Bonds of Affection

Author\'s Note: To my readers and reviewers: you have been absolutely amazing. So far, this is my most read (30,000+ hits) and most reviewed (300+ reviews) story. I\'m very honored. And it gives me warm fuzzies when people try to guess what\'s ahead, or curse me with unforgivable curses as story progresses. :-) Well... Time to move the story along....



Dependence



Severus looked at Harry\'s battered body, as the boy knelt at his feet, face pressed against his thigh, weeping bitterly. Severus placed his hand on Harry\'s head and said in a quiet voice: “Shush. Calm yourself.” Harry\'s sobbing subsided almost instantly under his touch.



Severus lifted Harry into his lap. Harry threw his arms around Severus, and melted into his embrace instantly. Severus covered him up with his robe, and kissed his forehead. Harry issued one final sob, and rested his chin on Severus\' shoulder.



“So dependent,” Bellatrix hissed gleefully. “So weak and needy....”



Lucius, however was watching Harry with something akin to concern. “The injuries,” Lucius said slowly.



“Yes,” Severus intoned coldly, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “With the healing spells not available, they can easily become infected. And then you wonder why the Dark Lord has chosen me as Harry\'s Master... None of you have the necessary self-control, or foresight. Not even you, Lucius. You see a bundle of submissive teenage flesh, and go berserk, forgetting how important this particular body is to our plans.”



Lucius glared at him dangerously. “Fine,” he said, rising to his feet. “Enough of this. Playtime is over. Patch him up.”



“I will need some potions and ointments,” Severus said indifferently. “You can pick them up for me tomorrow morning. There are a few stores in Diagon Alley that will carry them...”



Lucius shrugged. “Afraid not, old friend. The lockdown will not be lifted. You will have to make do with what you brought... and knowing you, my dear Severus, I believe you\'ve brought a lot more than you are letting on.”



Severus nodded without any expression. He reached for Harry\'s clothing, piled on the floor, then stood up, and carried Harry back to their quarters.



Once there, Severus laid Harry on the bed, face down, and surveyed the damage, trying not to lose his cool. Harry\'s skin was broken in a few places, and blood – the blood on his backside...



“It\'s not what you think,” Harry said tiredly. “He hadn\'t touched me. Just used a spell...”



“What?” Severus snapped, in surprise. “Why would he do that?”



“Don\'t know,” Harry muttered. “He told me not to come back.”



“Well,” Severus mused. “This little stunt pretty much assured he, or anyone else, would not be allowed to .. play with you again.”



“Maybe I should get him a thank you card,” Harry said bitterly, and buried his face in the pillow.



Severus sighed deeply, gave silent thanks for the Untedectable Extension Charm, and produced the healing ointment. As cautiously as he could, he rubbed the substance into Harry\'s injuries, and the cuts began to close almost immediately. Harry shuddered slightly under each touch, and finally, wept again, bitterly, quiet despair ringing in every sob.



“Harry,” Severus said with gentleness. “Beloved... What is it?”



“It was him,” Harry whispered. “It was him all along. Pettigrew made it all happen. He ... he was there to destroy you, and my parents. You were meant to be together. Like me, Ron and Hermione. You were supposed to be three. But Pettigrew made you feud... and then, my father drove you to Voldemort... and then... Peter attached himself to us, through Ron, and we, well, I drove Draco to Voldemort...”



Severus swore under his breath. “Harry... listen to me very carefully,” he said as calmly as he could. “You did not make Draco join Voldemort. That was his choice. Just like becoming a Death Eater was my choice. Your father did not make me do it. It\'s impossible for someone to control another person\'s soul.”



“Yeah, right.”



“That\'s right,” Severus said gravely. “There are spells, potions, magical means that can influence and even control people\'s moods, thoughts, actions... but nobody can make another person Dark. It\'s a philosophical impossibility for someone to do anything to the soul of another. Trust me on this.”



Harry lifted himself on the elbow and smiled at him through the tears. “If you say so.”



Severus lay down beside him. Harry turned on his side, his battered back turned to Severus, pressing against his chest. Severus held on to him with all his strength.



“Harry,” Severus said softly. “Tomorrow, when the Order attacks, I want you to go with whoever Albus sends for you.”



Harry stiffened against the arms holding him. “I know you do,” he said softly. “Just as you know that I won\'t go. I intend to stay until I can get to Nagini.”



Severus clenched his fists, stilling himself against the violent surge of anger and despair, merged into one. “Does my word mean nothing to you?” he asked sternly.



“Your word is everything to me,” Harry whispered. “It sustains me... guides me.. even when I am alone, you are always with me... there\'s just one thing that means more than your word... it\'s who you are. Your example. I know that if you were in my place, you wouldn\'t leave. I can\'t either.”



Severus muttered something spiteful about teenage martyr complex. Harry moved in his embrace, and turned around, coming to face him. “Please,” Harry pleaded quietly. “Don\'t force me to go against you.... It will destroy me. I can\'t bear it... I need you.”



Severus gave him a small nod, and drew the boy to his chest. Harry pressed himself into him with gratitude.



“I love you,” Harry said serenely. “You are my everything.”



“You are my life,” Severus said softly. “Don\'t let me lose you.”



“No,” Harry murmured, and fell asleep almost instantly, his head resting on Severus\' arm.



Severus fell asleep as well. That night he once again, dreamed of the graveyard, and Luna Lovegood.







In his dream, he was standing above the familiar open grave, his eyes fixed on the coffin lying beneath his feet. Behind him, a tender melodic voice hummed a familiar melody.



I await no boons of fate, regretting

Not the past, for that is buried deep.

Ah, to find true freedom, true forgetting

In the calm of everlasting sleep!



Yet I dread the cold and clammy fingers

And the leaden, icy sleep of death.

Would that life within me, dormant, lingered

And I felt its warm and balmy breath;



Would that love\'s own voice, my ear caressing,

Night and day sang joyful song to me,

And an ancient oak, my slumber blessing,

Swayed above my head eternally.



“Harry,” he called, not expecting an answer.



“He\'s not here yet,” Luna\'s voice said behind him. “But he will be soon.”



“Is there no way to prevent this from happening?” Severus demanded. “There must be a way...”



“No,” Luna said firmly. “Once the prophecy is uttered, the course is locked. This event is unavoidable. His grave is waiting for him.”



Severus turned around and stared at her. She gazed at him serenely, her eyes glowing in the dark, and her blond hair cascading down to her shoulders.



“Tell me,” she murmured, “Where is this place?”



Severus shook his head tiredly, unable to lift his eyes. All he could see was the rough, slightly uneven surface of the wood in the depths of the unearthed grave.



“Look around you,” Luna insisted. “I know it\'s hard to take your eyes off something like this, but you should.”



Severus complied, and turned around. He saw other gravestones, and he recognized some of the names. The nearest gravestone, however, belonged to James and Lily Potter.



“Godric\'s Hollow cemetery,” Severus said.



“Yes,” Luna murmured in agreement. “This is the beginning of the end; and the last of the prophecy.”



“I can\'t lose him,” Severus said stubbornly. “He is my life.”



“Yes,” Luna said. “He is. And you, his oak, that will bless his slumber.”







....To Be Continued ...