Chapter 3
By Corgi
Severus made his way slowly up the street looking neither left nor right. Jealousy and anger surged through him in waves. He was jealous of that vapid little twit hanging off of Harry. He was angry at Harry for not being as miserable as he was, but who was he kidding? He pushed Harry away; why would Harry wait for him to realise his mistake?
He wanted Harry back desperately, he knew that now. All it took was the sight of him to make his heart ache more. He knew that Harry wouldn't come to him so he had to go to Harry. The first thing Severus needed to do was get rid of the blonde.
Severus, lost in his thoughts, nearly walked past Albus' cabin. The place was well maintained and had a fantastic view of the loch in back. Severus said the password to the door, which readily opened for him. Once inside he lit the torches with a wave of his hand and gazed around the room. Severus could detect Minerva's hand in the decorations and furniture. Albus' idea of interior design was much like his wardrobe, loud and gaudy. Why Minerva kept her own cabin was beyond him. She spends more time in Albus' rooms than in hers. Severus went to the bedroom and enlarged his trunk once he set it on the floor. He unpacked his belongings and noticed a note on the nightstand.
Dear Severus,
The fishing poles are in the kitchen broom closet and there's bait on the back porch. The ice box should be fully stocked. Enjoy your vacation, my boy, and I'll see you in September.
Albus
'Meddling old man,' Severus thought to himself. 'He definitely planned all this out. I bet he knew Harry was here. It's not unlike the old man. Now that he knew where Harry was, all he had to do was think of a way to get rid of the dunderhead he's hooked up with. Severus sat on the porch looking out over the loch and pondered how to get rid of that girl. What was her name again? Jaina? Severus supposed it really didn't matter. He planned on getting rid of her as soon as possible.
One thing in Severus' favour was Harry still thought about him. That little fact lightened Severus' heart just a tiny bit. He sadly looked out over the loch but looked up at a moment feeling the heat of a familiar gaze upon him. He searched the shores of the loch, but didn't see the person he hoped to see. He thought the boy lost his invisibility cloak during the final battle with the Dark Lord. He could be wrong, but then again the young man had phenomenal luck so it wasn't unreasonable for the brat to find another. Severus felt the gaze leave him and loneliness came crashing down upon him again. Trying to shake off the feeling and make some progress on his plans to rid his path of the gum chewing twit Severus got up and walked to the loch's shores.
'Gum? The girl chews gum! WEASLEYS!' The triumphant mental shout echoed in Severus' thoughts. 'Surely the Weasley twins would have some form of gum altered for their joke shop! All he had to do was plant some on the girl along with some well placed hexes and she'll be running away from Harry.'
With that plan simmering in his brain Severus retraced his steps and headed into the kitchen to make some dinner. He didn't know that his watcher was back and wondering what caused his abrupt change in mood.
**~**
Harry returned to the cabin belonging to his former head of house feeling quite upset. He really didn't expect to see Severus ever again and the sight of him caused Harry's heart to ache. He couldn't believe that his still felt so strongly for the man after the way he threw him out. He knew right then that he was just using Jaina as a crutch, but just couldn't abandon her so quickly. He only met her a few of months back when her family moved here from London. They hit it off quickly and they've been keeping each other company for months. He didn't know when they made the decision to share a bed, but the comfort of sharing a bed was too much for Harry to turn down. Ever since Severus pushed him away his nightmares returned full force, once Jaina entered his life and his bed they lessened significantly. He still had the really bad ones but not as frequently.
"Harry, are you alright?" Jaina asked eyes wide with concern.
"I'm fine, dear. I'm just a little restless. I'm going to go for a walk by the loch." Harry gave her a small smile.
"Do you want company, luv?"
"No, you go get some rest. I'll be fine."
Harry grabbed his coat and the invisibility cloak he found in his parent's vaults as he walked out the front door. As he set off down the path to the lock, he thought back to his earlier encounter with Severus. He looked fantastic in those muggle jean, though something about him was different. Why did Dumbledore send him here for time off? No-one but Professor McGonagall knew he was here since she lent him the use of her cabin since Severus tossed him out. The Ministry rebuilt Godric's Hollow, but there was no way he could live there so he gave the house to Remus. Remus needed a better place to live and he was more than happy staying in his parent's old home so he could be nearby the graves of his only family.
Harry reached the shore of the loch and gazed at the sun setting in the hills. After a couple of the neighbours stopped to chat Harry retreated to the trees and threw his invisibility cloak over himself and returned to the shoreline. He watched the boats come in off the loch as everyone headed home for dinner. Harry noticed some movement at Dumbledore's cottage. He could see Severus sitting on the porch watching the sun set. He seemed quite sad, just like earlier today. He looked much thinner to Harry and he wondered if Severus was recovering from an illness. Harry wanted to go to him very badly, but stuck to his guns. Severus pushed him away and if the git wanted him back then he'd have to do it on Harry's terms.
Harry noticed Severus looking over in his direction after a few moments. They always knew when the other was watching. Yes, Severus was definitely thinner, almost skeletal. Why, for Merlin's sake, didn't Dumbledore do something about Severus' condition? Harry noticed a group of people heading directly for him so he turned and headed off to the trees until the people passed before returning to his previous position. Severus had left the porch for the loch's edge and he seemed to be deep in thought. Suddenly his entire stance changed and he practically bounced back into the cabin. Harry wondered what sudden revelation hit the man as he turned back towards McGonagall's cabin.
When Harry returned to the cabin he checked the clock to see what time it was. He decided he had more than enough time to fire call Professor McGonagall. When he went into the sitting room he noticed a note from Jaina saying that she was going out with Emily and some of the other local girls. That was perfect as far as Harry was concerned. He quickly cast several locking and silencing charms just in case they came back early and threw some floo powder from the urn on the mantel.
"Minerva McGonagall, Hogwarts!" He called into the fire. A few seconds later his former head of house's face appeared in the fire.
"Harry! How nice of you to call! Is everything alright at the cabin?" She asked an unusually bright smile bloomed across her face.
"Everything's fine Professor. I was just wondering if the Headmaster knew I was here."
"I didn't tell him, but perhaps someone else did. Why do you ask?"
"Severus showed up today. He's using the Headmaster's cabin for the summer. I just think it's too much of a coincidence."
"Ah, it seems Albus is playing match maker again. He was thrilled when the two of you got together before you left school. He was quite upset when Severus drove you away. He still doesn't know that I knew about the relationship. I'll look into my dear. I know Severus' has been more of a tyrant these days and he hardly eats. You don't look like you've been eating much either." She gave Harry a stern glance before saying good night.
Harry dispelled all the charms and headed off to the kitchen to get Hedwig a snack. The poor bird could no longer hunt on her own since the final battle. A stray curse damaged on of her wings and the damage couldn't be fully repaired. All she could manage is small glides and all of her meals Harry provided these days. After feeding his dearest friend he changed and got into bed. The last thought he had was how much he missed Severus.
~tbc~