Chapter 49

"I don't get why the Wizarding World continues to insist on wearing robes at every opportunity when they are the least practical things ever." Harry griped, examining himself in the mirror as he swished his arms and the drooping sleeves from side to side.

"What I don't get is if we're supposed to be the guests of honor, how come we don't get to wear what we want?" Ron shrugged into a maroon dress robe. "You're Harry Potter. You should be able to accept your Order of Merlin in jeans and a t-shirt if you want."

"I tried that argument on Hermione. It didn't have much impact." Harry grimaced, recalling Hermione's tight grip as she had dragged them from the castle to go shopping. "How's this?" He turned to show Ron his ensemble.

The other boy nodded approvingly, "Decent. How about me?" He gestured to his own robes.

Harry pulled a face. "The colour clashes with your hair too much, I reckon. Try navy blue, it will complement better."

Ron's jaw dropped open. "Where the bleeding hell did you learn that? Witch Weekly?"

Harry shrugged. "Ginny looks hot in navy."

"Mate." Ron gave him a hard stare. "Not cool."

Harry snickered unapologetically. "Will you just choose something already so we can get out of here. Hermione won't let us head to Quality Quidditch Stores unless we're both sorted for the Victory Ball."

Ron reached for a nearby navy robe, ignoring Harry's smug look. "Don't you say a word."

Harry scrunched up another sheet of parchment in frustration and threw it haphazardly in the direction of the office bin.

Severus, without looking up from his own work, remarked dryly, "I do hope you don't expect to leave my office in a such a deplorable state."

Harry rolled his eyes and waved the collection of discarded paper surrounding the bin away with a mere swish of his hand. That at least had Snape looking up with a raised eyebrow at the casual display of wandless, wordless magic.

"I wouldn't have made a mess if you would help me with this acceptance speech." Harry griped.

"I already told you my suggestion, you didn't like it." Severus was already back to work, flicking through the parchment in front of him.

"Because I can't tell the Wizengamot, the Ministry of Magic and the general wizarding public to 'bugger off!'"

"You could, but if your concern is with offending others then I suppose I understand your hesitation." Harry's only response was a huff and a glare so Severus sighed. "If I tell you what to say it will simply sound disingenuous coming from you."

"I'd rather sound disingenuous than be stood there gaping like a fish with absolutely nothing to say!"

"You'll think of what you want to say."

"You keep saying that, but I can't think of anything!" Harry objected.

"You need to stop worrying about it." Severus reasoned. "It's late. Put it aside for now, you can come back to it tomorrow."

"Fine." Harry flicked his quill away from himself so it rolled across the desk, somewhat bemused by Severus' scowl as the quill dripped ink across the mahogany.

The professor moved his own work aside and began pouring them the tea he had summoned. "You're incorrigible this evening."

Harry shrugged. He didn't know what that was supposed to mean, but he could guess that it wasn't exactly a compliment.

"Are you going to talk about what is bothering you?"

"You already know what's bothering me." Harry said, still sulking - and the fact that he could do so in front of Snape comfortably said more about how their relationship had changed than Harry cared to admit.

"You don't want to give a speech."

"I don't want to give a speech, I don't want to go to the stupid victory ball. I've got more important things to worry about, like my NEWTs and working out where the hell I'm going to live once they're over and the fact that we're both avoiding talking about the sinister magic living in your arm that you refuse to get rid of." Harry sat back in his chair heavily, slightly breathless after the unexpected rant, though he couldn't bring himself to entirely regret saying it.

There was a lengthy pause before Severus tried, "Harry –"

"It's fine, whatever. We don't have to talk about it."

"I think it is clear that we do."

"I don't want to fight." Harry said tiredly.

"Nor do I." Severus said gently. "We can discuss this calmly."

"Right."

Severus ignored Harry's evident disbelief. "I was angry before because I do not wish for you to risk yourself for something unnecessary."

"I get that, I know it was a risk, but I'm glad I did it because now we know that I can do it. So now I can help you."

"I don't want you risking yourself for me."

"There is no risk! I did it for Draco and I'm completely fine."

"You don't know that the reaction would be the same for mine. I have had the mark for far longer than Draco, it could be entirely different. Why risk injury to your person when it doesn't affect me at all?"

"That's crap!" Harry objected. "I've seen how the magic is locked onto yours and you can't deny the change in Draco since I took his off." Severus couldn't counter that point. Draco did indeed seem more carefree since his mark had been extracted. "I don't understand why you keep making excuses. Why won't you let me help you?"

Severus had to be as open with Harry as he asked the young Gryffindor to be with him, though it wasn't going to be easy. "Harry, what you're suggesting, beyond the obvious risks, would involve you exploring my magic. You're asking me to make myself incredibly vulnerable to you. It was difficult for me to even show you the mark, let alone allow you to help me in this way."

Severus expected Harry to protest again, to tell him his arguments were foolish, but when he found the courage to look up at the young wizard, he just looked sad. "After everything we've been through, can't you trust me?"

Severus' chest felt tight. It was a challenge he couldn't dismiss easily. After everything Harry had done, shouldn't he trust him with this? The boy had proven himself over and over again. He was certainly capable. What's more, there wasn't another person in the world whom Severus could name as more trustworthy. If he had to make himself vulnerable to someone, Harry Potter is the person he would choose. Harry would never take advantage of Severus', nor anyone's, vulnerability.

"Very well."

"What?" Harry was taken aback by the sudden agreement.

"You're right. I trust you."

"Oh, okay, right. So… do you want to do it now, or…?"

"I think we'll schedule it in." Severus stated quickly. "I shall need some time to prepare myself mentally for the event."

"Sure, that's cool." Harry agreed readily. "Whenever you're ready."

"Thank you." Severus said sincerely. "Now perhaps we should talk about that little comment about where you are going to live after Hogwarts?"

Harry's lips parted, suddenly recalling what he had said during his fit of frustration.

"How long have you been worried about this?" The professor asked in concern.

"I'm not worried about it." Harry denied, then added when Severus looked at him incredulously, "I'm not! I've just been thinking about it lately."

"Very well, what have you been thinking about it?"

"I'm just trying to decide what the right thing for me is. Hermione's renting a flat in London and Ron's going to be living above the shop with George, although he'll probably be at Mione's flat most of the time anyway. So I wondered if I should rent somewhere too? Or should I buy somewhere instead? I've got the money." He reasoned. "But maybe that's a waste when I've already got Grimmauld Place."

"Do you want to stay at Grimmauld Place?" Harry gave him a funny look. "What?"

"No one's ever asked me where I want to stay before." He said simply. "I was always just taken from one place to the next. Told where I had to be."

"Well? Do you want to stay there?" Severus pushed.

Harry grimaced. "Not particularly. We've done the place up quite a bit, but it still holds a lot of memories."

"Perfectly understandable. There's no reason why you should stay there."

"I don't think I could sell it though."

"You don't need to do that either. Hold onto the place, Kreacher will keep it maintained. There's no reason to make a permanent decision about it at this time."

"Yeah, you're right, I guess."

"Harry, you realise you have more options than just that though, don't you?"

"What do you mean?"

"You're not alone in the world. You could apparate to work from anywhere. Molly and Arthur would be delighted to have you move in with them. You could live with Andromeda and Teddy. You have a number of options of homes and families who would be more than happy for you to join them; myself included, though I can't promise any luxury accommodation."

"Are you serious? You would actually let me live with you?"

"I can't imagine why you would want to, but yes, should you ever need a place to go, you shouldn't hesitate to contact me."

"Right." Harry said a bit awkwardly. "Thanks. That's kind of you. I guess that's, you know, 'more'." He said, referencing their candid hospital wing talk.

Severus nodded slowly. "Yes, I suppose it is."

They dedicated Harry's scheduled meeting time on Wednesday evening to removing Snape's mark. Draco, while not present, would be nearby should anything go wrong, neither having told Severus that there was a strong chance Harry would faint, for fear he would pull out of the plan.

"How do you want to do this?" Harry began.

"I think you are the expert in this scenario," Severus drawled. "You tell me."

"Um, ok, you sit there then and I'll just move my chair around a bit." Harry began the awkward process of dragging the heavy wooden chair around the corner of the desk. He wouldn't make the mistake of standing this time.

Happy with his proximity to the professor, Harry sat and nodded at the tabletop. "Maybe put your arm on the desk and I'll put my hand on top like we did that time before."

Severus gave a short nod and began unbuttoning his cuffs, while Harry watched on nervously. He didn't doubt he could do it, now with the success of removing Draco's under his belt especially, but doing something so monumental to the professor, for the professor, set his nerves on edge and he wringed his hands while he waited for the Slytherin to reveal his arm.

Severus endeavoured not to allow Harry's evident nerves to affect him and was equally unwilling to display his own reservations. He had agreed to this and he would see it through, for Harry's sake and his own.

"Ready?" Harry asked him, hand hovering above the blackened skin of his arm. Severus nodded and Harry closed his eyes to begin.

For a moment it seemed as though nothing was happening, but then Severus felt the first brush of magic across his skin. It was gentle, as it had been the last time, and warm, but it was more insistent than when they had explored this connection before.

Severus kept his eyes on Harry's face, the slight crease of concentration between his eyebrows. The Gryffindor's eyes stayed tight shut as he focused on his task and Severus watched his expression closely for any signs of trouble or distress. Within his own body he could feel only the positive energy of Harry's pure magic working within him.

It felt like it had been a long time of watching the micro-expressions of Harry's face, but by keeping half an eye on the clock in the corner, he knew it had only been a few minutes since they began. Severus wasn't even sure how long it was supposed to take, nor at what point he should begin to worry. Or worry more, since he had been worried the entire time.

His close watch allowed Severus to notice the subtle change in Harry a few minutes later which indicated his increased exertion. His frown deepened and his lips parted to release short staccato breaths. Noticing the change, however, did nothing to indicate what Severus should do about it.

Suddenly the feeling of the magic inside him intensified and Severus could see the waves of magic emanating from Harry in the same way it had when he witnessed Harry's magic down at the school wards. The energy flowed around the room in powerful waves that caused a breeze to whip around them, but Harry's hand never left his arm.

A crescendo built and then every speck of magic seemed to be sucked back in towards the young saviour. Severus could only stare in shock for a moment before magic exploded out of the mark where they were connected and Harry was thrown backwards so forcefully that his chair knocked backwards and Harry was left sprawled unconscious on the floor.

The room was deathly silent before Severus shot out of his chair to get to Harry on the floor, already brandishing his wand to summon Draco and then diagnose Harry.

The diagnostic charm revealed a head injury and concussion, which was unsurprising given the fall from his chair. Severus cushioned the boy's head and shook his shoulders as Draco burst through the office door, apparently closer than Severus had thought.

"What happened?" Draco asked, appearing far calmer than Severus as he crouched by Harry's head.

"Some form of magical surge." Severus explained distractedly, now casting repeated rennervates in an attempt to bring the Gryffindor round.

Draco nodded. "He should come round in a few minutes."

Severus paused in his actions to lay a narrow-eyed glare at Draco. "And how would you know that?"

Draco's look was at least somewhat apologetic. "This sort of happened when he removed my mark also."

Severus' expression turned colder and more severe. "And neither of you thought that might be important to mention?" He hissed.

"We thought you'd refuse to do it if you knew." Draco admitted simply. "Potter didn't want to risk it. He was desperate to help you."

"So you decided to dupe me into agreeing to this, to putting him in unnecessary danger."

"I suggested that he sit down this time, so he wouldn't fall over."

"Damn good that did!" Severus' voice was rising. "The force of the blast knocked him out of his chair."

"Bloody hell." Draco muttered, wondering if the force was greater in this circumstance of if he had merely downplayed the danger in his own mind.

"How long until he wakes up?"

"Not long." Draco answered. "I'm sure it wasn't longer than a minute or two when he did mine."

Severus frowned in concern. "It has already been a few minutes. Was he injured before?"

Draco's expression became sheepish. "He had a pretty bad bump to the head from when he fainted. I treated it the best I could and told him to get the other two thirds of the golden trio to keep an eye on him."

"So he was concussed." Severus said flatly. "And neither of you thought to seek actual medical treatment?"

"I told him he should." Draco held up his hands defensively, fully prepared to throw Harry under the thestral carriage for this one. "Potter didn't want you to…overreact."

"Potter has a rather skewed perspective of what counts as a rational reaction where his personal safety is concerned." Severus commented bitterly. "It's been too long. I'm taking him to Pomfrey."

He lightened the boy with a quick spell and scooped him up in his arms. As he headed for the office door however, the formerly limp body began to stir and emerald eyes blinked open.

"Severus?" Harry's voice came weak and confused.

Severus swiftly altered his plans. He had Draco transfigure the hardback chair into something soft and lowered Harry gently into it.

"You're ok." He knelt by the side of Harry's chair, watching the young wizard's expressions closely as he gradually returned to full awareness.

"Are you well?"

"Yeah, fine." Harry croaked out.

"Do not lie." Severus hissed harshly. "You have a concussion so I know your head must be pounding."

"If you already know, why are you asking me?" Harry asked with more attitude than Draco, or even any other student, would have dared.

"Because I wanted to ensure there was nothing the diagnostic charm had missed and I was under the foolish misconception that you would actually tell me if you are injured." Severus snapped crossly.

"It's just a head bump, nothing serious." Harry sulked.

"A concussion is bloody serious!"

"Look," Draco interrupted. "Aren't you two forgetting something? Have you even looked at your arm yet, Severus?"

The pair stopped their argument instantly. Severus brought his gaze slowly down to his left forearm and turned his wrist so the soft skin of his inner arm was displayed. Pale white skin greeted him. Unmarked. Untainted. Pure, tattoo-free skin.

No one spoke. Severus' expression remained blank and emotionless, Harry's delighted and relieved.

"Draco, leave us please." The professor's voice remained natural.

"Sir?"

"Just go, please." That time Draco could make out some of the tightness in his voice. He nodded and left quietly.

"Severus?" Harry prompted the professor who had remained silent and motionless. His head bowed where he still kneeled by Harry's armchair, silky strands of black hair hanging in front of his face, shielding his face from Harry's view as he kept his gaze on the bare forearm which still rested between them.

After a moment, Severus looked up and Harry was startled to see his eyes were glassy with tears and his expression open and vulnerable.

"Sir!" Harry exclaimed. "What's wrong? Did I hurt you?"

"I am not hurt, Harry. Nothing is wrong." Severus choked out, determined to control the wobble in his voice. "I am better than I have ever been." A tear escaped his eye. "I cannot tell you what you have done for me. I have nothing which could repay you for what you have done and words cannot express how grateful I am to you."

"Sir, you don't owe me anything. It was nothing, really, and I was happy to do it."

"It was not nothing, Harry. You have set me free after decades of enslavement. I have a chance at life now because of you."

"Nothing you don't deserve, Sir." Harry said sincerely, rubbing the back of his head with a poorly disguised wince. "I should probably head back to the dorms. Hermione said she would help with the speech for the ball."

Harry started to get up but was stopped by Severus' firm hand on his shoulder. "Nice try, Mr Potter," the man always seemed to use Harry's surname when he was about to lecture him. "My gratitude has not eclipsed the fact that you hid a concussion from me when you did this for Draco, nor that you have hit your head and have another concussion right now."

"Just a little concussion." Harry mumbled.

Severus gave him an exasperated look. "The only place you are going now is to the infirmary to be examined by Madam Pomfrey."

Severus couldn't help but be mildly amused by Harry's horrified expression. "Can't you do it? You must have potions for it here."

"I might have been persuaded to do so were it not the second concussion you have had this month. You need to be checked by an actual medical professional."

If asked, Harry would vehemently deny that he sulked the entire way to the hospital wing.

"Oh good, Severus, you're here." Minerva's surprise was somewhat negated by her previous demand that he arrive early, Severus thought. The headmistress' rather frazzled appearance, however, caused him to keep his protest quiet.

"How can I assist, Minerva?" Severus offered instead.

"Charm that table plan over to the main doors, would you? And then could you please see if you can convince the ceiling to do something a little more celebratory." She gestured up to the stubbornly grey and overcast sky which was magically projected by the Great Hall's enchanted ceiling.

"Of course."

Minerva thanked him and was about to bustle off to handle something else before she paused to look him up and down. "You look very well, Severus." She commented, unable to keep the notes of surprise and approval out of her voice.

Severus scowled at her to hide his embarrassment and the fierce witch shrugged before heading off to her next task.

Severus sighed and went to do as he was told, levitating the board displaying the table plan so as not to muss his dress robes by carrying it by hand. He paused after placing the board to examine it for his own seat, frowning at the names when he couldn't locate his own. Not that he would be disappointed to return to his chambers for the evening. Eventually he located the italicized script of his name under the unexpected heading of Table 1. He scanned the other names to assess what sort of evening he should anticipate and was pleased that the company wouldn't be abysmal. The Golden Trio, fellow recipients of the First Order of Merlin, would be sat on his table along with Minerva, the Minister and a handful of other Ministry officials. Provided Severus was sat near Minerva or Kingsley rather than a Ministry fool, the evening would be relatively tolerable.

He turned back into the great Hall where the long house tables had been replaced with elegantly dressed round tables for the Victory Ball which was due to begin in ten minutes. Severus swiftly began work on charming the ceiling using a complex series of charms, and was pleased when it displayed a serene and starry night sky by the time the first guests were entering. He headed to a table for magically replenishing drinks and found himself a scotch before retreating to a quiet corner while the room began to fill.

His self-exclusion worked for awhile until the Minister of Magic found him. "You're looking well, Severus." He said by way of greeting causing Severus' ever-present frown to deepen further. He was wearing dress robes but had made no more effort than that. He had no idea why people kept commenting on how 'well' he looked.

"Minister." He greeted, choosing not to acknowledge the comment at all.

"How are you, Severus?" Kingsley asked pleasantly.

"Well," he answered. "Apparently."

"I haven't seen the guests of honor yet. He will come, won't he?"

"He hasn't told me otherwise." Severus scanned the room, though he already knew Potter wasn't there since he had been looking out for him. "Though perhaps if the Ministry wants to ensure the presence of its guest of honor, they shouldn't force said guest of honor to make a speech in order to receive an award they don't even want."

Kingsley sighed. "That wasn't my decision."

Severus persisted, "You are aware that he already mistrusts the Ministry."

"I will endeavour to change that, not just for Harry. We know that we need to regain people's trust."

Severus nodded.

"Oh, Merlin, there's Cornelius." Kingsley spotted the former Minister, immediately recognizable by his lime green robes. "The man is insufferable."

"I'm surprised he's here."

"He was only invited as a formality. Anyone with any decency would have declined, but Fudge seems to think that everyone will have collectively forgotten his catastrophic tenure as Minister." Kingsley turned to face Severus. "You know the man writes to me weekly with tips. Tips! From the man who sat back and watched as the Wizarding World went to war!"

"Then for Merlin's sake don't stay around me, I have no desire to be stuck in a tiresome conversation with that imbecile."

"You are probably the one person that would keep me safe from him; Cornelius was always quite terrified of you."

"I'd rather not take the risk."

"Yes, yes, point taken." Kingsley acquiesced. "Dear Merlin, I had better intervene before he starts talking to the foreign dignitaries." He said, spotting Fudge making a beeline towards the French ambassador. "See you at dinner, Severus."

"Kingsley." Severus nodded at the Minister as he left reluctantly to deal with Fudge.

No one else approached Severus and he was able to sip his scotch in peace while keeping an eye on the door. Eventually he saw the Gryffindor trio, plus Miss Weasley who was presumably Harry's date for the evening, enter. They made a discreet entrance, but Severus could still sense a shift in the energy of the room. Voices lowered slightly as people noticed the presence of the Saviour in the room, a collective whisper of acknowledgement that spread like fire from one person to the next.

Gradually people returned to their conversations or at least gave the appearance of doing so, but Severus watched the Gryffindors closely, keen to get a sense of Harry's mental state. He struggled to get a good view of Harry's face, but it was immediately apparent that his friends were stressed over something. Watching for a while, Severus could tell something was wrong. Granger and the Weasley boy were engaged in frequent, tense whispered conversations, while Miss Weasley appeared glued to Harry's side. When people approached the pair, Granger and Weasley would jump in, practically stopping their path to Harry and engaging whoever it was in long conversation while Harry was being whisked away by his girlfriend. When an interaction could not be avoided, Miss Weasley was holding the conversation, doing most of the talking while Harry hardly spoke.

Severus knew that Harry would find the evening difficult. An occasion like this carried too much weight, too many emotions and too many memories. He had expected to be keeping his distance from the young wizard this evening, hoping that he could keep a low profile, but it was clear that Harry needed support of some kind. Perhaps he had not managed to write an acceptance speech after all.

With the practiced skill of a spy, Severus moved unnoticed around the edge of the room. He stepped out of the shadows once he was close to Harry and was immediately blocked by Granger.

"Good evening, Professor." She greeted with forced cheer.

"Miss Granger." He spared her a nod. "Excuse me, I want to speak with Mr Potter."

"Oh, anything I can help with?"

Severus raised an eyebrow at her. "Yes, you can move so I can speak with Mr Potter."

"Right, of course." She laughed awkwardly. "Before you go, Sir, I wanted to ask you about –"

"I know precisely what you are attempting to do, Miss Granger, and my limited patience is now entirely diminished. Now either tell me what is wrong with Potter or stand aside so I can find out for myself."

Granger's falsely bright expression was replaced with one of genuine worry and she exchanged a nervous glance with Ronald who had hovered beside her throughout.

"We might as well let him, Mione. He might be able to help and he's one of the few people Harry actually trusts."

Severus could almost see the girl weighing pros and cons in her mind. The pros must have won out as she sighed and stepped out of his way. "I suppose you're right."

They cleared his path and Severus was finally able to get a clear view of Harry's face as Ginervra pulled him closer by his hand. His complexion was pale and his eyes seemed glassy.

"I don't know why you guys are bothering to hide me, everyone will have to figure out that Harry Potter isn't perfect eventually." He quipped in an odd tone.

Severus took in Harry's dazed expression and the slightly leaning frame of his body. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. He lowered his voice, ensuring that no bystanders would hear his hissed accusation.

"Potter…are you drunk?"