was afraid that he'd made the wrong choice. The wrong decision, what if by forcing them back he broke their connection at a critical time?

The sight of all the blood on the floor was gruesome to see. His face wasn't the only one that was pale. Draco and Sirius were positively stark white. Both were trembling and shaking. "They are going to be all right," Albus reassured with more reassurance than he felt. "It took a bit longer than we expected. Draco, will you please go get the necessary potions to revitalize their blood loss from Severus's potions lab? He made some last night that he was cooling."

Draco ran to the room and Sirius sank to the ground, shock marring the still handsome face. "Are you sure?" Sirius croaked out his question. "Are you sure, Albus?"

Albus wasn't sure, but his gut said that nothing worse was going to happen. "Yes."

~

{The next morning}

"I am never going to forgive you!" Draco fumed.

"I said I was sorry."

"You scared me to death!" Draco screamed.

Sirius sighed with relief. He and Severus were staring at Harry's and Draco's exchange of words with intense interest. Sirius had never much liked Draco, but he'd learn to tolerate Draco as he'd learn to tolerate Severus. But the last 24 hours, seeing how frantic Draco was with worry over Harry, it had changed his opinion about the Malfoy boy. Draco was every bit of a good friend as Harry had said he was. Even better.

"You aren't dead," Harry pointed out wryly.

Draco glared at him, but at Harry's quirky expression broke into a struggling grin. "You are impossible! Both of you!" Draco aimed the same glare at Severus. "Don't ever do something like that again!"

"You can't," Harry remarked, "it's impossible to do more than one soul bond."

Draco narrowed his eyes, not liking Harry's bemused tone when he was letting out his anxiety-ridden worry. "Weren't you two scared?"

Harry shook his head, squeezing Severus's hand. "No," he responded, looking deeply into his soul-mate's eyes. "We were together."

"In body," Severus echoed, "mind and soul."

Harry smiled sweetly. "I love you too."

~

Author's Note: So how did you like my soul bond? I've read quite a bit of bonding, but I hope mine was different. I didn't want to do the whole anxiety scene afterwards because well I don't intend to put you ppl into anxiety. And I need to finish the fanfic! Besides, this fanfic is more geared to be fun to write and fun to read despite the initial angst and darkness.

~

Thanks to: Leah, Abraxis, AtieJen, Kateri, Ash, Frankie the Wonder Wiener Dog, athenakitty, BekaJWP, Christine, Lina Inverse the Dramata, lala, Carya, MoiLeGreat, and Milya.

Tempest: Ha, everyone prefers Julia. We'll see what happens.

Zaira-Draco: I like your thought.

Xikum: Who says Draco is even looking for sex? We'll see. I hope you like the soul bond, it wasn't that easy to write since I was trying to be original. I hope I accomplished that!