Author note: Hello, it's been about 20 months since I last posted anything. I have no real excuse except for extreme writer's block! I would know exactly what I wanted to write but couldn't put it into words!
But on the bright side, I'm back, and I promise it won't be another 20 months until the next chapter!
Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter and that we've returned with a bit of a bang!
S L x
Warning: Language
"Well, it's nice to know things have gone back to how they were!" Harry screamed back at Severus.
Severus didn't even reply before grabbing his cloak and slamming the door to their rooms.
Harry could hear him storm angrily down the hallway from behind the door, but he would not follow him. He would not apologize for this. He had been so careful not to start any arguments for the last month or let Severus begin one, but this morning had finally pushed him to the core.
He could tell Severus was in a bad mood the moment he walked in last night. He wasn't sitting in the living room like he usually did; instead, Harry found him sitting quietly in his study, an empty glass resting next to him. He had tried to enquire about Edward and see what Severus thought on the matter, but after about 10 minutes of one-worded answers, Harry assumed that this mood would not be helped by trying to chat.
He left the room after Severus had told him his private defense lessons would start very soon, and that was the last thing they had said to each other until this morning.
This morning they had both woken up at similar times, and as far as Harry was concerned, they would have got ready and walked down to the great hall for breakfast together. Oh, how wrong he was.
He had asked one question. One.
"Shall I still call you Severus in class? It feels a bit weird to call you professor now?" And that had been it. Severus had erupted. He yelled at Harry for disrespecting him and again told Harry he was still his teacher.
Then the shouting had really started, and now everything was ruined.
A month of Harry sticking up for him, saying he wasn't so bad, telling people he didn't mind his marriage. All that changed in a single morning. Severus obviously still despised him, and this was the marriage Harry had expected all along. Not the month's worth of late-night chats and small jokes. Shouting and screaming were all Harry expected from this in the beginning, and now he was, unfortunately, going to have just that.
Harry went to retrieve his cloak from the wardrobe in the bedroom; Iris was sitting on the sofa, even she looked concerned by this morning's events. He stroked her gently before leaving to go to the great hall.
He sat quietly at breakfast, occasionally joining in with the conversation, but his mind was entirely elsewhere. He glanced over to the head table where he could see Severus discussing something with Albus, the paper held open in his hand, and for one moment, Harry despised him again.
The whispering had not stopped this morning; the same thing had happened when he walked into the hall, silence and then frantic chatting and a lot of stares between him and his husband.
Harry had learned to ignore it.
It was just his luck that his first class was defense against the dark arts, so begrudgingly, he followed Hermione and Ron to the classroom and was greeted by Edward at the door.
"Harry," Edward smiled at him.
"Sir," Harry replied, following his friends into the room. He took his usual seat next to Ron. Hermione was on the desk next to them, with Lavender sitting next to her.
"Welcome, class. I'm your new defense against the dark arts teacher Professor Reece. I find the whole Professor, Sir, thing very formal, but there we go."
Most of the class chuckled politely in response.
"Now, obviously, everyone here has been good enough to do defense for their N.E.W.T.S, and as such, I expect a very high quality of work from all of you. That said, my door is always open if anyone needs help."
"I wouldn't mind his door being open for anything," Lavender whispered to Hermione.
"Lavender!" Hermione hissed back.
Edward was one of those classically good-looking men with olive skin, black hair, and slight stubble. He dressed well, wearing black trousers and a dark grey shirt, a casual but professional look.
"Now, with that introduction done, if everyone could open their textbooks to page 7, we shall begin with non-verbal defense spells."
Apart from the impending doom Harry had before taking his defense class, he was pleasantly surprised at how much he enjoyed it. Professor Reece was likable and helpful, a world away from Severus when he taught.
He had laughed and joked with the students and had treated them as equals, and surprisingly to Harry, he was remarkably good at the subject. Strangely, he reminded him of Remus.
The class instantly warmed to him. Maybe some of the girls a bit too much.
By the second period, the new professor was the only thing the class could speak about, and Harry was happy for a distraction from his marriage until he rounded the corner to be face-to-face with Draco Malfoy and his two companions.
"Well well, surprised you're not busy fucking the other half of the teaching faculty," Draco smirked. Standing tall and proud above Harry, he was now a good few inches taller than him. Crabbe and Goyle smirked in response.
"Good one, Malfoy," Harry said before pushing past him roughly, Ron and Hermione following behind.
"Nothing else to say? Merlin, certainly the female in your marriage then." Draco laughed, sporting an eruption of laughter from his companions.
The other Gryffindors, including Dean and Seamus, now too turned around to protect their friend.
"What?" Harry demanded.
"You heard. No need for him to repeat it." Crabbe barked out.
"Keep your nose out of other people's lives, Malfoy," Ron said harshly, grabbing Harry by the shoulders and turning him back around to ignore the blonde.
"Oh, touchy." Draco scoffed. "My father is disgusted by it. Trying to get him fired, and he says he shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the school, let alone the head of the house."
"There is absolutely nothing wrong with Harry's marriage or Professor Snape." Hermione spoke quite furiously, and it was only then that Harry realized that should have come out of his mouth.
"I bet you flinch every time he comes near you." Draco hissed furiously at Harry.
Harry spun around quickly so he and Draco were practically nose to chin. "I'm sure you've grown up watching your mother do that every time your father comes close to her, but sorry to disappoint you, my marriage isn't like that."
Draco grew silent at that for just a second.
"Why did you do it?" Draco asked quietly. Even Crabbe and Goyle seemed to lean in to hear better.
"I don't think I understand what you mean?" Harry answered.
"It obviously wasn't for love. Everyone here knows that. So why? Honestly, if you wanted a quick fuck-"
"Shut your mouth Malfoy," Ron said bitterly, reaching for his wand in his pocket. Crabbe, seeing this, immediately took out his wand and tried to cast a spell on Ron. But Ron was too quick, casting his wand over to Draco. Using the 'mouth zip' charm, a giant zipper appeared over Draco's face.
Crabbe and Goyle immediately rushed at their wands again. Both wanting to curse Ron with a much worse fate than a zipper for a mouth.
"Enough." Harry sighed angrily. "Ron." He said quietly, nodding his head to the now red-faced Draco. Silently, Ron undid the spell.
"How dare you, you dirty Weasley." Draco gasped out.
"Malfoy." Harry took a deep breath in. "I really feel sorry for you. Some marriages don't need to be for financial gain or a power move. Most of them happen because of love. You've watched a loveless marriage your whole life and watched your father unable to look at you or your mother. You will never have what we or any of us will have, as no one will ever care or love you enough." Draco opened his mouth like a fish and promptly closed it again as Harry carried on. "Honestly, I think you are jealous and confused, and I truly feel for you."
"Jealous-" Draco started.
"Jealous," Harry repeated, keeping his eyes firmly on the blond boy. "You will never have this; instead, you'll have a marriage of convenience to get your father more power. Maybe then he'll finally respect you."
Draco's nostrils flared. He couldn't bring himself to argue back. There was nothing he could say, and the worst thing about it, Draco feared that was true. His father and mother barely even spoke to each other anymore, and he didn't remember the last time they had sat at a table and eaten together.
"At least my parents watched me grow up." Draco hissed.
Harry put his hand into a fist and would have used it, but he felt a familiar hand on his shoulder. The gasps of his classmates told Harry precisely who it was before he turned to see.
"I don't look fondly on bullying, Mr. Malfoy," Severus said harshly, his hand still firmly on Harry's shoulder. Harry couldn't tell if it was to hold him back or to comfort him. "Inside, all of you," Severus thundered and watched the class scuttle in.
He slowly removed his hand from Harry's shoulder and looked at him.
"Are you alright?" Severus spoke, not a hint of care in his voice.
"Fine, Sir," Harry replied sharply before following his classmates in, with not so much as a look behind him. He heard the door slam and Severus sulk to the front of the classroom.
Severus threw down his book with a bang and turned to face the class. The class was silent, and the happy defense lesson they had had previously was long forgotten.
"I just want to get one thing sorted before we start," Severus' loud voice boomed around the classroom, looking everywhere except Harry's gaze. "You are all seventh-year students, and as seventh years I expect you to behave like adults. What happened outside just now was by no means the act of adults but children. I will not tolerate anything like that in my class or anywhere for that matter again." He spoke firmly, students one by one, letting their eyes cast down to avoid his fiery gaze. He strode over to Draco, who was sitting close to him. "And as for you, Mr. Malfoy," Severus began, letting his voice go to a deadly whisper. "You insult Harry like that again, and detention will be the last thing you'll have to worry about."
Harry watched Draco's eyes widen and his face pale while Severus turned on his heel and marched back to the front of the class.
"Open your books and turn to page 4. We have a lot to cover this year, and I will not be waiting for anybody slow." He glared at the class before turning his back with a dramatic sweep.
Harry silently wished he would return to the shirt and trousers he preferred in summer, but alas, the sweeping potion robes were back.
He opened his book to page 4.
It was a potion to heal someone from acid burns. Harry gulped when he read what the brew would require. It was a complicated potion that would take extreme accuracy to master, and he could already tell he wouldn't be able to do this correctly.
Ron glanced at him, looking as confused and worried as Harry felt.
If Severus hadn't already been in a foul mood, he would undoubtedly be when Harry attempted this. Brewing a potion badly, now no longer affected just Harry, but now it dishonored Severus. A fact they both knew.
The class went to retrieve items, Harry avoiding Severus' gaze as much as humanly possible, and quickly returned to his workspace, his arms full of the ingredients he would need. He recognized half of them from Frank's shop and was happy with the memory.
Silently, everyone in the class got to work. Terrified of Severus' temper and not wanting to put a foot out of line.
Harry diced his porcupine quills slowly and accurately, watching Hermione in front of him to ensure he got it right.
Ron stared blankly at the next instruction, and he, too, glanced over at Hermione whizzing through the next stage.
'Exactly quarter the thunderslug. Dice one section, chop two sections, and melt the last.'
Harry and Ron shared a glance. This was where it was all going to go wrong. Why did potion-making have to be so precise?
Severus had returned to wandering around the classroom, and it was painstakingly obvious he was avoiding Harry's bench.
Seamus' cauldron exploded, and less than a second later, so did Severus.
"Finnigan!" He roared, "10 points from Gryffindor for not being able to follow simple instructions! Sit down. Your potion-making is over, and I want five sheets of parchments about how to brew a successful anti-boil potion by the end of the day."
Seamus sat with a thump, glaring daggers at Harry. He shook his head slowly before reaching into his bag and retrieving his quill and ink.
Harry picked up his knife and began chopping the thunderslug into four portions accurately.
He diced one section, chopped another, and then melted the last two. He chucked them all into the potion and, a split second too late, realized he had made a mistake.
The cauldron turned an alarming shade of fluorescent green before melting and spilling all over the bench and floor.
Severus didn't even bother to hide the furious look on his face; with a silent wave of his wand, he banished the remains of the potion and the cauldron and strolled over silently.
Ron gulped and continued cutting his thunderslug when Severus approached the bench. Hermione too was still working but carefully looking back at the same time.
"Potter." That was all Severus said.
"Professor." Harry came back, silently hating the man for using his last name. Had the previous month meant nothing to him?
"How is it that you cannot follow simple instructions?" Severus bit out.
"Because I need help. Maybe if you helped us instead of walking around silently, we'd all be a lot better at this." Harry practically pleaded. By now, the class had turned silently to watch the two interact.
"Don't you dare tell me how to teach in my own classroom!" Severus shouted back at him. Harry was instantly taken back to their walk after Diagon alley.
"I'm not Severus!" It had slipped out. Harry had not meant for it to slip out; he physically had put his hand over his mouth after he said it. Oh, he had done it this time. The rest of the class physically gasped. Some even dropped what they were holding.
Harry could practically see the fire that erupted in Severus' eyes.
"Sit down," Severus snarled. "50 points from Gryffindor, and you will not speak until this class is over. Do you understand? Do you?"
"You told me not to speak," Harry said, sitting down with a thump, a bored expression evident on his face.
"Another 10 points. Well done Potter." Severus spat out with as much venom as he could aim at Harry now.
The rest of the class went by quickly. Two other cauldrons had exploded, and more points were taken, and Harry mourned the relationship he had grown to enjoy the last month. He mourned the use of his first name, and he mourned the Severus he had grown to like. Harry wondered what tonight would be like. Going back to their room tonight filled Harry with a dread he hadn't felt since that first night.
Harry glanced over at the other students, Seamus scribbling illegible notes as fast as he could on his parchment, Hermione flustered but still managing to get her potion perfect, and Malfoy, who hadn't said a word since Severus had whispered something to him.
It made no sense to Harry. Why call him Harry when talking to Draco and try to defend him, then act like this publicly? It suddenly dawned on Harry that if Draco had said that to Harry, what had been said to Severus?
His whole reputation was lost. What had been said last night and what had been said this morning? Harry wondered.
Harry suddenly felt very guilty for putting him through all of this. After all, it was his own fault he had got disowned, and Severus had given up everything for him. He suddenly felt a lot less angry.
Harry didn't even look at Severus when he walked out of the classroom, Hermione and Ron firmly by his side, Seamus and Dean quickly behind them.
"Well… that was interesting," Ron said when they were firmly out of earshot of the others.
"He's a dick, Harry! How have you done this for a month?" Seamus raged loudly. Hermione shot him a stern glare.
"This is incredibly hard on him too, and he's given up everything to keep Harry safe." She spoke matter of factly.
"He's not a dick, Seamus. Hermione is right. Everyone has thought about how hard this has been on me, but he's given up way more than I have. His whole reputation would have gone after that one story in the paper." Harry spoke suddenly.
"He's horrible to you, Harry!" Ron said, his eyes widening at Hermione and Harry's blatant attempt at standing up for him.
"He's usually not," Harry replied.
"Usually isn't good enough," Ron spoke firmly. "Honestly, Harry, no one is going to believe you're married if this carries on, you might as well just hand yourself over again if he's going to act like that," Ron said in a hushed whisper.
"It won't. It will settle down." Harry told his friends. They all looked worriedly at the others, walking quickly to their next lesson.
Harry wasn't sure who he was trying to convince. He hoped it would all settle down. He was already mourning the man he had grown to like over the past month, and he hoped this one slip-up hadn't ruined it. He was determined not to make this ruin whatever relationship they had built.
As much as it pained him to admit it, he grew rather fond of the man he came home to every night, and he could tell Severus thought the same. Although Harry wasn't sure what it was exactly, he felt, he knew it was something similar to friendship, and he wasn't ready to let that go.
Harry paced back and forwards a few times before finally pushing the door open lightly.
He was half expecting to return to an empty room; however, when he opened the door, he immediately spotted Severus sitting on the sofa, a stack of paper spread across the table, a pot of ink and quill obviously thrown to the side out of frustration.
Harry stood awkwardly while the door slowly shut behind him.
"I'm sorry." For a second, Harry wasn't sure whose mouth that had come out of.
"For?" Harry asked the man sitting on the sofa.
Severus tilted his head and sighed softly.
"Tell me what you're sorry for, and you might get an apology from me too." Harry shrugged.
"A month ago, I told you I would be there for you if you needed help with potions. Today I saw you needed it and did nothing." Severus paused as if thinking about what to say next. "You are truly extraordinary at most things, and although that genuinely pained me to say that, it is the truth. But potions, potions, is not one of your strong points."
"You think I'm extraordinary?" Harry half smiled.
"Don't twist my words. You are the most annoying person I have ever had the misfortune of knowing. But you are extraordinary at that too." Severus softly smiled back.
Harry let himself smile fully before going to sit down in his armchair.
"I suppose I better say sorry too. It can't be easy going from the most feared person in this school to marrying one of the students. Especially as that student is me." Harry leaned forward slightly and held out his hand for Severus.
Severus glanced at it before looking back at the man sitting in the armchair.
"I am not shaking your hand, Harry." He said bluntly.
"To be understanding towards the other. Both of us." Harry ignored him. "Oh, and while we are at it, to stop using last names when speaking to the other."
Severus sighed, "You Gryffindors are so dramatic," was all he said before taking Harry's hand in his.
Harry's hand was smaller than Severus'. His fingers were shorter. Fewer scars littered them, and they were softer from less years of potion-making. They were a perfect fit in Severus' long hands.
Both held on just a second longer than they should have before shaking the others hand and releasing.
Harry smiled brightly at him and nestled to be comfier on the armchair while Severus leaned back on the sofa.
"So, apart from potions, how was your day?" Harry asked him genuinely.
"It certainly wasn't the best," Severus replied.
"Tell me about it." Harry pushed gently.
"I doubt you'd be interested."
"Well, I am. I'm here to listen, and then you can listen about my day." Harry wanted to hear about his day, and he genuinely cared and wanted to know what had happened. He didn't want to go to bed without completely resolving things with Severus.
"How very marital of us," Severus smirked slightly.
"Well, after today, I doubt anyone will think this is real now." Harry grimaced.
"All couples have arguments," Severus said simply.
"Shows passion, I guess?" Harry chuckled.
And for the first time that Harry had seen. Severus laughed. It was a low, intense sound that lasted only a second, but Severus had laughed, and Harry had witnessed it.
Harry smiled at the sound and silently made more promises in his head to hear that sound again. He liked when Severus was happy.
"So, how was your day?" Harry asked again.
"I have heard so many whispers about me that I honestly wouldn't even know where to start. I've tricked you into this marriage; you deserve so much better; I've somehow blackmailed you into this." Instead of sounding sorry for himself, he just sounded tired.
"Blackmailed me? How did they know?" Harry joked, smiling slightly, trying to make light of the situation. "If I hear anyone saying anything like that, I'll stand up for you. You know that, right? Like how you did with Malfoy today, which I haven't thanked you for yet, so thank you."
"When someone insults you, they are now automatically insulting me too. Although this is fake, we've joined names and houses. An insult to you is an insult to me." Severus said harshly.
"I've never said sorry." Harry looked down suddenly. "Sorry for having to do this to save me. It should never have happened, and only now am I beginning to realize how much you gave up."
"This is not your fault. Just a consequence of what that horrible family did to you. Harry, you should have told someone; we could have gotten you out sooner." Severus comforted.
"Well, at least I'm here now." Harry shrugged.
"I'm glad you are." Severus smiled softly, and Harry genuinely couldn't tell if he meant it or was being sarcastic; he hoped he had meant it privately. He liked being here. "I have pages to grade. Are you staying here for a while?"
"I have defense homework, so we can chat while doing both," Harry said while standing up and retrieving his bag, which he had left by the door.
Severus stood in his office for longer than needed while he went to retrieve his papers. He had hated Harry today, or so he thought. But now, after the anger had subsided, it was nothing to do with Harry; it was everyone else. If anything, Harry just made him calmer. He had absolutely lost it, and the month they had shared previously was almost as good as gone. He was still furious after dinner, not that he had attended the great hall for dinner, instead choosing to eat in his rooms, but as soon as Harry had opened the door to their home, all anger had vanished.
In their home, it was peaceful. It was a world away from the rumors that Severus couldn't get away from today. It was just him, Harry, and Iris. Severus could very well shut the door and never open it again, stay in the peace and quiet of his home with his new companion. But the world wanted Harry, and the world knew that this was fake, and in a year, he would watch Harry leave their home for good and see him happy with someone else.
Severus didn't like this thought.
He pushed it to the back of his mind and headed to the living room, where Harry glanced up at him and smiled.
Severus took his usual position on the sofa and silently got to work, interrupted after ten seconds by Harry telling him all about his defense lesson with the new professor.