Title: The Love Potion
Author: Sprinkles
Rating: PG-13 just to be sure…
Archive: Sure, just ask me first.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry or Snape or anyone else from the Potter-verse. They either own themselves or belong to JKR
Summary: Harry comes to Snape and confesses to being in love with him. Snape in turn believes that Harry is under the influence of a love potion and attempts to identify and cure it.
The good thing about scrubbing potions for almost seven weeks, thought Harry as he polished off one last cauldron, is that you become extremely good at it.
As the weeks went by, Harry found himself finishing his scrubbing earlier and earlier, which left him more time to talk to Snape. In fact, if that day's potion did not need to be attended to, he and Snape could often be found sitting at his coffee table, drinking Snape's fine wine ("You know I'm still underage, right?" "Don't worry, Mr. Potter, it's just another rule for you to break."), and poring over some Defense Against the Dark Arts or Potions text.
Even when Snape was working on his potion and was unable to look at the books with him, Harry still read them on his own, and, as incredible as it sounds, was actually learning something. He honestly began to find Potions interesting. Unbelievable! How could I have slacked off in that class? He determinedly ignored the voice that told him that the only reason he had done so poorly was that he was so busy watching Snape's hands and listening to his voice that none of the words had really registered.
But by far the most interesting part of his "free time" with Snape was the 'practical application of the elected reading' as Snape called it. In Harry's language it meant that they got to play with the charms, spells and hexes that he learned in Snape's books. And today, since he had finished scrubbing his cauldrons so early, Harry suggested that they try a mock duel…and to his very great astonishment, Snape agreed.
"So, wait a minute," Harry said, still amazed. "Does that mean I actually get to hex you?"
Snape gave him a look that was very familiar but, for the moment, Harry just couldn't place it: A lifted eyebrow, maliciously glittering eyes, amusement playing around the corners of his mouth, arms crossed in front of his chest…
Then he recognized it: when he was still in school, it was Snape's 'By-the-time-I-am-through-with-you-Potter-you-will-have-had-so-many-detentions-you-will-have-forgotten-what-daylight-even-looks-like' glare.
He didn't know what it translated to now that he had graduated.
But what Snape said was: "In a manner of speaking."
"Any curse I want?"
"Of course."
"Anything that I've found in your book?"
"That's right, Potter."
"It's 'Harry,' now – are you sure about letting me hex you?"
Snape drew his wand out of his robes and his sneer became more pronounced. "Oh, I'm quite sure, Harry."
Harry couldn't believe the opportunity he had just been given and began to call to mind all the harmless but highly amusing hexes he had ever learned. There was one that colors a person's hair pink or a person's robes polka-dotted. One of the jinxes would force Snape to sing everything he said or dance the Macarena. Harry smirked: it was hard to beat that pink hair spell – he'd try that one first.
Harry looked up. Snape had moved some chairs and his coffee table to the far side of the room, giving then a nice, open area to duel in. He also cast an unbreakable charm on all of his glass objects – later on, Harry would decide that he should have taken a hint from this little bit of forewarning, but, at the moment, so filled with excitement, he completely missed it.
Turning to each other, they bowed and went to cast their first spells.
It turned out that Snape's earlier comment of 'In a manner of speaking' and the accompanying look really meant 'Well, you are welcome to make an attempt, but there is about the same likelihood of Voldemort dancing around in a pink tutu as of you actually hitting me.' Harry realized this reality of the situation round about the fourth time he slammed into a wall with a muffled WHUMPH, still having yet to utter his own spell.
Snape was twirling his wand between his fingers and smirking from his corner. "Don't be discouraged, Harry." He said as Harry picked himself off the ground. "If it makes you feel better, you are slightly better at dueling than Gilderoy Lockhart."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Well, thank you."
Snape lifted an eyebrow and his eyes returned to their 'Dumbledore twinkling' state. "You do have a similar ego though."
Harry resumed his position in the other corner. "You are enjoying this far too much."
"Well, it is more satisfying than taking house points – though I did enjoy myself to a certain degree during that activity."
"I'll say – "
"I'll tell you what, Potter – "
"Harry." Harry corrected.
"Harry, then – why don't I let you go first? It won't be terribly realistic as to the conditions of a real duel, of course…but at least you'll be able to try out a spell."
Later on, Harry also acknowledged that he probably should have also taken a hint from Snape's unusual generosity in this matter.
Harry lifted his wand: "Criniscolor Rubicundus!"
"Protego!"
WHUMPH!
Followed quickly by a disgruntled cry: "Merlin's beard, not again!" and uproarious laughter from the other side of the room.
Harry Potter dazedly shook his head, trying to figure out what had just happened. It appeared that Snape, instead of moving to the side as Harry had expected, had cast a shield charm, completely deflecting his hex, which had knocked him into the wall and onto the floor. Again.
He looked down at himself. Well, nothing appeared to be broken anyway. He could still hear Snape laughing in the corner. As he looked over, he realized that he had never before heard the man laugh so richly. Harry reflected on this for a moment, then he smiled; it was a nice sound.
"Well, Boy Savior," Harry snapped back to the present. "With your dueling skills as bad as they are, it is, indeed, a wonder to me that you ever got away from the Dark Lord."
Snape had stepped forward and was currently looking down at Harry with very ill-disguised amusement. "Incidentally," he continued, "I apologize for having to deflect your hex and robbing you of the much-anticipated enjoyment of jinxing me, but given the close quarters, I was unable to move in time."
Snape knelt down to look Harry in the face. "Besides, I believe it looks better on you than it would on me…"
Harry looked at him blankly. What? What looks better on me? What hex did I use anyw…Light dawned. Oh no!
Seeing the wince of realization on Harry's face, Snape chuckled again. Then, he grabbed Harry under the arms, pulled him to his feet and led him over to a mirror. He reflection stared back at him, completely unchanged, - except, of course for his hair which was now a shocking, neon, glow-in-the-dark, viewer-blinding pink. Oh my God! Harry covered his face with his hands. Snape, determined to gloat for another sixty seconds, promptly pulled them down.
"Personally, Harry, I think it brings out the color in your eyes…"
Snape broke into another peal of laughter and Harry groaned. The only reason it brought out the color in his eyes was that there could not possible be no other color so completely opposite.
At that moment, Snape looked over at his potion which had just turned violet in color and was demanding a good hour of stirring. "As much as I would like to tease you some more, Potter, I have a potion to which I must attend." He released Harry and swept over to the cauldron.
"Wait! What the hell am I supposed to do about this?" Harry cried, gesticulating wildly toward his violently pink hair.
"Well, I would start by looking up the counter-jinx in the book from which you learned it."
Scowling, Harry seized the book and set to work. Still, he could not help but feel that the pink hair was a price well worth hearing Snape's laughter.
Snape had just finished testing for potion number forty-seven (negative) when he realized that the room was far too quiet. He looked around for Harry.
Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, the Savior of the Wizarding World, and previous Bane of Snape's Existence was stretched out on the couch, fast asleep after attempting to read everything there was about the counter-jinx. His pink hair was sticking out all over, his glasses were hanging off his face and the book was slipping from his fingers.
Snape walked over to him and hid a smile. He had had fun today, no sense denying it. Dueling was truly his element, and it was not often that he received the opportunity to duel without the risk of death.
He paused for a moment looking down: his gaze had lingered on Harry's face and for a moment he saw not Harry Potter, but James Potter. A bitter taste rose in his throat as it did whenever he thought of his past tormentor. He looked again at the pink hair and smirked. A feeling of vengeance swooped down on him, hot and sharp. It was like a dream come true. How often had he imagined doing this to James Potter? To humiliate him, to ruin his reputation, to have the advantage on him for a change…
Snape took back his book from Harry's limp fingers and put it back on the shelf. He removed the glasses from his face and placed them on the coffee table. Then, he very carefully put the pieces of furniture back in their appropriate spots.
He looked down again at the boy in front of him, who was now cuddling a pillow. A thought occurred to him and he went to fetch a spare blanket, returning in seconds and tossing it over him.
Without another thought, Snape turned to leave but halted when Harry appeared to stir on the couch. His eyes fluttered open and he caught Snape's robe. Snape turned back, and looked at him again - as much as Harry looked like his father, he had always had his mother's eyes…
"Professor?" Harry asked hazily from the couch. He was exhausted from both the scrubbing, the reading, and the (admittedly one-sided) duel.
The bitter taste and the feeling of vengeance left Snape as swiftly as they had come.
My God, how could I have ever thought that this boy was his father?
"Go to sleep, Harry."
"Please stay with me…?"
Snape did not need any skill in Legilimency to understand what Harry was asking with those words. 'Stay with me. Be with me. Hold me. Kiss me. Everything.'
Snape froze. In this one moment in time, he felt that he could do it – everything that Harry asked for.
Memories rose up one after the other of the past weeks: he had almost kissed the boy that first day, just to mock him. But then, Harry had asked him if he wanted breakfast and had talked to him. In his mind's eye he saw Harry arguing with him about some inane ministry law and giving him permission to use his first name. And most of all he remembered Harry's face today as he picked him off the floor – he had almost kissed him then as well, but not to mock him this time. But he had ignored his opportunity. Why had he wasted those chances?
But here was another chance…
As Snape stepped forward to take Harry's hands, a glint from the corner of the room caught his eye. It was the silver cauldron he had been using this afternoon. Reality snapped back.
That damned Love Potion. Shit! Do I really have no scruples? Am I that much of a monster
Taking a deep breath, Snape took a step backward. Harry blinked quizzically.
"I can't, Harry…I – " – What? I want you? I need you? I lo – Snape silenced his thoughts and realized that he had no idea what he was going to say.
He took a breath to say something – anything to explain the thoughts running through his head, but as he looked down, he saw that his opportunity to speak was gone.
For Harry had already gone back to sleep.
A/N: Has the suspense killed anybody yet? No? Good! Only two more chapters and one epilogue to go, guys! A little teaser for the next chappie: Snape tests for the last love potion and the result is…Whoops almost let that one slip. Bad Sprinkles! Seriously, I hope you're enjoying it, because I'm having a lot of fun writing it. As always, please feed the author! – XOXO Sprinkles
Now onto the Thank Yous (there are a lot this chapter)
seabiscuit0810 – Now you're first, happy? JK! Well, Snape is relenting little by little…but his sense of honor about taking advantage of someone is still pretty strong…perhaps the next chapter will shed some more light on this matter…:) Thank's so much!
Tonitrus – Hmm…interesting thought. You're right, they are certainly not the only two people in the castle and rest assured that another person will appear in the epilogue. It's a great idea to expand the plot but I think I'd like to keep the story focused on the two of them. My original thinking when I was planning this story was that Harry (in a love-sick/horny daze) wanted to demonstrate his devotion by spending all day with Snape. Snape on the other hand, doesn't strike me as a person who goes out of his rooms except when he needs to… shrugs oh well, it's an excuse for them to hang out together, I guess. Thanks for reviewing.
Anime Monster – Um, hysterical? Hilarious? If those are the words you meant, then I give you a thousand thank yous, a thousand huggles, and a thesaurus! JK! Seriously, I'm glad you like it and think it's funny. I try to keep changing moods in the story so people don't get too bored with Snape's endless sarcasm, and Harry's endless dopeyness…Thanks!
xikum – Yay! You have targeted the number one character development that I was going for. Kudos! I was waiting for someone to call me on it! As for your hopes, I think that the next chapter will not be what you're expecting…but you won't be disappointed in the end. Thanks!
Severusphoenix – glad you enjoy it! Thank's for reviewing!
Earendil'sgirl – I read a quote somewhere: "The hour is darkest right before daybreak." And I believe that that appropriately applies to this story. Yeah, the character development of Snapie has been really fun to write. Thank You!
Hikari's-dark-side – Yay! A convert! I highly recommend the DETENTION! Archive at for all your Snarry needs! Oh and bring seabiscuit0810 (who apparently doesn't like the pairing wink )
Chrissy – Hiya! Sorry, I gave 'presumptuous brat' a rest today (he was getting tired) but maybe he'll appear later on. Is Harry an Animagus in this story? I thought about this for a while and how I might be able to work it in to the story and I've decided that no, he's not. The first reason is that I wanted him to stay as in character as possible and JKR makes it pretty clear that James/Sirius were practically brilliant and Canon!Harry has not yet demonstrated any such brilliance required to become an Animagus. Of course, there is a possibility that Hermione helped him…but I think that would raise more questions than I can answer without taking the focus off of the Snape/Harry development. It was a good idea, I just couldn't find a way to make it work. Thank you so much!
Lady Darkness13 – What? LOL Oh, well, thanks for reviewing all the same!
Amanda Saitou – hmm…I'd say he is. Thanks for reviewing
Lela951 – LOL! You should team up with seabiscuit0810! However, if you are thinking of becoming a convert you should check out some stuff on the DETENTION! Archive. Thanks for reviewing.
RivanKnight – Yeah, that was a funny image as I was writing it! Thank's for reviewing.
Lykaios Nyx – Thank you!
Claggart – I hope you like the ending when I've finally posted it. You may find something surprising next chapter. Hmmm, Severus having a sexy dream…a good thought but I need to keep it within the rules. (Ahem. No sex.) Too bad though. Don't worry…I'll think of something. Thanks for reviewing.
too-lazy-to-log-in – LOL! Yeah I was thinking of writing a story where one of Snape's potions went wrong and he sprouted wings…I'll have to think some more about that…Thanks for reviewing.
Iaurhirwen – LOL! Well go see it again, girl! You know, Harry is acting Tom Cruise-ian…hmmm…interesting. Thanks!
angelhereal – Thank you!
Dark-Lady-Devinity – yeah I hoped that that was a real 'aw' moment. Thanks for reviewing!
willowtree16 – Sorry you're last this time, willowtree, but I appreciate your review all the same. Thank you so much.
And thanks to everyone that read this! Hope you enjoyed it!