Rating: R
Genres: Romance, Angst, Fluff
Warnings: character death (NOT Harry or Sev)
Spoilers: 1-5
Summary: Every war needs a hero: someone that the people can look up to. They're supposed to be strong, courageous, and cheerful. They're supposed to raise people's spirits. But heroes need someone, too.
Song: World You Love, The
Artist: Jimmy Eat World
Author's Note: Originally a songfic, the lyrics have been removed from this fic to comply with FF rules. Song lyrics can be found here: www (dot) azlyrics (dot)com (slash) lyrics (slash) jimmyeatworld (slash) theworldyoulove (dot) html
For the original version of this fic, please check out my livejournal:
www (dot) livejournal (dot) com (slash) users (slash) Harry (underscore) sev (slash)
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Harry saw the headline of the Daily Prophet and nearly gagged on his breakfast. Three more children had been killed in werewolf attacks. Another one was taken to the hospital with severe bites. Harry pushed his breakfast to the side; there was no way that he could eat after that. Ignoring the accusing stares of seemingly everyone else in the room, Harry got up and left the Great Hall. On his way out he met Severus's eyes. Harry gave him a small smile that didn't quite reached his eyes and left.
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Harry was tired. Tired of the fighting. Tired of everyone looking to him for help when all he wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry. Why did he have to be the strong one? Why couldn't anyone else do it?
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That night found Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Severus sitting around the Potions Master's quarters. They didn't talk about the attacks, or Voldemort, or the Ministry. Ron and Hermione fell asleep on the sofa. Hermione's head was resting on Ron's shoulder, and he had his arm draped over her protectively. Severus followed Harry's gaze and smiled down at his young lover. Then he pulled Harry closer to him and kissed the top of his head. Harry snuggled closer to Severus. It was times like these that Harry felt the most safe.
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As Harry lay in Severus's arms, he thought about Quidditch. The sport had been so much fun in the beginning, something that he could do without really thinking. But that was before Voldemort. Now that Voldemort was back, things Harry once thought of as fun no longer held any pleasure. He could no longer enjoy flying on a broom because at that very moment, someone could be dying.
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Severus could practically hear Harry's thoughts and frowned. He hated when Harry got depressed. Silently he cursed the wizarding population for placing too much weight on Harry's shoulders. The young man had only recently turned seventeen. He shouldn't be responsible for saving the world.
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Harry felt Severus's arms tighten around him and smiled. He knew that Severus knew exactly what he was thinking. Leaning up and pressing a chaste kiss to Severus's lips, Harry thought about his relationship with Severus. After months of secretly watching each other, the two had finally been pushed together by Ron and Hermione. The couple had literally pushed Harry and Severus into a closet and told them that they wouldn't be let out until they confessed their feelings for each other. Three hours later the couple emerged, smiles on both their faces. Ever since that day, Severus was always there for Harry. And while Harry felt weak having to ask the man for so much help, he knew that Severus didn't consider him weak. And that made all the difference in the world.
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Over the next few weeks, Harry smiled as much as he could. He didn't want people to say that he was depressed. That might lead people to thinking that he wasn't fit for the war against Voldemort. And then he would have all those people hounding him to get with the program; he still had a war to win. No, it was better that everyone think that Harry was happy and healthy and able to defeat Voldemort. So Harry kept smiling. Severus was one of the few people who saw through that smile.
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The final battle came before Harry was completely ready. The Death Eaters attacked first, and many students were killed in the battle. Harry didn't pay them any attention. He couldn't think about them, because he knew that if he did he would fall apart. Instead, he focused all his energy on killing Voldemort.
Soon, though, his thoughts were focused elsewhere. Voldemort had gotten a hold of Severus. Harry became furious as he watched his love be tortured. Harry attacked. Voldemort wasn't surprised. He had been waiting for Harry to show up. As they fought, Harry caught a glimpse of Severus, who was lying on the ground, bloody and bruised and wheezing. That only fueled Harry's ire, and he fought Voldemort more aggressively.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, the dark wizard fell. Harry, weak from the fight, collapsed on the ground next to Severus. He crawled over so he could inspect Severus. The older man was still breathing, but very slightly. Using the last of his strength, Harry managed to stand up and levitate Severus to the hospital wing. Then he collapsed on the floor.
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Someone was holding Harry's hand when he woke up. Opening his eyes slowly, Harry found himself looking into Severus's eyes.
"Severus!" Harry exclaimed, throwing his arms around the older man. "Oh, I'm so glad that you're all right! I was so worried that something had happened to you."
"I'm fine," said Severus. His tone made Harry lean back a little. Frowning, Harry searched Severus's eyes, trying to determine what had happened.
"What's wrong?" he asked fearfully. Severus hesitated, then finally answered.
"Your friends didn't make it," he answered softly.
Harry didn't know what to say. The euphoria he had felt after seeing Severus left as quickly as it had come. He felt numb. His eyes started to fill with tears, and he didn't even attempt to brush them aside. He felt Severus climb onto the bed and pull Harry closer. Harry let the older man rub his back. It was a small comfort, but it was still there.
Sorry about this one. This is one of the ones that I love the song, but I don't really like the songfic. I was going to have Severus die in the battle and have Harry have to carry on like nothing's wrong, as I think it fits the song better, but I know that people prefer happy endings, so I didn't. Not that this is happy, but Sev's still alive, so I figured this was better than one where he died.
Please review and let me know if you agree or not.