You Know You Are Loved When A Gryffindor Loves You

5

The atmosphere was light and buoyant as they packed up the house and prepared to head north. Between the six, they hired three removals wagons. One arriving at the house with the girls’ meagre possessions already loaded aboard. The girls were travelling the slow way and left it to the men to see that their goods arrived safely. They saw the girls off on the train and made them all ready for travel. The removals man were somewhat surprised to see them all at the new rented house all ready to receive their worldly goods, four men and two heavily pregnant ladies as they moved into the new temporary quarters.

The piano was removed by specialists and put into storage for now until they found their new permanent home. Harry felt for his friend deprived of his music again but Draco hugged him for his understanding, “It’s not for long, Harry, well I hope not, anyway”. Right from the off the children loved the space, running around the land and getting into mischief. Harry couldn’t help noticing that Alex loved the space but kept bumping into things until Severus murmured into his ear, “Harry, he has inherited your beautiful eyes and maybe he has also inherited your short-sightedness”. Days after they had moved in, Harry had his young son to the opticians and discovered the source of his son’s clumsiness, he was indeed short-sighted and was fitted for glasses. Harry sighed and shrugged as he brought his son home resplendent in his new specs. He tested his other two children, Amanda had twenty/twenty vision but Amalia also needed glasses for reading and close work. Harry sighed in disappointment until Severus held him, “Come on, Harry, it’s just genetics. Your dad also wore glasses all through school and afterwards”. Harry had to accept this.

Harry was the only driver amongst them, even though Hermione was taking lessons. He bought a people-carrier so they could all explore their new territory and house-hunt. Within weeks they had found a property suitable for the school and put down the money immediately. The property was theirs. It took a while longer to find their new home but they plumped for a large farmhouse with eight bedrooms and sixty acres of land with two large outbuildings that they set about having converted into two new homes. One for the girls and the other for Ron and Draco.

In the middle of the chaos of builders and rubble, Ginny went into labour and was swiftly Floo’d into St Mungo’s where she delivered two sons for her brother and his husband. They all wept as the two tiny baby boys were placed into their arms and Ron kissed his sister and his husband, “Well, here are the first two and we’re naming them Dean and Vincent after two people who mean a lot to us both”. Ginny sniffled into her girlfriend’s arms as the children were handed over but she could concentrate on her girlfriend and their new home once she had recovered from the birth a bit. It hurt, the giving up of her children, but she bore it stoically. She was an honourable woman and the second part of the fortune she had been promised dropped into her bank account.

She could now help to oversee the construction of the new school while Draco and her brother went ga-ga over their new babies and adjusted to life with two babies in it. While Ron was her brother, she felt like she had acquired another as Draco hugged her and asked for advice from her and his mother-in-law so she got to see plenty of her children, but kept herself at one remove from them.

The renovations were coming along apace and she turned her energies to the remodelling of the school. They weren’t anywhere near ready for the September intake and was responsible for the letters delaying the start of the new school. By all accounts it would be next September before the school opened and she wanted her beloved to give birth before she asked that special question.

They all had a house each on the property and had moved in to their respective spaces. The winter was well advanced. They made arrangements to all spend Christmas together, six adults and five children. Christmas was a special celebration that year and celebrated in the main house with Harry and Severus presiding. Their children adored the new additions to the family. Harry bought a couple of ponies and dogs for the whole family that roamed freely over the property and a horse that he could ride, a dream he had always had. He built a stable for the animals and took care of them, the others not having a clue. Draco and he shared in the horse, both of them being reasonably accomplished riders. For Christmas that year he bought the Black-Weasleys a horse of their own which Draco enjoyed riding and he often went out in the early morning for rides with his friend. Ron being reluctant to ride, Harry and Draco enjoyed their early mornings, the mist hiding the animals’ lower limbs as they cantered then galloped across the land, racing each other as their hunters took off across the landscape and some of their old Quidditch rivalry asserting itself as they raced each other across the land, the wind lifting their hair.

As they cleaned and groomed the animals before feeding them, Harry mentioned, “This is loads better than London isn’t it?” Draco threw his head back and laughed, “Fuck. Is it ever?”. They were all lots healthier in the fresh country air and the babies were thriving, not to mention Alex’s nascent health problems with his chest seemed solved with the fresh dry air in his lungs after the pollution in London. As they made to leave the stables, Draco pulled Harry to him and they kissed, a real and sexy kiss aroused by the sparkling air and the exercise they had just taken. Harry backed off wiping his mouth, his eyes wide. Draco similarly shrank back, “That should not have happened”, he whispered.

But it had.

And neither could quite forget it, even though their rides were more circumspect in future. After Christmas and the New Year had been celebrated, Hermione went into labour and delivered two girls, fraternal rather than identical twins delivered. The house went mad celebrating the new births now named Harriet and Veronica, Etta and Ronni to them all. Harry kissed the new parents, Draco’s lips lingered on his for the longest moment before they pulled away, their eyes burning into each other’s for the longest moment before the bubble burst and they were back before anyone noticed them missing, the joy spreading around, but, somewhere in the haze that accompanied childbirth, Hermione noticed.

She wasn’t the only one.

Despite the bitter cold, Harry found Severus slumped on the back step of the house just beyond the French windows, cradling an empty cup in his hands. Frowning, he unlatched the double doors and went to sit beside his husband, “What are you doing, Severus? It’s freezing out here”. The look on the man’s face was unreadable, compounded of hurt, resentment and pure cold fury.

He hurled the cup away from him and it shattered into a thousand tiny pieces on the concrete of the patio that made Harry jump and catch his breath. Severus glared at his young bond-mate for a long moment, then turned away snorting in disgust. In his iciest voice he murmured, “It may have escaped your notice, Harry, but we are bonded telepathic soul-mates”, his shoulders dropped as did his head, “I had a feeling such a thing would happen eventually”, his voice was steely yet sad. Harry was confused, “I..I..er”, he was able to say no more as his husband rounded on him and brought his face to within a few centimetres of Harry’s. “Anything you feel, I have an echo of it in here”, he tapped his temple angrily. Harry backed away slightly, his fists clenched, his eyes round but he stayed silent. “What do you think you are playing at, Harry?”, he shouted. Harry’s eyes darted hither and yon, anywhere but at his lover’s face. Severus gripped the boy’s chin hard and forced their eyes to lock. “That’s twice in as many months. I thought we were happy, Harry”, his tone was dark and accusatory.

Harry was speechless trying desperately to think what may have gone wrong but then it struck him, oh, Gods, Draco. The two kisses. Severus must have sensed them. He froze in shock, his breathing rapid, his heartbeat off the scale, he could hear the blood pounding in his ears, “It shouldn’t have happened, I don’t know why it did”, he swallowed hard. “I don’t, er, want him. I don’t know, er, oh fuck”. His man was blazing, “What don’t you know, Harry? If you want to stay with me? If you want our family? What is it you don’t know?” Harry felt the shame and remorse wash over him, “No, you have it all wrong, love. I want you and our children more than anything. I love you more than life itself. He caught me off guard. I just don’t know why it happened. I pushed him away. I don’t know what he wants”.

Severus bellowed, “YOU, evidently”, and Harry burst into tears, “But I don’t want him. I’m yours, now and for always. I’m so sorry. I don’t understand how it happened. He keeps giving me these looks and it’s scary. We’re married, we made vows and I want to keep them, nothing more, nothing less. I want you and only you”, he stuttered out between heaving sobs and tried to put his arms around his husband but Severus shook him off angrily re-iterating, “I should have known that this would happen eventually”, in a small sad voice as he turned from Harry and, standing, stalked back inside.

Harry stayed on the step folded around himself and rocking with grief and anger at himself. He had been so weak to succumb. He wasn’t worthy of the man he loved and he howled in despair. He wanted the night to swallow him up. He wanted to die, to freeze to death, to just vanish in a puff of smoke. How had he been such an idiot? And what exactly did Severus mean when he said that this would happen eventually? He rocked and sniffled and cried until it was fully dark totally ignoring the sudden drop in temperature. He stayed there, a dejected lump, thoughts whirling through his brain. Today was supposed to be about celebration and the bottom had dropped out of his world.

Suddenly the door snapped open behind him, “The children are asking for you. Do you propose to stay out there all night?”, his husband towered over him and Harry lifted his tear-streaked face to that of the man he loved, “Can you ever forgive me?”, Harry asked in a tiny voice, “It was a stupid mistake and I am so, so, sorry. I don’t deserve you, I really don’t”. Severus took a deep breath and came out onto the step and crouched down beside Harry and took him in his arms, “Bloody hell, Harry, you’re freezing. Come inside, come on, up you get”, he helped Harry to his feet but Harry stumbled, his muscles stiff and cramped. Sighing, Severus lifted Harry into his arms and carried him indoors laying him on the sofa and covering him in a blanket, “You’re as bad as one of the kids”, he chided as he chafed Harry’s numb hands.

Severus and Dobby fed the children and put them to bed. Harry was still a shivering glum heap on the sofa when Severus came back into the room. Harry scooted to one end of the sofa and let his beloved sit. Severus sat and put his head in his hands. Harry ventured, “Why did you say that? That you thought ‘it was bound to happen eventually’? What was bound to happen?”.

The man flicked him a guilty look, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that”, his voice was gloomy and tired. Harry shook his head, “No Severus, explain what you meant. I know I’m in the wrong here, but just explain this will you, please”. Severus sighed into his hands, “It’s the age difference, Harry. I always thought that you might run off from me one day, be with somebody your own age, that kind of thing”, he huffed out a long breath. Harry moved closer and wrapped his arms around the love of his life, kissing his hair, “Idiot”, he whispered, “I love you and only you. Do you still love me? I promise I’ll never do anything so stupid again. You must think I’m some kind of philanderer. I’m not, I’m just an idiot. I love you so much and the kids. I adore you all and my life would have no meaning without you. This bond cuts both ways, you know, lover”.

Severus turned to look into the green pools of Harry’s eyes and relented, leaning into Harry’s touch and throwing his arms around him and drawing him close, “I’m sorry, too, Harry. We’ve been so busy and I’ve been neglecting you”. Harry sniffed back more tears and lay down again pulling his lover with him, “We haven’t done enough of this, babe. I need you like I need breath. I was starting to think that you didn’t want me as much any more, that you were going off me or something, though don’t think I was throwing myself at Draco. Not so, he er, initiated both times and I really was caught with my guard down. I won’t let it happen again, I promise”.

Severus turned his face up and smiled ruefully at his beloved, “You’re right, Harry, it’s too easy to let things slide when you’re busy and sex and loving are the first casualties, especially when there are children involved”. Harry grinned, “Now, now, we’re very lucky to have the help that we do, that’s why I insisted that Ron and Draco hired a couple of house-elves. They are going to need all the help they can get now. They won’t know what’s hit them, it’ll be like having quads. I don’t think they either of them reckoned on the Weasley twin thing showing up, not once, but twice. But that’s their hill to climb, this is about us and I think we’ve stopped giving ourselves that time like we had when we first got together. Granted there are more things demanding our time, not to mention the three beautiful imps we brought into the world plus the stress of all the changes we have undergone in recent months but we’re still us. I don’t want us to slide down the slope of marriage-bed death. In fact, I’m going to suggest that you and I park the kids with granny and grandpa and bugger off to Italy before this new project gets off the ground”.

Harry stroked stray hair strands from his beloved’s brow and budged up on the sofa to let Severus lie alongside him and they smiled into each other’s eyes and watched the naked desire build in each then moved closer and closer and kissed hard and hungrily making small needy noises in their throats as they let passion overwhelm them. There was the delicious giggle and fumble as they removed each other’s clothes and Severus was purring obscenities into his lover’s mind, ‘Fuck, you taste so good, so sweet, my love, I want to fuck you ‘til you can’t move’. Harry chuckled around the tongue deep in his mouth, ‘Yes, baby, fuck me so hard, so deep, make me scream and sod who hears’, they passed dirty talk between their minds as hands and mouth were busily engaged slipping over soft skin, bodies were rubbing together as they tried to climb into each other’s skin, hands raking through soft hair, stiff cocks rolling together making them both moan.

Harry Summoned the lube from the bedside cabinet and pressed it into Severus’ hand and the man took his sweet time preparing his beloved. He entered fast and hard assisted by Harry’s feet pushing hard under his arse, “My sweet impatient boy”, he murmured as he sank to the hilt and Harry sobbed out his pleasure at being filled, “Yes, lover. Move. Take me. Yours all yours. Own me”, music to the man’s ears, so he did, senses slipping, reason fleeing before the onslaught and reared over him pushing his pulsing cock further in, watching his lover’s face and chest flush, feeling the man beneath him arch, hearing the sweet breathless sounds and could take no more. He leaned down and bit into Harry’s shoulder as he flooded his insides with come and felt the rhythmic streams of Harry’s come gush out between them.

His weight collapsed onto Harry’s chest and he was held tight as they came down. “You’re right, Harry, there hasn’t been enough of this lately. Gods, I love you so much”. Harry grinned and they kissed, ‘Am I forgiven, lover?’ In reply, Severus deepened the kiss, ‘Yes, but never forget that you’re mine and mine only. We hurt each other today, it was awful. I don’t want it to ever happen again. I thought I was going to lose you’. Harry held tighter, ‘Never will I let you go, I promise’. ‘Then all is forgiven, my love’. Harry dragged the blanket around the two of them and they enjoyed the afterglow by the light of the dying fire, falling asleep where they were.