Chapter twenty-one: battling along

Ron shook his head as Harry pivoted away from the Potion Masters spell, sweeping an inkpot off the table and launching it as a projectile at the other man, shattering it and covering him in ink when it was only a few feet away.

If anyone had told him that Harry and Snape would start a duelling club this year, and not only duel each other but do so with respect and - dare he say it - enjoyment, he'd have been rude enough to laugh in their face.

Harry had woken after sleeping for a week and a half in a very dazed state. He'd been a bit childlike in his attachment to them all, a sweet pliable child that was most often content when someone was holding him close. This state had lasted for another week, though it had faded a bit each day. Ron had been desperately worried, but his lover had reassured him he was back in his own inimitable way, remembering the privacy wards they used only just in time.

Snape snarled and snapped his wand in a vicious circle, casting without a sound. Harry rolled under that one easily as his opponent clawed at his face to wipe the worst of the ink away. The teenager launched himself swiftly forward, tackling the man around the waist and bearing him to the ground before shoving his wand in the other mans face and growling:

"Yield!"

Snape glared up at him and then nodded once. Harry immediately twirled his wand, soundlessly cleaning the ink away and getting up, offering his opponent a polite hand as well. Snape allowed himself to accept the assistance and banished the wards protecting Malfoy and Ron from stray spells as soon as he was properly upright.

"That was hardly fair, Potter!" Draco scathed at once, "Show some decorum! Muggle brawling has no place in a proper duel!"

"And any advantage available to me while duelling Death Eaters is not to be neglected," Harry snapped back, "They'll hardly show the restraint that the Professor does!"

Snape preened at this stroke to his ego, and Ron stepped down into the classroom proper, waving his own wand to fix a damaged desk. He ignored the glare he got for speaking his spell aloud, and made his way to Harry's side. Snape had a thing about them performing magic silently, and any spoken spell was a mark against their names. Ron and Harry had both found this difficult at first and had spoken the spells under their breath. Harry had soon mastered the silent technique, and Ron could also manage, although he preferred to incant aloud. Draco, oddly enough, had struggled with this, though Ron had speculated to Harry that it was because the blonde loved the sound of his own voice.

"Enough!" Snape interrupted Harry and Draco's heated argument, "The tactic was a valid one, and not one that my former colleagues will be expecting. However, from now on I will, Mr Potter, and I expect to see more magic and less Muggle in our next duel. You are dismissed for the afternoon."

Ron smiled and Harry slung an arm around him, turning and heading back for the stairs. Ron had managed to overcome Draco in their own duel before Harry and Snape had their little go round, which meant that neither teen was responsible for repairing the spell damage in the cellar. Snape duelled all of them in turn, and he was the only one to beat Harry in a duel - not even Ron with the advantage of a lover's knowledge could do that.

Christmas was just around the corner, and Harry and Ron had both sent Hedwig off with various orders to the stores in Diagon Alley. His lover was good at hiding presents, and Ron had learnt some inventive anti-tampering spells to keep his own gifts from prying eyes. That description definitely included Moony and Padfoot who were even more childlike about the upcoming holiday than the alleged children of the house were. Hermione was going home to her parents for the holidays, but Ginny would be there with the rest of Ron's family. There had been no intention of inviting the Potters - in fact they hadn't been mentioned since Draco had joined the household. Ron wasn't sure if the Slytherin knew of their existence, but suspected he didn't. Both Snape and Draco would be joining the household for Christmas, and Harry and Ron had gone in together to get them both a gift. It had been a last minute thought on both their parts, though they wouldn't tell the recipients of the gifts that.

"How did it go?" Sirius voice intruded on his thoughts and Ron grinned at the Animagus.

"We are the Champions," he boasted, and Harry laughed leaning even closer. Ron grinned and hauled him in tight to his side, as was their habit.

"I knew it!" Sirius crowed and hugged them both, before pretending to cower from them, "Eww, manly sweat!"

"We're going to clean up," Harry promised and Ron led the green-eyed teen upstairs. Once in their room he started gathering things for a shower only to hear Harry lock the door and then ward it.

"I see no point in cleaning up just to get dirty again," there was a distinct purr to the other boys voice, and he pounced, knocking the redhead onto their bed and straddling him. Ron moaned when Harry's body rubbed over his in a very provocative manner.

"Good point," he lifted his head for a kiss, and got one, hot and wet and nasty. A mumbled spell had them both naked and he sent his hands plunging to the bum rubbing him up the right way.

"Good idea," Harry groaned, his eyes slitted in pleasure and Ron sent fingers questing. He was rewarded with a groan and a hitch in his lovers breathing, and crooked his finger in a way that he knew would get Harry in the right mood for something a little more substantial.

There was something so easy about this act now - just what he had dreamed of when he and Harry had first gotten together. Their loving was as natural as breathing, and came almost as second nature. All thoughts were blasted from his head as Harry lifted himself up a little, his hand steadying Ron's prick.

The redhead abandoned himself to the sensation of love and really good sex.

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