Sweet\'s Little Collection

Twenty-Five:

"Cooperate, you ruddy pest!" Severus heard his husband exclaiming from the other room, along with the ominous sound of pans clattering and what may have been the whirring of a muggle motor of some kind. He steeled himself, and pushed open the door with trepidation. He fought a laugh at the scene presented to him. Blobs of yellowish goo were splattered across the walls. All he could see was the back of his lover's head, but even at that angle he could tell that he was covered in miscellaneous substances. The tips of his pitch black hair were frosted with a fine white powder. A dark brown streak covered him from elbow to wrist on the side Severus was able to see. He wiped his face of his amused expression, clearing his throat to make his presence known.

Harry whipped around quickly, his eyes wide. "Sev! You aren't supposed to be home yet!" He looked down at himself, and around at the mixing bowls surrounding him in various states of capacity. His panicked eyes flashed back to the older man, before his brows furrowed. "Get out!" he hollered, startling Severus completely. He bore a hasty exit, unable to refrain from chuckling as he sought something to entertain him until he had his Harry back. A hesitant knock came at his lab's door some time later. "You may enter," he called over his shoulder, counting out the final fourteen strokes of clockwise stirring. His husband waited as he cast a stasis charm over the bubbling cauldron. Severus smiled at Harry. "Done destroying our kitchen yet, love?" Harry had the decency to blush, before darting forward to take Severus's hand and dragging him towards the kitchen.

They entered together, and Harry shoved him down into a chair at the table, unceremoniously. Severus sat with a huff, watching his eager husband avidly. He noted that a few hasty cleaning charms had been cast on the room, and quite possibly his husband as well. Everything was covered in a layer of fine white dust, and he could still pick out a few smears of brown over the counter tops. "Close your eyes," Harry demanded. Severus was all too quick to comply. He had learned his lesson a long time ago. What Harry wanted, Harry got. He heard Harry fumbling around a bit, and saw a flash of brightness through his eyelids. "Okay! Open!"

Severus opened his eyes slowly, his eyes first focusing on his husband's beaming face, but being drawn inexorably towards the flickering light set before him. He glanced to the mat in front of him, and on it sat a single perfect yellow cupcake wielding a single green candle. He could tell that the rich chocolate icing had been homemade, and he felt his heart swell at the unadulterated love he felt for the man in front of him. "Happy birthday, Sev," Harry said, softly. Severus stood, nearly knocking his chair over in the process, and wrapped his arms around his husband, kissing him deeply. He could taste the sweetness on Harry's tongue that indicated he had been taste-testing his treats. The sound Harry made was a mix of a sigh and a moan.

Severus lost himself in the feeling of the hard planes of his husband's body, but far too soon, Harry broke their kiss. Severus reluctantly pulled back, a question forming on his lips. "You have to blow out your candle and make a wish!" Harry demanded. Severus laughed a full, open, belly-laugh that Harry had heard so few times in the ten years since they'd wed. His face broke into a smile. Severus, at Harry's urging, reclaimed his place at the table and deliberated long and hard. Severus rested his hand on Harry's protruding belly, lovingly. He knew exactly what he would wish for. 'I wish that our little one has my Harry's eyes,' he thought to himself, then drew a deep breath, and blew out his candle.