Exultet, Pt 1

Draco thought how ridiculous it was that he felt nervous now. A series of images shuttered through his mind, although he tried to shake them off. He gave a small self-conscious shrug as his thoughts stuck briefly on he and Blaise playing at sex with Professor Snape.

Severus took his arm, just about the wrist, and Draco tried to laugh at how his heart leapt. Funny to find there was one there.

Severus put his mouth to Draco's ear and said, "Don't." Pulling the young man closer, he added, "You're going to tell me what you want to do."

Draco said, "Everything."

Severus began to unbutton Draco's robe, and he concentrated on just the sheer present fact of Severus's fingers working at his clothes, and nothing about the past, the meaning, the future.

Severus stopped, and waited until Draco looked at him, slightly up at him. He tipped the boy's face back further with one hand and kissed Draco very softly, lips just touching and moving away. Draco closed his eyes for a moment, however much he desperately wanted to see it, and let it feel like Severus Snape really kissed him.

Severus was unfastening his inner robe now - the fitted kind, with old fashioned metal clasps, as Draco had observed many times. He watched the long fingers pull the robe away and begin to work at the exposed buttons on Snape's shirt, and then everything seemed somehow to shift into sharper focus. Draco began to remove his own clothes.

* * *

The way Severus lowered Draco to the bed, the slide of his naked chest, stomach, cock and thighs into place along his own, ran through Draco's head like a dream. It was like he was watching himself from the outside, partly in disbelief, partly with surging desire. The two emotions seemed to crash into each other repeatedly. Draco closed his eyes again, and the candles shaded the dark behind his eyelids almost red.

"Come back, Draco," Severus was saying, and Draco opened his eyes and breathed out. Severus looked down at him and Draco couldn't imagine what he might be thinking. One hand came up and untangled the sticky lines of Draco's hair.

Lucius didn't know, he couldn't tell; Voldemort couldn't tell, he couldn't force it from him. He suspected they both suspected, but not with enough cause to stop using him.

"Stop thinking about it, Draco."

Severus Snape was pressed naked against him, long and pale and lean, like the husband in that nursery rhyme with the pictures where he had long hair.

Severus stopped, one hand on Draco's neck, the other on his hip, and looked away.

"Severus?"

Severus rolled Draco in his arms so he was tucked into his chest, and pulled the covers up across them. "I want you to get some sleep now, Draco." The boy stiffened. "I'd love to pursue this further, but I think not right now. Tonight I want you to sleep with me."

Draco almost protested, but he was so very tired. He squirmed a little with comfortable pleasure against Severus's body, his leg twisting in between the other man's - just like, he thought, Blaise always did with him, in those rare moments he allowed it.

Severus made a disapproving noise. "If you compare me to Zabini again, even in your head, I will have you sleep in the bath."

Draco giggled. Severus instructed him again to sleep now, and Draco wriggled against him, trying to say how much he'd wanted more than this without giving up the peace of just lying in Severus's arms. He didn't want Severus to doubt how important he was, how much more important than anyone else, which is why he'd put Lucius in this terrible situation. . .

"Do I need to stun you in order to get you to sleep, Draco?"

But he had wanted so much more, and if not now. . .

"If not now then another time. Perhaps tomorrow," Severus said, running his hand down Draco's back to rest in the small dip above his buttocks against the slightest covering of soft hair.

Draco slept.

* * *

Between the green grass and the red sky, Draco breathed in the warm soft air and rolled into Severus's arms. Chain against silk, silver against black, he ran his arm along the soft slippery fabric that covered Severus's chest and stomach.

"I always knew you would feel like this."

"I fancy I'm a lot less taut and muscular in real life," Severus said close by. "If this is indeed your fantasy version of me then I imagine the real thing will be rather disappointing."

"I don't believe it."

Severus huffed. Draco laughed and said, "Can I kiss you?"

"If you want," Severus said, and Draco rolled across him, silk and chain slipping in a soft whispering, scratching sound.

Draco kissed the mouth beneath him. The second kiss twisted and pressed, and Severus let Draco lead. Pulling back to look at Severus's mouth that he had kissed Draco felt the shock of pleasure tangle through his thoughts, ripple across his skin, and tighten around his cock like a loose fist. He dragged himself higher on Severus body, grasped his shoulder and his hair and kissed him hard, his tongue pushing into Severus's mouth and his now hardening cock weighing him down into Severus's body. He pushed and turned his hips against Severus and Severus let go the hesitation and pushed back, winding an arm around Draco and pushing the kiss deeper with his hand on the back of Draco's head.

Draco groaned, moved his hips in small intense ellipses against the rise of Severus's hip, and lifted his head to groan again. Snape put his mouth to Draco's neck, and then hissed as his arm suddenly caught fire - tearing himself away from the boy he threw back the black sleeve to see the snake in what remained of his Dark Mark writhe and burn and turn towards him.

* * *

One moment Severus was looking at the bright flickering green tongue of the snake twined through his now colourless Mark and the next he was pulling himself from the bed at the sound of Albus calling his name.

"Albus?" he said as he pulled his robe around him. The headmaster's head hung suspended above the low licks of flame in the fireplace.

"Severus, thank goodness. I was growing concerned."

"Ah. I'm sorry. I could explain but. . ." He heard Draco's waking thoughts in the other room, twisting into sheets he thought smelled like Severus, like sex and hope, and then realised he was alone.

Dumbledore clearly anticipated the question Severus hadn't finished. "Lucius Malfoy contacted me urgently this evening. I've tried to delay him, but I'm afraid there's nothing I can do as he's already contacted the Minister and several other members of the board."

Severus heard Draco's attention lock onto Albus's voice and had to school himself to say calmly, "What does Lucius want?"

"He wanted Draco, on an urgent matter."

Severus scoffed.

"As it was indeed urgent," Albus said, and Severus almost asked but the almost agitated look on Dumbledore's face was enough to let him finish, "I agreed to find Draco."

Tensing slightly, and feeling Draco tense rather more dramatically behind him, Severus said, "And you thought to look for him here?"

Albus's gaze flicked in the direction of the bedroom door as Severus felt Draco emerge, fumbling with his robe with nervous fingers.

"Mr Malfoy insisted he would be with you. In your room."

Draco drew an audible breath and seemed to flounder mentally, a jumble of Lucius-centred images and terrifying possibilities. Severus was finding it more than a little difficult to think with Draco's panic in his mind and Albus's keen concerned eyes on him and this was obviously not time to be confused. He concentrated on partitioning off Draco's thoughts.

"What does Lucius want?"

"He clearly wants to expose an improper relationship between you and his son. He is insisting his son return home, and you be expelled from Hogwarts."

"Summarily, I suppose," Severus said. "Without investigation."

"Or Hogwarts is drawn into a scandal."

"He is taking very little trouble to make this look anything but premeditated."

"Severus, there isn't much time. The Minister will be here after breakfast."

"And my father?" Draco said from directly behind him.

"I'm sure it won't come to that," the Headmaster said, but it didn't hold his usual conviction.

"I didn't know this was what he was going to do," Draco said, and he was clearly not talking entirely to the Headmaster.

"Of course not," Dumbledore replied anyway.

Severus glanced at the clock, bordering on breakfast. "We'll be there in twenty minutes, Albus."

Albus nodded but, as he was flickering out, said, "Perhaps you should make it sooner."

* * *

Outside the Headmaster's office, Severus paused a moment for Draco to catch up.

I'm ready, Draco thought clearly, but behind that a thousand images and sounds leapt and jeered. Severus looked at the boy's composed expression and felt a little afraid for them both - a dangerous weakness that feeling. Draco met his eyes and wished for the green grass and the red sky and the warm wind.

Snape turned back to the gargoyle over the door. "Lemon Brittle."

TBC