A Twisted Web We Weave

CHAPTER 43 (Edit 28/1/06 - Thanks to whomever it was who pointed out the really 'stupid mistake'

“So?”

“So what?”

“So did you do it?”

Harry casually flipped the page of the newspaper as he chewed another slice of toast.

“Nothing.” Harry mumbled around his mouthful as both Paris and Draco glanced at one another in disbelief.

“No way.” Draco challenged as he looked over Harry’s appearance with a critical eye. “You’re walking around like the sun shine’s out of your backside Potter and that grin this morning you’re like a wolf on heat.” Draco snapped as he pointed a finger at Harry accusingly.

“Yup, and with a walk like that you’ve either got a case of the runs or someone’s been playing hide the hard on.” Paris whispered as a few Gryfindor girls walked passed. Harry looked up abruptly from his newspaper and looked horrified at his two closest friends.

“You can tell, just from my walk?” Harry was a little shocked but instantly knew he’d been tricked when Paris and Draco barked out in laughter. “Well that’s not fair, besides it’s none of your business what we did or didn’t do.” Harry accused pointedly as he shut his newspaper and went to get up from the table.

“Hey, you know we’re just messing with you Potter. Now come on spill the goss.” Draco’s gaze sparkled mischievously as the trio left the hall and began heading down to the Quidditch pitch. It was the last game of the season, Gryfindor v’s Slytherin. It was a shocking day, with rain so hard you couldn’t see past your own nose, and so dark not even the torches could illuminate the players on the field. Harry was kind of glad he’d been kicked off the team so long ago. While Draco was still in the know regarding Severus, Paris was still in the dark convinced Harry had been with another student the night before.

“Look I gave him head and then I left. He seemed pleased so I’m guessing I did a good job now can we drop the subject.” Harry snapped as the trio ascended the staircases up to the stands to take their seats for the game. Harry hadn’t actually seen Snape all day, and really had no idea how he’d react to seeing him after last night. The three boys’ took their seats in the stands, their hoods pulled down tightly over their heads as protection against the driving wind and rain. None of their heard the whistle blow for the start of match, until an out of control Slytherin beater came barreling past them and into the back wall of their stand. The game was in full swing and Harry was too busy trying to keep warm that he hardly noticed his approaching company until it was too late.

“Potter.” Harry jumped in his seat as Snape’s face appeared over his shoulder wrapped up in his own cloak. “A word if I may?” Harry swallowed nervously and nodded as he rose from the bench, catching the gaze of Draco who raised a suspicious eyebrow at him. Paris paid them no attention, blissfully unaware of the tension. Harry followed Snape down the stands and up the path back to the castle. It was warmer at ground level but no less wet. By the time Harry reached the castle he was soaked to the bone. Snape was already in the entrance hall taking off his cloak when Harry stepped inside.

“It’ll be hard to tell who win’s in this.” Harry smiled as he made small talk. Snape pointedly ignored the comment and instead paused long enough for Harry to get his cloak off before striding off down towards the dungeons, expecting rather than asking Harry to follow. Harry grimaced to himself. Perhaps he had gone too far last night, especially with the students in the room. Harry was a little shocked when Snape strode straight past his classroom to continue down the corridor to his private rooms. Harry had been banned from the rooms since returning from the weekend away and was a little stunned as Snape opened the door and gestured for Harry to come inside before snapping the door closed behind them.

Harry stood awkwardly next to the door as he watched Snape discard his school robes on the back of the couch before striding over to his liquor cabinet and pouring himself a glass of brandy which he downed in one go before pouring himself another. Harry raised a curious eyebrow having never seen Snape drink like that before.

“Why did you do that last night?” Snape turned slowly around from his liquor cabinet, nursing his second brandy more carefully than he had his first. Harry swallowed nervously and shrugged his shoulders. After the incident on the stairs with Dumbledore, Harry had just assumed that Snape wanted him just as much as he wanted the potion master. “There must have been some reasoning behind it Harry, or you wouldn’t have had the back bone to do it.” Harry contemplated the comment for a moment before nodding silently.

“Fine, I did because I thought you’d enjoy it.” Harry paused before continuing. “I enjoyed it and I’m pretty sure you did too.” Harry accused pointedly trying to foreign disinterest in the topic, like it didn’t mean the world to him.

“I did...” Snape muttered as he took a sip from his brandy. “…thoroughly.” Snape finished sharply making a smile break out on Harry’s proud face.

“Well then what’s the problem?” Harry snapped as he relaxed a little and moved around to sit down on Snape’s couch, without having been invited to. Snape raised a pointed eyebrow at Harry’s brashness but chose not to comment as he too sat down in his armchair by the fire.

“You.” Snape bit out sharply trying to control the tremble in his hand as he watched Harry scratch himself, the boy completely unaware of how utterly irresistible he was with wet hair and clinging clothes. The boy looking positively edible.

“Me!” Harry declared incredulously. “I thought you wanted me…” Harry trailed off as he realized what he’d said.

“I do Harry, but not in the sense you think I want you.” Harry’s face fell completely miss reading what Snape was trying to explain so very inarticulately.

“You don’t love me then?” Harry whispered his kick puppy expression making Snape sigh and roll his eyes in irritation.

“We’re not discussing love Harry, I believe I made my position on that clear several weeks ago. What I am trying to explain to you is that I am not a dominant lover…” Snape trailed off and stood up abruptly from the chair to turn his back on Harry who stared stunned at Snape’s back.

“Oh.” Harry didn’t really know what to say but when it was clear that Snape was waiting for some kind of reply Harry let the only thing he could articulate spew from his mouth. “That must be nice for you?” Harry knew he’d said the wrong thing when Snape spun back around and glared at him angrily.

”You don’t understand do you Potter?” Harry cringed, they were back to Potter again and that was a bad sign. “This is the reason I have refrained from relationships in the past because it is an automatic assumption that because of who I am that all I want to do is top!” Snape shouted angrily and Harry merely stared at the elder wizard blankly.

“Top what?” Harry inquired naively confused by what Snape was trying to say.

“YOU!” Snape screamed as he threw his glass across the room watching it shatter in a million pieces all over the floor. Harry shrank back into his chair and looked nervously up at Snape, still completely confused. Snape seemed to calm down a little when he realized how genuinely frightened Harry looked. “Please Harry just try to understand. I can look after you, protect you from anything that threatens you and I will be the dominant provider in this relationship but I can’t stretch that into the bedroom I just can’t.” Harry frowned still confused but catching on fast.

“So you want me to…” Harry tried to force out the words but they never came. Snape seemed to know what the boy was trying to get at and nodded quietly. “But why?” Harry inquired his illusions about the potions professor coming suddenly crashing down around him like a house of cards.

“I’ve done certain things in my life Harry that will torment my soul for eternity. These things make up my nightmares Harry and I can’t put myself into those situations again, especially not with you.” Harry sighed heavily as Snape sat down on the couch beside him, and placed a warm had on his knee.

“So you’ll never fuck me?” Harry muttered not daring to glance up from where he was twisting his hands nervously in his lap. Snape chuckled and leaned in to press a chaste kiss on Harry’s forehead.

“I didn’t say that Harry. I’m quite capable of doing that, it’ll just be a different way that’s all.” Harry blushed a little as Snape began peppering kisses on his neck, one hand gently rubbing Harry’s knee the other resting on Harry’s back. “Now, be a good boy and tell me what you did last night after you left me?” Harry felt Severus smile against his neck the elder wizard practically pushing Harry down onto the couch as he began kissing Harry’s stomach under the boy’s wet shirt.

“Wanked.” Harry twisted his hands in Snape’s wet hair as the elder wizard stretched out over his body, his hands pushing up Harry’s shirt while he peppered kisses all over Harry’s stomach and lower abdomen.

“Where and how?” Snape muttered as he sat up and lifted Harry’s hips so that he could relive the boy of his trousers. It was cool in Snape’s chambers and Harry shivered as his shirt, trousers and shoes were discarded haphazardly on the floor leaving him in only his cotton y-fronts and white ankle socks.

“Outside the Slytherin bathroom…” Harry gasped loudly as Snape began mouthing his growing prick through the damp cotton of the pants.

“Didn’t make it very far did you?” Snape teased as he tugged the pants down with his teeth to let the boy’s youthful prick spring free, and exposing the glittering tear drop diamond ring through the end.

“I’m seventeen.” Harry laughed his eyes closed and his head thrown back against the arm of the lounge. Harry had quite forgotten about the piercing and it was only when he felt Snape get up that his eyes sprang open to see what had happened. “What did I say?” Harry whispered as he stared up at Snape in fear. Snape however said nothing his gaze firmly on the sparkling jewel in the end of Harry’s cock. “Oh fuck.” Harry swore as he glanced down at the jewel that, with Harry’s already solid member looked like a pearly droplet of cum dangling off the end. Harry had forgotten he’d never told Snape about it, and silently cursed Julius Snape forever existing. “I can’t get rid of it.” Harry mumbled his erection beginning to wilt. “I’ve tried honestly, I even nicked some chain cutters from Filches’ office but I nearly neutered myself!” Consciously Harry went to pull up his pants but Snape’s hand stilled the movement.

“It’s charmed.” Snape spoke simply as he stood up from the couch and walked over to his bookshelves to begin scanning them with a potion stained boney finger. “It’ll have to go.” Snape muttered as he started on the next row of books carefully scanning for something in particular.

“I don’t know I’ve kind of got used to it.” Harry muttered as he hitched up pants and sat up properly on the couch.

“Trust me on this one Potter, it will have to go.” Snape seemed to find what he was looking for, small black leather bound book with a crimson tassel. Harry shrugged his shoulders as Snape sat down in the armchair by the fireplace and wiped the dust from the cover of the book with his hand. Holding his pants up Harry stood up and went to sit on the arm of the chair beside Snape to look at the book. “My brother had a complex regarding power Potter, and refused to admit he was the lesser of anyone. That complex extended into the bedroom and that mutilation…” Snape gestured casually at Harry’s crotch as he thumbed through the dusty pages of the book. “...is testament to my brothers sick ideas. With that there, it means you could never top…never assert your sexual power over someone else especially him. It was obviously his security to ensure his ‘slaves’ never got above him.”

“Oh.” Harry muttered as Snape came to a specific page and began muttering to himself as he read through it quickly. Harry couldn’t see much of the text from a distance but he practically leapt from the arm of the chair as Snape casually raised his wand and aimed it towards Harry’s crotch. “Hey! Hey watch it! I don’t want any accidents!” Harry snapped sharply as Snape rolled his eyes and stood up, one hand balancing the book open in his palm the other with his wand pointed impatiently at Harry’s privates.

“Stop being a wimp Potter, all I’m doing is removing the sealing charm the rest you can do yourself.” Before Harry could protest Snape was speaking the anti-charm and Harry felt a warm burning on the tip of his cock before it was gone as quickly as it came. “There, all you need to do is just unclip it and let the hole heal over. I’ll get you some salve to speed the process.” Harry was stunned as he glanced down at his jewels; surprised to see the locking hinge had reappeared in the gold thread. Snape disappeared into his lab leaving Harry to fiddle for a moment with the clasp before wincing as he slid the ring free for the first time since Julius had put it in. It briefly occurred to Harry that had he told Snape about it sooner the elder wizard could have helped but Harry pushed that thought aside knowing he’d been stupid about it and not wanting to admit it. Snape returned with a small pot of salve he was mixing with a glass stirrer. Harry patiently put a little of the salve onto the skin Snape overseeing the processes clinically before nodding and returning the cap to the pot of salve. “Put your pants on Potter you look like a whore and I’ve lost my appetite.” Harry grumbled to himself as he pulled up his pants as Snape poured them both a glass of brandy from the decanter warming by the fire. ‘So much for a little action this evening’, Harry thought. ‘Julius strikes again’.

“Thanks.” Harry muttered as Snape handed him the glass before replacing the black book on the shelves and sitting himself down on the armchair opposite Harry. There was an awkward silence between them for a long time. Harry stared at Snape waiting for some reaction but the elder wizard merely stared blankly into the flickering flames of the fireplace. “Your brother was….” Harry went to make a comment, just to break the silence but Snape cut him off.

“My brother was a psychotic maniac who deserved everything he got Potter. It was he who nearly saw me killed the first year I joined the death eaters.” Harry sipped from his brandy purposefully keeping his mouth shut as Snape took a long pull of his own alcohol. “He cared for no one but himself and did not give a second thought to whom ever he crushed on his way to the top.”

“What did he do?” Harry ventured having always just accepted that Snape would never speak of his brother but not quite knowing why.

“He grassed on his royal darkness. Sang to the ministry about a meeting, hoping it would ensure him a place in the Auror division without going through the normal processes.” Harry rested his glass on his knee as he watched Snape down what was left in his glass before refilling it liberally, his gaze still focused on the fireplace. “His plan backfired unfortunately, the Auror’s arrested him with the other death eaters they caught that night. Lucky bastard was spared the dark lord’s wrath in the confines of Azkaban while I on the other hand took the full brunt of having a traitorous brother.” Harry swallowed nervously not really wanting to know what Voldemort did to Snape but compelled to ask all the same.

“Did he torture you?” Harry muttered remembering having seen all the horrible things Voldemort had done to his prisoners in his visions. A strange bitter smile twisted on Snape’s face as he shook his head.

“No, I would have given anything to have simply been beaten to within an inch of my life. The dark lord was far more calculating in his treatment of traitors, his powers so great he could make you re-live every terrible thing that had happened to you in your life increase the pain of those memories ten times again, until you pleaded at his feet to be granted death by his hand.” Harry’s hand tightened on his glass of brandy forcing himself to put it aside so as not to break it with his angry grip.

“You survived though?” Harry whispered as he sank off the couch and crawled over the rug to rest his head against Snape’s knee in comfort. Snape huffed a quiet laugh as he reached down and placed a soft hand on Harry’s head.

“Yes, my brothers nick name of ‘cockroach’ for me was justly given. I like yourself have an uncanny ability to survive even an apocalypse.” Snape sighed in disgust and put his brandy aside, as if only just realizing how much he’d actually drank. “My brother was released after six months after the board agreed he’d done the ministry a service by tipping them off. He disappeared after his release, and I heard from him seldom. The power he sought in becoming an Auror he found in a much less reputable career choice, of which you are aware. I had occasional scrawled letters from him, nothing specific except to gather information about Voldemort and the Ministry. Bounty Hunters are notorious killers but they still have to watch their own backs.” Harry closed his eyes as he wrapped his hand around Snape’s leg hugging it tightly to him as he rested his chin on Snape’s knee.

“He’s gone now though.” Harry offered weakly as he snuggled against Snape’s knee.

“Indeed Potter, another member of my family succumb to their own selfish greed.” Harry sat up as Snape stood from the chair, his hand coming down to offer Harry help up from the floor.

“You’re not greedy.” Harry laughed cheekily as Snape headed for the bedroom, already discarding his outer robe and toeing off his shoes as he went.

“Don’t make assumptions based on hear say Potter.” Snape threw over his shoulder as he disappeared into his bedroom, leaving Harry to laugh and scurry after him the invitation subtle but there all the same. “I’m as greedy as the next man but I have better taste in wants.” Snape smiled at Harry as the boy closed the door behind him. Perhaps the night wouldn’t be a waste after all.

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