Hey guys! I'm sorry for the delay posting the chapter, but I've been helping some friends with the subjects they have failed and I'm busy looking for a job for the summer.
About the story, this will be the end of the story, but I'll post an epilogue soon. I hope you've liked reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it. Thank you so much for your support, you are the best!
Three months later…
Severus' point of view
I'm going back to my quarters after having finished teaching my last class when I hear voices in an abandoned classroom. I go closer to take a look and I see a flushed Draco kneeling in front of a smiling Harry. I frown, what are they doing?
"Do you want to marry me?" Draco asks.
"Aww, Draco, yes I do." Harry answers in a girlish voice; and immediately, my heart breaks.
"Really, you have to stop spending time with Snape and Granger!" Draco says and Harry laughs. If I thought my heart couldn't break more I was wrong. I run to my quarters. I'm not going to cry.
But Harry is my only friend. It has been like that since the boy offered to be my friend when I was sick. Harry stayed with me during holidays. At first, he only stayed to take care of me when I was sick, saying that I couldn't stay alone, but then, he decided to stay when I had already recovered until the start of the term. After that, he came to my quarters every day after dinner, and we always talked until it was time for him to return to Gryffindor tower.
After everything Harry has done for me, if the boy wants to marry Draco, he is free to do it. After all it isn't the boy's fault if I have such a dirty mind.
I'm so stupid! Hoy can Harry love me? I'm old, ugly and sour! I've only caused him problems since we met.
I take the firewhiskey. I'll drink one glass, then I'll correct some essays or I'll brew a potion. That will suffice to distract me.
Harry's point of view
After dinner, like every day since Christmas, I tell Hermione and Draco that I'm going to the dungeons. I'm heading towards the stairs when I see Severus.
"What the hell? It don't opens!" A drunk Severus says hitting the wall.
"Severus? Are you ok?" I ask. Well, clearly he's not ok, but I can't ask if he's drunk in front of the other students that are looking at him.
"Potter, you are there. Why don't you go with your husband?" He says sneering.
"Severus, let's go to your quarters. There are students looking at you."
"Why?" Severus said turning to see the students. "Oh Merlin! Maybe they want a cup of firewhiskey! That's why they are looking." Severus says giggling, and starts looking everywhere for something. "Where is the firewhiskey?" He asks me.
"In your quarters, I suppose. Come on, let's go to your quarters and we'll come back with the bottle." I tell him, and I hope he agrees with me.
"Good." Severus says after a while.
"Boys," I say looking at the four Gryffindor students that are looking at us, "professor Snape has been dosed with a potion. If you don't tell anyone about this I'll make sure that you stay out of detention with him, and he'll award points to Gryffindor. Agreed?"
"Yes sir!" The four of them answer immediately, with a broad grin in his face, before running to the Great Hall.
"The door don't opens. You are pretty tonight." Severus says when we are alone.
"And you are so drunk that you don't know what you're saying. That's not a door, is a wall, that's why it doesn't open." I tell him. "Come on, let's go."
Half an hour after, we've reached Severus' quarters. I try to take him to bed, but he has different thoughts.
"There isn't more." Severus says.
"Come on Severus, go to bed." I answer tiredly.
"Why there isn't more Potter?" The man asks.
"More? Of what?" I reply.
"Of that thingy." Severus says pointing at the empty bottle of firewhiskey. "How can I be a good friend if I can't congratulate you?"
"Severus, what are you talking about? Please get in bed. I'm tired and I have to take a polyjuice potion to patrol the halls. You obviously can't do it and I don't think you would appreciate me telling the Headmaster about this." I say, hoping he climbs into bed so I can look for his stock of polyjuice potion.
"Ohh! I should have thought about that! Where is Draco? I'm finding him." Severus says giggling.
"SEVERUS! I'm tired of this. Get. Into. Bed. NOW!" I say pretending to be angry. I have to get him into bed or I will be late to patrol the halls, and Severus Snape never is late. "Let's see if you get this. You are going to stay here, in your quarters, while I drink some polyjuice to transform into you and I go to do your job, patrolling the halls. I will come back when I finish, and you Will. Not. Leave. The. Quarters. Meanwhile. Is it clear?"
Severus stays frozen and swallows. Finally, he nods and I support him on the way to his room. I take a hair from Severus and I drink the polyjuice potion that I've found in his closet. I don't have time to change his clothes, so I leave him like that, and I tell him I'm leaving.
Three hours later, after giving detention and (much to my dismay) taking points from Gryffindor; I go back to Severus quarters hoping that the man is already asleep. I whisper the password to the portrait and I enter.
Severus is asleep, lying in the couch hugging the potions book I gave him on Christmas, and April, asleep too, is curled with him. The professor's body is trembling and he has tear marks in his still wet cheeks.
"What's wrong with you today Severus?" I whisper, kneeling beside the couch.
"Harry." Severus wakes up immediately.
"Not as drunk as before I suppose. Let's get you into your bed and change your clothes. I thought I told you to stay there before." I say standing up and offering him my hand.
"I'm sorry. Please, give me a chance. Give me a chance before marrying Malfoy." Severus pleads.
"What? Severus I'm…" I start saying, but he interrupts me.
"No, please at least listen to me. I know you much better than Malfoy does. I'll change, I'll do everything you want. I don't mind if you want us to stay here or if you want to go to another place. I'll never tell you to stop seeing your friends. I know I'm ugly and old but give me a chance. I would even take polyjuice to have sex with you if you want. I love you, just let me prove it." A kneeling Severus with tears rolling down his cheeks says.
"Severus, you don't understand what happened…" I try to explain, but I'm interrupted again.
"Please Harry, I need you in my life! It doesn't have sense without you!" Severus says clearly distressed taking my hands. "I just need a chance. Tell me what you want me to do."
"Fine Severus." I say kneeling in front of him and wiping his tears with my hands. He's not going to listen now, so I can't tell him he's mistaken. "We'll talk in the morning. Now I'm tired. Let's go to sleep, ok?"
"Thank you." Severus whispers sobbing.
Five minutes later we are finally in bed. I've decided to stay with him, he can't stay alone in this state. We are both lying in each side of the bed, dressed in the pyjamas that I've transfigured for us. Severus, still sobbing, is thanking me again and again. Well, at least now I know what is wrong.
"Severus, calm down." I say moving closer to Severus. "Come here." I say opening my arms for Severus.
It doesn't take a lot of time for Severus to fall asleep now that I'm hugging him, and finally, I can sleep too.
Severus' point of view
I wake up with a splitting headache. It takes me five minutes to remember what happened yesterday, and when I do, I'm horrified. Obviously, now I'm going to lose Harry's friendship.
But maybe, if I apologize quickly, Harry will forgive me. He's a kind young man.
Harry isn't here, but April is snuggled in the pillow, near my head. In the bedside table, I find a hangover potion with a note. It reads 'Severus, I've gone to the tower to change my clothes. I'll come back to eat breakfast and talk about yesterday. Drink the potion.'
Well, at least I have a chance to talk with him and retain his friendship. I'm drinking the potion when the door of the room is opened.
"Good morning Severus. How are you feeling?" Harry asks.
"Better now. I want to apologise." I say.
"No." He says, and my heart breaks once more. "Let me explain everything first. You think I'm going to marry Draco, don't you?" Harry tells me, and I nod frowning. "Tell me what you saw."
"Well, you were in that classroom, with him" I say with disgust. "He asked you to marry him, you said yes, and he told you to stop seeing me and Granger." I say with my hands trembling.
"That's why yesterday you told me to give you a chance, before marrying him." Harry says sitting in the bed with me and taking my trembling hands in his.
"Yes, I'm sorry about that. But I'm indeed in love with you." I say not looking at him.
"Sev, I'm not marrying Draco. He was going to ask Hermione to marry him yesterday night. He asked the Headmaster if he could take her to Hogsmeade to have dinner, since today we didn't have class because of Easter holidays. Dumbledore agreed and Draco wanted to practice because he was nervous. I was free so I helped him. He told me that about Hermione because I answered in a girlish voice and about you because I was being sarcastic, something you would have done too. I suppose you left before I told him that he should stop calling her Granger if he was going to marry her." Harry explains. "I tried to explain this yesterday, but you wouldn't listen."
I look at him deadpanned. I'm sure that if someone looked at me now, he would think I'm a ghost, because all the blood has left my face. I can't talk, what am I going to tell him after embarrassing me like that? But Harry squeezes my hands and continues talking.
"Anyway, I'm in love with a man, you know. I didn't think I had a chance with him until yesterday. So, remind me to thank Draco." Harry said caressing Severus cheek, and then he leaned to kiss him softly.