You Know You Are Loved When A Gryffindor Loves You

13

As it turned out, they had a wonderful evening, watching random comedy shows and a movie, kissing heartily at midnight, when Harry insisted on the chimes of Big Ben on the BBC , Severus agreeing. The kiss was long and passionate. As they broke apart, there were tears in Severus’ eyes, “I have never done that, had someone to kiss like that at New Year. Happy New Year my love, my own”. Harry’s own eyes were wet, “Me either. I love you, my Severus, my bond-mate, my future husband, father of my child”. There was silence as they held each other. “Harry I want to crawl into your very skin and stay there forever”. Harry chuckled softly, “You already have. I’m pretty sure of it”, he took his lover’s hand and laid it over his belly, “I’ve been feeling her take up residence, so to speak”, he whispered, shyly.

Severus’ eyes were round, “Her? How do you know?”. Harry shrugged, “No idea, I just do. I can feel her Magic, too. You just have to go inside and kind of listen very carefully”. Severus was amazed and clicked the TV remote to mute, then sank into himself finding the other nascent spirit within him, “A boy”, he announced with glee. “Harry, I think I am going to give you a son. Don’t ask me how I know, but I think, he too, will be a Magical”. Then arms tangled, legs, mouths, bodies, as gowns were lost and they made love again far into the night, lost in their bubble, lost to everything but each other.

New Year’s day was a haze. Somewhere in the fog, Harry managed a roast chicken dinner that they both inhaled after Severus had failed to keep his breakfast down. “Fuck, morning sickness is hell. I like my food, why doesn’t he?”, and Harry massaged his belly and talked to his son, “Stop being a beater, you git, let the poor man eat. He needs the calories”. Then was pulled into a kiss. They spent a leisurely afternoon and evening simply soaking each other up, exchanging stories, eating when Severus wanted. Harry midnight snacking when his lover was asleep, then led them both to bed for a blissful night’s sleep waking to the sound of the doorbell.

“Who the hell is that?”, Harry grumped as he climbed into clothes and ran down the stairs. Steve stood on the step, “Afternoon, Harry”. Harry laughed, “Shit, we’ve slept in. We haven’t forgotten inviting you, but the last two days have been a bit intense, no, very intense, so to speak. Come on in and I’ll wake his nibs”. Harry made their guest comfortable then went to wake Severus.

He was rubbing sleep from his eyes as he descended the stairs, “Sorry, Steve, the last two days have got away from us a bit. We’ve found out something Magical and we hope you can help us out”. Steve shrugged, “Anythin’ to help out an old mate, but I hope it’s nothin’ too dark. I know what a penchant you have for the dark, Severus, me lad”. Harry murmured, “No, it’s nothing like that. You see, Severus and I are bonded and we just need to know if our auras have changed”. Steve was amazed, “Bonded. Oh wow. Okay, let me see”. Severus drew the curtains against the low, cold sun until the room was cast into darkness. “Okay, what am I supposed to be seeing?”. Severus laughed, “I don’t want supposition in your head, I want to know what you actually see”.

The man gasped, “I see an aura around you of bright blue, like a neon tube, so Seventies, but not entirely, your middles are white”. Severus shyly asked his friend to demonstrate. Steve approached him, “Both of your auras are bright blue, except for here”, and he held a hand at mid sternum, the other at the top of his thigh, “And here, then the aura is bright white, both of you. Harry flicked the lights back on and was held tight by his lover. Steve tentatively enquired as to what was going on and Severus hugged him tight, “You have just confirmed that both of us are pregnant”. Steve barely had time to exclaim in amazement before a mild obliviate was cast by Severus and they scratched together a half-decent lunch for their guest, Steve telling them of the show at the pub on New Year’s Eve, “You should have been there, it was great”. Severus grinned, “Oh, it was our first Christmas and New Year together, we were being a bit selfish and I wasn’t feeling well, you know”, and hugged Harry tight.

Their guest teared up a little, “Yeah, I remember me and Don’s first Christmas, and our last”. Severus left Harry’s side to hold his friend and Harry frowned. Severus shot him an ‘I’ll-tell-you-later’ look. Steve sniffed, “I still can’t look at anyone like that again. There’s been sex, sure, but no real love. You’re a lucky man, Severus. I envy you. Ah well. Maybe it will happen again for me. I’m happy for you, my old mate, happy for you both”, then he wept on Severus’ shoulder. He left shortly afterwards, “Take care of each other. Real love comes but once in this life, Magical or Mundane. I was lucky, I had eight whole years. See you soon”.

Harry was in tears, “What happened to his lover?”. Severus held him, “He died of AIDS in the early nineties. Don was a great guy. It hurt everyone when he died. He was a six feet six inch hairy arsed biker from Newcastle. You had to listen to him for an hour or two to even understand what he was saying, but the guy was a gentle giant and he and Steve were life partners in every sense of the word. Steve has never really got over him although he’s been gone over ten years. That’s what love can do”.

Harry’s mood plummeted, “Severus, I might die like that. Not of disease and illness, but his wretched curses, though I’ll be just as dead”. Severus held his young lover close, “I know, love. I’ve tried to protect you for the last six years, more in fact, but as I rely on your courage, you lean on my strength, Harry. It’s there and it’s all for you. It’s the best I can give you. You have my heart, my soul and my magic, my life, my child and my bitterness and hatred. Call on them all, they, as am I, are yours, I promise you”, and he felt Harry dissolve against him, the sheer emotion taking him over. It had been a truly strange two days for them both. Severus managed to get his young love to bed and they slept like the dead, the truly exhausted.

****

The bubble was thinning, as if they couldn’t quite shut out the world any more. Severus frequently lost his temper with inanimate objects and Harry would feel himself flinch as another cup met it’s end smashed to smithereens against the walls until Harry fell to the middle of the living room floor, clutching at his head and screamed, “STOP!! STOP!!! Fuck!! Severus!!! WHAT’S WRONG? Only you’re....only you’re frightening me”, this last in a trembling whisper. Severus saw the scared boy in the middle of their living room floor and all the anger drained away, “I’m scared, Harry, really scared, and I never meant to frighten you”, in the smallest voice that Harry had ever heard from his lover.

Harry uncovered his face and looked up, then held his hand out, “Come here”, he gently commanded and the man sank to his knees. Harry scooted closer and gathered him up stroking the black hair, “Now tell me, from the top about your fear, break it into smaller pieces that can be dealt with. Talk to me, love”. Severus huffed out a long breath, “It’s just that there’s so much at stake, now. You, our children. Sometimes I wish I wasn’t carrying him, no, not that, just...I don’t know, I feel so weak, so powerless. We have to fight a war when we should be putting our feet up and watching asinine TV”.

Harry smiled, “Oh, yes, like that woman that was on the news just before Christmas who at eight months pregnant, pulled a car from on top of her three year old, went into early labour and both her and her kiddies are fine. Motherhood is not weak, Severus, just ‘cos it’s the preserve of women. I actually think most of the guys I know wouldn’t have the first clue”. Severus sniffled, “Maybe, I’m one of them”, Harry shook his head, “No, my love, the likes of me and you are cut from a different cloth. Let’s face it the scariest thing to happen to most men is their mother-in-law”. This made Severus laugh shakily.

“Fair enough, but what about the next time I am summoned? It’s not as if I can hide my condition from him for long and once he finds out, he’ll rifle my mind. I know my skills have improved greatly, but he is still a better Legilimens than you are and I doubt my ability to shut him out completely. We know he can see through glamours, so I can’t hide my bump like that. I just don’t know what to do”. Harry thought a moment, “I have actually given this some thought, and from where I’m sitting, there are two ways to look at this: One; We devise all sorts of sneaky ways for you to disguise this and that and you still have to face him, or, two; you don’t go when you are Summoned”.

Severus’ head shot up, “What?!. Not go?! He’ll kill me, torture me through the Mark!!”. Harry frowned, “Severus, think rationally for a moment and bear with me on this. How much, if any, is he a Healer, and are any of the other Death-Eaters healers?. Are any of them trained to full Medi-wizard or witch level?” Severus looked puzzled, “There’s one bloke who can do basic field medicine, we can all heal our own cuts and contusions, and of course there are curative potions to hand, why?”

Harry replied, “Well, it was partly my own eyes and that little girl in your House that set me thinking this way. That little girl is waiting to have a Muggle operation to save her, and after I’m of age in the Muggle world, then I am going to have my eyes lasered that will fix my eyesight, once and for all, no glasses, no contact lenses, just my eyes. Severus, the Magical world can’t fix everything medical, and if you’re wasting away with some disease that you are in the waiting lists for at a Muggle hospital, then, it’s not perfect, but it could buy us some considerable time, enough to get us both fighting fit again and I’m sure if we ask Hermione’s help, her parents are medically trained after all, we can find something that essentially makes you useless to him for now”.

There was a long silence as they stared into each other’s eyes, “It’s a genius idea, Harry, there may have to be additions and modifications to it but the core is brilliant”. Harry smiled shyly as he watched his lover’s brain fully engage again behind his eyes, then eye contact was lost as Severus’ eyes squeezed shut and he held Harry tight to him. “We really can do this, but it will rely on Dumbledore a lot”. Harry rubbed his cheek in Severus’ hair, “I told you, the guy owes you. In fact, I think he should employ a locum for you, so that your thoughts are more real when he ‘reads’ you, you have a drip or something by your bed, so he sees that too, that sort of thing”.

Severus released him slightly and Harry saw the first big genuine smile from his lover all day. He leaned a fraction and kissed the tip of Severus’ nose, “If there’s one thing Hermione has taught me and Ron, it’s not to go angsting off by yourself without seeing if there’s a solution to be found somewhere. I mean, I’ve talked to them both about my nightmares and stuff even though we could essentially do sod all about them, it’s you who’s cured them but my dorm-mates have often helped”.

“Anyway”, he continued, “It will help to disguise your real condition. We’ll have to bring Poppy Pomfrey into this, also my House-Mistress, I want to tell her anyway, so it’s a shame, really, there’s no electricity at Hogwarts, you may have your feet up all day while I struggle with my NEWTs and creeping around the castle on swollen ankles, hiding my baby under glamours”, Harry sagged at the thought until a gentle kiss on his brow made him look up, “No, Harry, there are certain classes that neither of us can be involved in, chiefly Potions of all things. There are ingredients that pregnant women should not touch, not for ridiculous superstitious reasons, but some things absorb through the skin; there are certain Potions that must not be inhaled, as, although they do no damage to a student, could harm a tiny baby, particularly during the first three months, not to mention the odours, particularly as your classes are first thing in the mornings and you have the joys of morning sickness to experience before you”.

Harry groaned, “I suppose Transfiguration is a no-no, too”. Severus smiled, “Probably. Quidditch as well, but we’ve gone over that. It looks as if we may have to invent a mystery illness for you, too, love, then we can both sit with our feet up. Do they make battery operated TV’s?” Harry laughed aloud. “They do, oh, joy, re-runs of Antiques Roadshow”, “Mind-numbing soap operas”. “Dreadful home improvement shows, all tacky plasterboard and sticky-backed plastic, those stupid gardening shows”. Severus frowned, “I watch those, as a matter of fact, just the gardening programmes, not that braying Yank showing us all how to make our houses beige”. He stood and held a hand out to Harry, “There’s something I’ve not shown you yet, you’ll need shoes on and your jacket”. Harry was intrigued as Severus unlocked the back door and he followed him outside.

They were in the narrow passageway down the side of the kitchen, the wheelie bin was outside the back door with a composter beside it and a black box with crushed cans and bottles in for the recycler. Facing those items was a narrow wooden potting bench and the tiniest greenhouse Harry had ever seen. They passed under a metal arch supporting twisted stems, Severus murmured, “That’s a honeysuckle and is ablaze with flowers in the summer. It doesn’t look like much now but when it’s warm and the nights are long then this is a little oasis out here”, and they stepped into the main part of the yard.

Harry gasped as he looked around. There were many dozens of pots and troughs and hanging baskets all over the yard, some just held twiggy remains, but Harry knew that these were the deciduous plants, there was a variety of evergreens to give some winter interest and some large fat buds on one shrub. Harry murmured, “It must be a shame to never see your Camellias in flower, you’re usually at school in February”. Severus looked at him and smiled, “You’ve gardened before?”. Harry shrugged, “I was made to at the Dursley’s but it was quite relaxing though, watching the plants come back to life each year. Is that an Acer?”, he pointed to a small tree. Severus placed a warm hand in the middle of Harry’s back and showed him round, “I come back if I get time at half-term week-end and prune stuff and do the dividing and potting on jobs and, yes, sometimes I get to see the Camellias in flower, but wait ‘til summer, then it looks totally different. I love gardening”, he sighed.

They went indoors again and Severus ran up the stairs, “Back in a minute”, he called and Harry could hear him rummaging about in his study overhead, feet down the stairs and he was back holding a large scrapbook held closed with a sturdy elastic band. He pulled Harry down beside him on the sofa, “I won’t bore you to eternity, but this is a diary I kept during my first few years here of the garden”, he flipped quickly through the book, but Harry stayed his hand, “No, let me look properly”. There were hundreds of photographs of the yard in it’s transition from cold concrete space to vivid flourishing oasis. As the years progressed there were more things added, the wooden potting bench, the greenhouse, the long park bench style seat in the main yard, the water feature, a few pictures of the self-watering system and at the height of every summer, vivid colour that filled the whole space as high as the tops of the kitchen windows, a couple of a small tabby cat sunning itself, “Aaawww, who’s this?” Severus smiled, “That’s Tillie from two doors down, she doesn’t hassle me for food and is an excellent companion when I sit outside reading even if she does leave hair everywhere”. Harry glanced at his lover’s face then carried on flipping through the album.

Another shot with a table and umbrella with Steve and two much younger men hoisting beers and grinning, “Who are the other two?”, “They’re Matt and his boyfriend Jonathon. Matt is Don’s son and he still treats Steve like another dad. We’d have met them at New Year if we’d gone out”. Harry asked softly, “Will we be that sort of parents one day? Only I’d love to think of these two inside us bringing their amours home, unashamed of having two dads”. He looked up into Severus’ face, “I wonder if we’ll have grandkids...”, and got no further as Severus tipped Harry’s face up and kissed him thoroughly.

Harry closed the book and laid it carefully beside him and threw his arms around the love of his life and straddled his lap in a single move without breaking the kiss, hands twining into black hair, two large hands cupping Harry’s arse, hips rolling together, short stabbing thrusts, then Severus undid them both, rising to push his jeans down a little to free himself, lowering Harry’s jeans all the while the kiss grew more feverish, both breathing through their noses and groaning into each other’s mouths and grasped both of their cocks in his hand and wanked them together as Harry thrust cock against cock tightly enclosed in Severus’ hand and they both lost control together. Harry whipped up the hem of Severus’ shirt before both of them came over Severus’ belly.

They were back in the bubble, laughing and flushed. Harry lasciviously cleaned his lover’s hand with his tongue and they kissed again, Severus tasting their commingled essence in Harry’s mouth. When they emerged, Severus murmured, “Shower, then food, I think”, squeezing Harry’s bum slowly. Harry started to dismount, “Good idea”, he clambered off and in minutes they were under hot running water washing each other’s hair and bodies then kissing and caressing again and Severus dropped to his knees and took Harry’s cock in his mouth, Harry scrabbling for purchase on the slippery tiles as Severus took him over the edge again with deep moans. Severus sat them both on the edge of the bath while Harry got his breath back, then Harry gently ordered Severus to stand and sucked his lover slowly to another oblivion while he fucked him with three fingers buried deep.

Somehow they finished the shower, drying each other whilst kissing and touching and loving then donned their gowns and went to eat. Harry cooked tonight and did something witty and inventive with chicken, scallions and red peppers. They were running the stocks down. They were due back at school in three days time but had elected to go a bit earlier to catch Dumbledore and McGonagall and have a serious chat before school started. They ate in silence for awhile. “I don’t want to leave here, Severus. I feel safe here with no Magic”.

Severus threaded his arm around Harry and pulled the boy’s head down to his shoulder, “I know. That’s why I don’t do Magic here. I scrubbed the Apparation point as soon as we landed. I am to all intents and purposes, a Muggle here, and I don’t care one bit. I can go out anonymously, I can garden, I can go shopping, I’m just me here, a sarky old geezer with a liking for Guinness and fine food. Anyone who can see the Mark just thinks it’s some ugly tattoo. Steve knows of course. It’s partly why he decided to live as a Muggle. He could see how the Dark was corrupting me and he washed his hands of Magic forever, though he forgave me in time, especially once I crossed back over. He’s definitely one of the good guys”.

Harry smiled as he cleared the table, “Then why did you obliviate him?”. Severus laughed, “Because he’s a gossipy old queen who couldn’t resist revealing that a bloke he knows is pregnant, just to see the looks on everyone’s faces in the pub and I would like us to continue to go there”. Harry joined in the laughter then sobered, “So how do we pass off two children?” Severus grinned, “We adopted, no, we had surrogates. Some things are just too weird for Muggles, Harry, and males getting preggers is one of them to my way of thinking”.

Harry had to agree, “Merlin. I can just imagine telling Uncle Vernon or Dudley. Mind you, Aunt Petunia is so in fear of Magicals she’ll believe anything. As far as she’s concerned, her sister was a freak who married another, then had a twice as freaky son. God, I hate those people. They are so narrow. Even if I was non-Magical, they would throw me out if I ever came out to them. Queer is also freakish in their eyes. I’m glad I never have to go back to them”. Severus saw the sombre look on his lover’s face and held him close, “No, Harry, you never have to go back there. Your home is here now. You and the children”. Harry asked, “Won’t it be a bit of a tight fit? We can afford a bigger place you know, maybe somewhere with a bigger garden for the kids as they get older”. Severus stared at him, “On my shitty salary? I don’t think so. And I’ve already decided that I want to leave. What do we do then? I don’t want to be away from you and the children. I want us to come home to each other every night”.

Harry held his beloved tight, “Sweetheart, you know I mentioned a while back having money?” Severus nodded, “I have a vague recollection, yes”, Harry made sure Severus was looking into his eyes, “Severus. I could fucking buy the Malfoys at least three times. If we need a bigger house, no problem. If we don’t find work, no problem. If we both want to see our babies grow up, no problem. My parents left me a ton of money. I’ve no idea how they earned it or accumulated it, but Hagrid gave me my Gringotts key at eleven and I’ve barely touched it. There’s got to be a good few thou in Pounds Sterling for us not to have to worry for a while”. Severus shook his head, “No, no, Harry you can’t...” and Harry’s mouth opening over his silenced him. As they came up for air, Harry murmured, “I can and I will. The second most amazing thing you gave me for Christmas, that is after this”, he caressed his belly, “Was that set of keys. You gave me a home, Severus, and I can help to maintain it and I will, for all of us”, he finished on a whisper. Severus held him closer, “That was one of my other concerns”, he mumbled into Harry’s shoulder.

Harry kissed him again, “See. A problem shared is a problem halved. We may have to move your lab down here, though, to make a nursery upstairs in due course. Oh fuck. We’ll work it out”, as he took his lover’s lips with his, “We’ll sort it, Severus. We really will, or my name’s not Harry friggin’ Potter”, and their kisses were hard with want, need. Harry stood shakily and Severus directed him to oil, Harry ordered his lover onto the kitchen table, the pots pushed to one end with a sweep of an arm, then knelt on the bench between spread legs and prepared his beloved with oil then himself before comprehensively fucking his beloved on their kitchen table, Severus leaning back on his elbows, his feet on the bench, Harry’s hands bracing themselves on the table as he thrust deep and hard into that hot willing heat making them both cry out as they came, Severus’ legs wrapped over Harry’s back, his young lover buried to the hilt. In that moment, Severus had not a care in the world as he came loudly over his own stomach and his lover filled him totally.

They came back slowly. Harry, to hear Severus’ soft laughter. He giggled himself, “What gives, Severus?”, as the man wrapped arms around him. “Just a little fantasy come true, Mr Potter”, he purred into Harry’s ear, “I’ve always wanted to be fucked over the kitchen table and you fulfilled that fantasy to a power of at least ten”. When they could move, Severus led Harry to bed for a nap, and they slept curled round each other, breathing into each other’s mouths.