Evening

by Icarus

After a late lunch, or an early dinner, they felt fully recovered. Harry stretched out on the love seat paging through one of Severus' unique coffee table books. Severus was in his chair, scowling at The Daily Prophet, clearly finding a news item in there that annoyed him. Harry glanced at the upside-down headline. He seemed to be reading a long piece about an old house being condemned. Now why should that bother him?

Harry returned to the coffee table book. It had various landscapes rendered in a way that was quite life-like. The ocean shore was interesting, if a tad loud. Harry got ocean spray on his glasses, though the wind was refreshing. After a bit, Severus surfaced from behind his newspaper and shot him a look that said do you mind? Guiltily Harry turned the page. Now he was basking in sun's rays from a remote island. The ghost cat batted at the flames in the fireplace. Now that was something she could never do while she was alive, Harry thought. He wondered if there were ghost mice in the castle for her. She gave up on the flames and started stalking the crow in the photo above the hearth. It ignored her, as it still ignored Harry. Severus had reassured Harry that the crow would eventually warm up to him.

Severus tossed the paper in the fire then hexed it in a spew of purple and green sparks. He looked rather annoyed. "Morgana's bastards, the lot of them…"

"What's up?" Harry asked.

"Nothing." Severus scowled.

Harry blinked. That had been a rather dramatic nothing. Severus steepled his fingers under his chin, a sudden thoughtful expression on his face.

"So. Harry. What are your plans for the future?" Severus asked. Harry wadded up a piece of paper into a paper ball and lobbed it across the room. The ghost cat silently scampered after it.

"Other than staying here with you forever?" Harry asked. He shut the book, before he got a sunburn. That tropical sun was intense.

"Impractical. You are hardly Professor material," Severus pointed out. Leave it to him to mention the ugly truth so bluntly.

"Well. I've thought about it long and carefully," Harry stretched.

"And - ?" Severus prodded.

"And I haven't a clue," Harry admitted.

"I suspected as much." Severus smiled grimly. "I may have a job for you. For the summer, while you think about your future. How are you with Reparo and Construction Spells? Beyond endlessly fixing your glasses that is."

"Pretty good, I suppose. Why?"

"And fairly good with Dark Magic, too… yes," Severus mused, rubbing his lip thoughtfully. "I have a little work that needs to be done at Snape Manor, if you don't mind staying there."

Harry brightened. "Don't mind? Me? Stay in a Wizarding Mansion all summer?"

"You have not seen it. It has not exactly been… maintained. I will pay you for the work, of course," Severus continued smoothly.

"Will you be there?"

"Part of the time. You will need help," said Severus, but Harry wasn't listening.

"Then I don't care what kind of a wreck it is. That would be wonderful!"

"As I said: you have not seen it yet." Severus hesitated, then seemed to change his mind about whatever it was he was going to add. He disappeared behind a Potions Journal, volume 957. "If it proves too difficult we can re-negotiate the terms mid-summer. That would be fair I believe."

The fire crackled as Harry happily contemplated the summer. It threw off a last few angry purple sparks and settled.

"Where will you be? Here? Or at your flat in London?" Harry wondered.

"London? That was a long time ago… where Torvald and I lived… how did you - ?" Severus' face was suddenly fierce and triumphant. He threw aside his Potions Journal and picked up his wand. "That address was - in - my - book! Bring it back!"

Severus didn't wait for an answer but threw a Stasis Spell. Harry blocked it and rolled to the floor.

"Sado-Immobilius!" Severus fired another Spell. But Harry knew that one and defused it with the counter charm.

Harry tried a Levitation Spell. Severus swatted it to the ground, hitting the carpet. The rug levitated, bubbling underneath the furniture, knocking them both off-balance. Severus' wand-work was quick and tight.

"Expelliarmus!"

Severus' brutal Disarming Spell blew Harry ten feet across the floor, and his wand flew clattering to the wall. Severus slowly approached; wandless, Harry did the next best thing - he tackled Severus, landing both of them on the bubbling carpet. Any Spell Severus tried would likely hit them both. Severus was surprised, but soon had Harry pinned and struggling under his superior weight. He tapped Harry on the nose with his wand. And blue-green strips of light strapped Harry - and the carpet - to the floor.

They were both heaving and laughing. Severus struggled to his feet.

"You look beautiful…" he gasped. "…decorating… my floor… And you are going to… going to stay there… until you bring back my book…" Severus' chest heaved.

Harry struggled and gave up. How Severus managed the unfamiliar Binding Spell without hitting himself was beyond Harry.

"You're really good at dueling," Harry grinned.

"I know," Severus smiled, touching a cut lip.

Harry gave in.

"Let me up, and I'll get the Book of Eros for you," Harry said.

"You give me your word as a Gryffindor?" Severus asked skeptically.

"I give you my word as Harry," he said.

"Even better." Severus banished the straps, and the Levitation Spell, and gave Harry a hand up. "We will have to do that again some time."

"What? The wrestling?"

"Oh, I get that every night. And in my kitchen," Severus smirked.

"Teach me that Spell and you have a deal," Harry said, picking up his wand. " Accio: Book!"

"And give away my advantage for next time? I think not." Severus said. "It's difficult to find Grappling Spells that will work at close quarters. A word of advice however: do not tackle a larger man unless you plan to take his wand. And you had best learn to be much better at this. I may be good, but Lucius Malfoy can beat me with one wand tied behind his back."

They settled together in the love seat to wait for the book to arrive. It was a ways away, and could hit any number of obstacles to slow its flight. They fed the rest of the newspaper to the fire and Harry tucked himself under Severus' arm. Severus had a few other interesting travel books he wanted to show Harry, and some photos of places he had been. Severus had precious few of those, though he had traveled often. Most of his travel had been on… business... he explained. Sometimes Harry forgot his former occupation. He was fairly certain he didn't want to know just what that business had been.

Not long after, they heard a persistent erratic bumping sound against the door. There was the sound of something of a scuffle.

"Ah. That would be my book, at long last," Severus said, sarcasm heavy in his voice.

Harry picked himself up off the couch to answer the door, setting aside a stack of photos. They were of indifferent quality, Severus was no artist, but interesting nonetheless. Harry wondered how many of those people in them were Death Eaters. Torvald appeared in many, grinning and cheerful as ever. It was still hard to picture him as a ruthless killer. Harry opened the door.

"Ron…?" Harry asked, stunned.

"Harry! Thank god it's you. It's getting away!" Ron's arms were wrapped around the struggling Book of Eros. There were sneaker skid marks along the stone floor.

Ron's eyes widened as Professor Snape joined Harry at the door. Severus slid his arm intimately and possessively around Harry's hips, cupping his arse just to make the point. Severus gave Ron his most lascivious smile. Harry couldn't keep the heat out of his face at this contact, and Ron's eyes darted back and forth between the two of them. Ron's jaw fell.

"Harry…?" Ron said questioningly, almost desperate for Harry to deny what he saw.

"Ron - " Harry began to explain, reaching for him, but Severus interrupted.

"Mr. Weasley. So good of you to - stop by. Thank you, as well, for so kindly… ah, bringing me my book." Severus pulled the Book of Eros from Ron's now limp hands.

Then Severus pulled out his wand: "Obliviate!"

Ron's eyes glazed. He stared straight ahead unseeingly.

"You will return to your days activities. Whatever they may be. You will forget what you saw here, that you ever saw Harry and I together in my apartments."

Severus shut the door in Ron's face without even looking to see if he had left.

"I just did the both of you a favor, Harry." Severus turned to him. "Now do yourself a favor, and tell him. Soon."

Finis. Next: 'The Unicorn.'