Smoke & Mirrors

Disclaimer The characters and sheer genius belong to J K Rowling. Any smut is mine, but I don't make a penny/eurocent/cent from my warped imagination.

Chapter 3 Misunderstandings

Harry smiled sleepily, and rolled over in bed. He'd been dreaming about last night in the lake, and woken to the lingering sensation of a kiss just brushed against his forehead. Was that a part of the dream, or had his lover just kissed him? He groped for his glasses and sat up in bed. No, there was no sign of Severus Snape. Oh well, no doubt he was in his office, sorting out his Potions cupboard or something.

But the day wore on with no Severus, and when evening came Harry began to feel apprehensive. All his old doubts and fears, charmed away by Snape's ministrations the previous night, came flooding back in full force. Had Malfoy been telling the truth after all? Had that amazing sex in the lake been Severus Snape's goodbye present to him? Harry stuffed his knuckles in his mouth and fought back a sob.

He wandered moodily over for supper in the Great Hall. Ron and Hermione were already there, and waved encouragingly to him. Most of the other guests had already gone, back to their everyday lives. And so, it appeared, had his lover...

"Harry!" Ron shouted enthusiastically. "Here you are, we've been waiting for ages, couldn't you tear yourself away from ..." he broke off, looking closely at Harry. "Hey, mate, what's wrong?"

"He's gone." Harry sat down between his friends, and began blindly helping himself to food.

"Here, let me," Hermione said gently, after he'd spilled chicken casserole and sweetcorn all over the table. She took the spoon from him and ladled a generous helping out onto his plate. "Eat up, Harry."

Harry picked up his knife and fork and started to eat, then laid them down again and stared unhappily in front of him.

"Come on," coaxed Hermione, sounding worried. "You need to have something, Harry."

"I don't feel like eating," choked out Harry. He stood up and pushed back his chair. "Let's go to Gryffindor Tower." And he almost ran from the hall. His friends exchanged anxious glances and followed.

The three of them had the Gryffindor common room to themselves, but to start with Harry couldn't find words to explain what was wrong.

"You and Snape seemed happy last night?" Hermione ventured tentatively at last.

"Yeah ..." Harry sighed. "We had great sex, everything was wonderful, he was - well - almost romantic ..."

"So what's wrong?" asked Ron.

"Now he's gone again!" groaned Harry. "He didn't say anything - I woke up this morning and he wasn't there - he didn't say he was going - or where - maybe Malfoy was right?"

"Malfoy!" exclaimed Ron in disgust. "That git. What's he been saying?"

"He said." Harry took a deep breath. "He-said-Severus-likes-boys," he blurted out in a rush. "And - and - that now I'm - twenty - he won't" He couldn't go on.

"Oh Harry," Hermione said, and hugged him. "I'm sure Malfoy's lying. When did he ever tell the truth?"

Ron was looking uncomfortable. "I wouldn't put it past that git, though" he muttered.

Hermione glared at him. "Ron," she said warningly. "Where are you going, Harry?"

Harry was heading for the door. "Thought I'd go and see Prof MacGonagall, see about signing up for NEWT courses," he mumbled. "Doesn't look like I'll be travelling with ... him ... after all, does it? See you guys later."

"Now see what you've done!" Hermione exclaimed crossly.

"Why, what did I do?" Ron sounded aggrieved. "Come on, Hermione, you can't think Snape and Harry being an item is such a good idea, can you?"

"I don't know," Hermione said slowly. "I know they're having their ups and downs, but when Snape is being nice to him Harry looks happier than I've ever seen him. That can't be bad, can it?"

"Oh, I know Harry's in love with him," said Ron. "But what I'd like to know is, what about Snape? He's too - I dunno - ambiguous! I don't trust him an inch."

"You said that when we tracked him down to the Silent Witch," said Hermione. "And it turned out he was on the right side after all."

"When you think about it," Ron argued, "we don't REALLY know that Snape didn't mean to give Harry to Fenrir, and just changed his mind at the last minute."

Hermione looked unconvinced.

"I mean," Ron went on, "it was pretty risky what he did, firing a killing curse at the back of Harry's head like that. He couldn't KNOW he'd duck in time - he didn't care either way, is what I'm saying."

"I'm sure he trusted Harry to react in time," replied Hermione calmly.

"OK, so why do you always stick up for the bastard now?" demanded Ron.

Hermione went pink. "If you must know, it's because Crookshanks likes him," she said defensively. "And you know he never likes anyone untrustworthy."

Ron snorted. "Sure," he said sarcastically. "Every time I go to the dungeons there he is, curled up on Snape's lap, purring away."

"Oh alright, maybe 'like' is a bit strong," Hermione said. "Crookshanks tolerates Snape, anyway. He doesn't spit and fluff up like he did with Peter Pettigrew, for instance."

"You're besotted with that sodding cat," said Ron scornfully. "Take more than that monster to convince me Snape's on the side of the angels."

************************

Professor McGonagall took off her glasses and rubbed her face wearily. Replacing them, she looked sternly at Harry.

"What do you mean, Mr Potter, you want to restart your NEWT studies in September? I thought it was all arranged for you and Professor Snape to take a year off? We're all agreed you certainly deserve it, after the past three years. Severus has already been granted a sabbatical year, though with certain restrictions ... "

"Restrictions?" Harry asked dully. It didn't look like Snape's year off was going to be any of his affair after all; but damn him, he was still concerned about the man...

"Och, silly things, the Ministry of Magic are still keen to see him inside Azkaban if they can possibly think of an excuse, and we have to make sure they don't get one. For one thing, he has to report back to Hogwarts every so often. For another, when he travels abroad he has to use Muggle transport. No magic."

"Yeah, I see," Harry said, still in the same flat tone. "Like Hagrid and Madame Maxine did, when Dumbledore sent them looking for giants."

"Harry, is there anything wrong between you and Severus?" Professor McGonagall asked abruptly.

"I dunno," Harry muttered. "Maybe you'd call him leaving me, something wrong."

"Nonsense!" said Professor McGonagall briskly. "He's done no such thing. He's gone off to make some travel arrangements for his sabbatical - for BOTH of you, Harry, so stop being so silly."

Harry stared at the floor. He wanted to believe her ... desperately ... but after all, why should Snape want to stay with him? He wasn't anything special, no matter what people had said after Voldemort's defeat. In fact he'd be dead if Snape hadn't taken Voldemort's final curse.

The Headmistress looked at him kindly, seeming to understand something of what he was thinking. "You must just be patient, Harry. Severus can be difficult, but you are good for him, I'm sure of that, and he knows it. He'll be back, you'll see."

************************

Hermione and Ron's argument about Snape's reliability or otherwise was abruptly ended when an owl flew in through the common room's open window and landed on the table. It held its leg out to Ron.

"Uh, what's this?" said Ron, untying the roll of parchment. "I'm not expecting - oh, it's from Percy." He glanced through the letter, a scowl appearing on his face, and looked sideways at Hermione. Wordlessly he handed the letter over.

Hermione took the letter, and started to read it:

Dear Ron,

I find this very disagreeable but I think you should know that young Draco Malfoy may be having a, for want of a better word, 'affair', with your fiancee Miss Granger.

I have often observed him staring at the patch of carpet by his desk and once I overheard him murmuring "That's where Hermione sucked me off." He was unaware of my presence at the time ...

"I'll bet," muttered Hermione.

... so I have no reason to suspect him of duplicity. You know your own business best, of course, but I would strongly advise you to reconsider your relationship with Miss Granger.

Your affectionate brother,
Percy

"So," Ron said dangerously. "I did wonder how you got that Portkey."

"Oh, Ron, Malfoy knows how to play on people's weaknesses," Hermione said impatiently. "Harry's insecurity, for instance. No wonder he IS insecure, of course, after all that time with those horrible Dursleys. Then there's Snape - he plays on his vanity and pride. And now he's aiming for your, well, possessiveness."

"Really," Ron said furiously. "And what weak spot of yours did he find when he bewitched you the Portkey? Your secret longing to be a tart?"

Hermione slapped his face. "SHUT UP, RON!"

But Ron, now shaking with fury, wouldn't keep quiet. "Funny," he jeered bitterly, "Didn't see any recruiting leaflets for Knockturn Alley BROTHELS when you were looking at careers in sixth year. Kept them well hidden, didn't you? Or hadn't you started looking then? Never mind, I expect Malfoy'll give you a reference ... "

Hermione burst into tears, but Ron paid no attention. "Yeah, he'll give you a reference alright - let's see, 'Filthy whore, do anyone' - hey, where are you going?"

***************************

Harry found the next week extremely trying. Not only because of Snape's continued absence, but because of the icy silence between Ron and Hermione. He refused to take sides, but it made things very difficult when the three of them met up at mealtimes, or in the Gryffindor common room. Ron kept making caustic asides about tarts, and Hermione began a letter to Viktor Krum, an old flame from Triwizard tournament days.

One evening was particularly difficult. Ron had got a porno magazine from somewhere and insisted on bringing it into the common room. On the cover a couple of witches were doing things with a broomstick which made Harry blush.

When Hermione stalked in and settled herself at the table with parchment, quill and ink, Harry hissed to Ron: "Put it away!"

"Why?" said Ron loudly. "I'm doing her a favour: I'm checking out her competition for her."

Hermione pretended to ignore him, unrolling her already lengthy letter and beginning to write.

Slumped in an easy chair, Ron leafed through his magazine, stopping occasionally to show Harry a lurid moving photo. "This one looks a bit like Hermione: not sure she could do that though, don't think she can bend over that far - "

Hermione began reading bits out of her letter to Harry. "What do you think, Harry, does this sound OK?

"... and I was wondering about coming to the Durmstrang wizarding moot in the autumn, will you be there? ...

Perhaps I could travel with you and Snape, you two are going to that, aren't you?"

"Well, HE is," Harry said miserably. "I'm not sure about me."

"Hey, Harry listen to this," Ron said loudly. "Sexy hole for hire, wet and dripping... that's Hermione alright, she should put an ad in like that -"

"Oh I'm sure he'll take you with him, don't worry. I'd like some company to travel with, I've not been to Durmstang before. Of course Viktor did ask me to visit him in Bulgaria during the holidays after the Triwizard tournament, but with one thing and another ..."

"Or how about this: watch me being fucked by a hippogriff - she could do that too, I'm sure Buckbeak would -"

"Or even if you don't go, maybe Snape would let me tag along for the journey? - I don't know how to get to Durmstrang, it's magically protected of course -"

"- or maybe Crookshanks, oh no, he's not BIG enough for her - "

Harry could stand it no longer: he escaped from the common room and went to bed early. A few hours later something woke him. Half dozing, he at first didn't register properly that he was no longer alone in the bed. Then, suddenly aware, he sat up and exclaimed: "Severus!"

"Mmmm?"

"That's it? You disappear for a week, then just - "

"Shhhh."

Severus snuggled up behind Harry, slipped his hand inside Harry's T shirt sleeve and lightly held his upper arm. Reluctantly, Harry leaned back against him and smiled a little. He loved this intimate gesture of Severus's - a fact the manipulative bastard well knew, of course. Harry started to get angry again, but Severus reached a hand round under his T shirt and tweaked his nipple. It was so unfair, he knew exactly how to get Harry's full attention. In their few weeks together Snape had discovered the things that turned him on, and his hands were now doing most of them. Harry felt suddenly weak at the knees.

"Aren't you going to ... welcome ... me back?" Severus murmured, his voice deep with passion.

Harry groaned; he couldn't help it, Severus's voice sent thrills right through him. "Nnng argh" he managed.

Sliding down the bed, Snape slipped Harry's boxers down and pressed warm kisses against his arse cheeks. He slid his hands around to cup Harry's aroused cock, while swirling his tongue gently around the young man's entrance. Harry twitched and shuddered, moaning with abandonment as Snape's tongue probed his pucker and his fingertips pressed into the head of his cock. He pushed back against his lover, wriggling with impatience to be filled. But Snape broke away, turned Harry around, and repositioned himself to take the young man in his mouth while thrusting his own big cock into Harry's face.

"Why?" Harry began, then was silenced by a mouthful of cock. He instinctively sucked on it, following his lover's lead. But he continued to twitch his buttocks disconsolately. Sensing his disappointment, Snape wet a couple of fingers with spit and precum, stretched round and buried them up to the knuckle in Harry's hole, letting the youth squirm on them while they sucked each other. Harry couldn't last long; he shot his spunk into Snape's mouth with a muffled groan, gagged by the older wizard's cock throbbing in his own mouth. Snape soon followed, flooding Harry's mouth and face with cum, his own groans loud and unfettered.

Afterwards Snape turned Harry around again, gently cleaned his face then pulled him against his chest and fell asleep almost immediately. But Harry lay awake for a long time in his lover's arms, wondering why Snape had refused to penetrate him ...

TBC >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>