Nights of Gethsemane

Light-headed, Harry sat for a moment while Snape hurriedly dressed, his clothes flying to him and sheltering him from Harry\'s view.



Mephistopheles! Harry had forgotten about the owlet. Was he okay? Jumping to his feet, Harry ran over to where he had last seen him.



Mephistopheles was sleeping soundly on his perch, looking like a small pillow turned inside out. He cracked an eye open at Harry, then shut it again. The spell must\'ve been contained within the boundaries of the circles for him to have slept so peacefully.



"Dress. This is not a place to walk around naked." Snape ran his fingers through his unruly hair.



Harry pulled on his clothing and meandered over towards Snape, examining the ingredients lined up along the walls. "Do you collect these yourself or buy them?"



"Whatever is more efficient," said Snape without looking up from where he was bent over a work table.



Harry stared at a jar of giant black eyes, double the size of his own. "Do you kill animals just to use one part?"



"On occasion."



"I could never be a Potions Master." Harry ran a finger down a jar stuffed with small creatures about the size of mice that had wide, forward facing eyes and long, tapered fingers. They looked like a cross between a monkey and a walking stick. "Too many tiny, little details."



Snape didn\'t say anything. Harry glanced over to see him still bent over his table.



"Did you have Potions class with my mum?"



Snape didn\'t look up from his task. In a distracted tone, he said, "Yes, and the other Gryffindors, every year."



Harry wasn\'t sure how a person would speak about a dead past love, but probably with a bit less detachment. He tried again. "I know you hated my dad, but what was my mum like?"



Without glancing up from the workbench, Snape simply said, "She was a Gryffindor."



"Which means?" Harry pried.



In a teasing tone, Snape said, "She was just as exasperating as you when it came to asking questions."



Rolling his eyes for his own benefit, Harry said, "Slughorn said she was good at potions."



Snape grabbed something off a shelf. "She was better than most but, in my opinion, lacked the quality which makes a true Potions Master."



If Snape was madly in love with her memory, he wouldn\'t speak ill of her. Tom had been lying. Snape and Lily may have been friends but nothing more. "What quality?"



"Although," continued Snape as he opened up a vial and poured its contents into something. "She made sure your father didn\'t fail Advanced Potions - a task I originally thought impossible."



Harry turned away from the jar of wiggly, slimy things he couldn\'t identify. "My father took Advanced Potions?"



"Yes. He wanted to be an Auror."



"Really?!" Pride prickled down Harry\'s spine. He had been following in his father\'s footsteps without even knowing it.



"Yes. He said he passed his Potions O.W.L. by the skin of his teeth." With a hint of scorn Snape added, "Black, of course, was banned from taking any more Potions classes after his cauldron exploded in fifth year."



Harry couldn\'t help but cast a doubtful look at Snape\'s back. "But Neville melted a few cauldrons and didn\'t get banned."



"Longbottom didn\'t do it on purpose." Snape reached up and pulled something small off the shelf above him. "Black attempted to sabotage my work and I\'d switch the cauldrons on him, among other things. After his last attempt at revenge resulted in the destruction of half the Potions lab, he was forbidden from taking any more Potions classes."



The Sirius Snape knew seemed so different from Harry\'s beloved godfather. It was almost as if he had been as schizophrenic as Snape was. How could they be so cruel and horrible to their enemies while at the same time so kind to their loved ones?



Snape turned around. "Actually, I should thank him. His frequent attempts at sabotage forced me to learn how to guard my potions more effectively. It was from that knowledge that I eventually came to develop this." He held up a string of bright, colourful objects.



Harry walked over to examine the fruits of Snape\'s labour. There were five inch-long ovals laid head to toe, each a different colour - emerald green, Persian blue, shining gold, dull grey, deep black, and pearly white.



"It is of upmost importance," said Snape, "that you remember what each potion does." He placed one long, crooked finger with a yellowed nail on the glowing white ovoid at the end. "This contains the potion we just created. When you undergo the ceremony, bite down on it before he attempts to kill you. At the start of the ceremony is best, although you can also take it right before it begins. White represents life, goodness, all that other stereotypical nonsense. Likewise, to ensure you will not confusion the potions, I\'ve chosen black for the colour of death. This poison will kill you and has no antidote. If our plans should fail.... If you should end up a slave to Lucius or any other, take this."



Lifting his hand, Snape gently pushed up Harry\'s chin so their eyes met, his dark eyes staring into Harry\'s. "I know you may find the idea of suicide reprehensible. I know you may not want to end your life knowing there is a chance that you could eventually kill the Dark Lord."



Harry had already decided that he intended to go down that very path, but he was curious to see what Snape would argue, so he didn\'t correct him. How would he try to convince Harry to end his life without revealing the existence of the Horcrux?



Snape took a breath and continued, "But trust me, if we fail, things will be very different for you. There are parts in your brain that can be cut, water injected in certain places, and areas destroyed to erase you without harming your body. Alternatively, they could keep your mind intact but take away control of your body They would force you to commit unspeakable acts and you would have no power to stop them. As long as you live, in any form, there will be those who will rely on you to destroy the Dark Lord. They won\'t try to save themselves because they\'ll be too dependent on you to save them. If you die, there will be many others willing to take your place. Your death will not be in vain. He\'ll grow confident in his control and power and that will be his weakness."



Snape\'s fingers slid around to grip the back of Harry\'s neck, his black eyes glittering. "Promise me. Promise me you will take this poison should our plans fail."



Tom\'s voice, telling Harry that Snape would never let him leave alive echoed in his head, but he had planned this anyway. He swallowed hard and nodded. "I promise. I swear I\'ll take it. I\'ve been a slave too long already."



The darkness in his eyes lightening for a bit, Snape nodded and released Harry\'s neck. "Should you ingest it, you will die after about fifteen minutes."



Snape tapped the oval of glimmering gold. "This is Felix Felicis. Four hours worth. Do not take this before the final battle; you are foolish and reckless enough as it is. I give it to you only to be used in dealing with your new guard while I\'m away. It is best for you to take it sparingly."



"How can I only take a small amount if I am supposed to bite through it?"



Snape picked up the string, popped the green ovoid off the end with a quick flick of his hands, and then dropped the chain into Harry\'s hands. "Do you see this black line?" He pushed the capsule in front of Harry\'s face, his nail pointing to a thin, black line that ran around one tip. "All have this, except for the black and the white which must be taken in full. Simply point the tip towards the sky, pinch, and twist." Snape demonstrated it and the tip popped off. "Pour out the desired amount; replace the lid." He replaced the lid and twisted it in the other direction. "And it reseals."



When he set the ovoid back in its place, it instantly joined to the one next to it. Harry pulled them back apart before letting them reseal on their own. "Like magnets, huh?"



"Similar," said Snape with a nod. "The grey will render anyone unconscious for three days. Now, you must be very, very cautious with this potion. Only use it on yourself or a Death Eater. There is a rare chance of severe complications due to a genetic defect. I\'ve already tested everyone who\'s taken the Mark. I\'ve not tested your allies, so only give it to those you are prepared to potentially lose."



None. He wasn\'t ready to lose a single one of them. It seemed pointless to take it. "What\'s the point of giving me the potion if it\'s so dangerous? Isn\'t there something safer I can take?"



Snape\'s eyebrows arched. "You cannot be revived for those three days; no matter what is done. There are very few potions powerful enough to have no antidote. Even a drop will work, but the whole container must be taken if you are to remain unconscious for the full three days."



"Is the blue a healing potion?"



"No, the green. Will that confuse you?"



"Nah." Harry rolled the oval around in his fingers. "Green like life, huh? Plants and things. What can I heal with that?"



"With a full dose you should be able to heal all the major non-magical wounds. I\'ve filled it as completely as I can, which means some will spill a bit when you first open it, so be sure to open it over a wound. And Potter-"



Harry glanced up at him.



The dark eyes wore a look of weary amusement. "I doubt I\'ll be able to get this lesson into your thick skull, but you really should reserve most, if not all, of that for yourself rather than trying to heal each ally you come across. You can\'t help anyone else if you\'re dead. Use it mostly for emergencies, I trust you know the basic healing spells for all the minor things?" Snape\'s eyebrow rose in a questioning gesture.



"I\'m not as reckless as you think," Harry promised him. "Don\'t worry. I\'ll take care of myself." He looked back down at the pills. "So what\'s the blue one do?"



"It\'s an aid for sleep which calms the dreams. You will not be in good form to face the Dark Lord if you have not slept due to nightmares."



Harry held it up to the light to examine the light blue swirls. "You give this to me most every night." He didn\'t bother to make it a question because he knew it was true. Glancing up at Snape, he asked, "What else have you been drugging me with without my knowledge?"



Snape\'s face remained impassive. There was no way to know what he thought of having his trickery discovered, but at least he wasn\'t reaching for his wand for an Obliviation spell. For a moment, the dark eyes just stared at Harry and then, Snape asked quietly, "What do you think?"



There were many possibilities. Would correct guesses get him answers? Probably not. He had guessed correctly that there was a door in the laundry room. Without flinching from Snape\'s gaze, he said, "This, obviously. You must\'ve forgotten to give it to me the night I had a nightmare."



There was a slight change in Snape\'s eyes, but the flash was too quick for Harry to know if he had caught the truth, or if Snape had guessed that nightmare was more than just a nightmare.



"You used to give me mood-dampening potions," continued Harry. "Things to make me calm. I don\'t think you continued giving me those because you never know when you need me to spring into action and kill him." Harry narrowed his eyes as he thought. "Healing potions. With all the training I do and the torture, my body must be constantly needing repair. The potions and salves and things you use on the outside work well, but it also probably helps to put things in my food or drink to heal me as fast as you can."



Unable to think of anything more, Harry asked, "How\'d I do?"



Snape\'s tongue wet his lips. "Passable," he said in a bored tone.



Harry took that to mean Snape was impressed. He glanced down at the blue pill. "I want to sleep well. How much should I take while you\'re gone?"



"One small sip per night. I\'ve placed three nights\' worth inside of it."



"How can I take three sips from this?" Harry held up the pill. "Is there wizard space inside it or something?"



"Yes, they can be difficult to use. I\'ve prepared a tray of practice capsules." Sweeping an arm behind him, Snape scooped up a tray of colourful objects and held it under Harry\'s nose. It was full of the ovals, all organised by colours like jelly beans. Snape identified them all, naming them: pumpkin juice, butter beer, orange juice, milk, tea, water, whiskey and gin.



Eyebrows raised, Harry examined a whiskey pill. "You want me to drink this?"



"Have you ever had any hard liquor?"



Harry shook his head.



"They aren\'t easy to take - like some potions. Try something simple first." Snape selected a pill of tea. "The trick to taking these is to bite one end and then swallow as quick as you can." Snape popped it in his mouth.



Better to start off simple. Harry selected one with water in it first. Shoving it to the back of his mouth, he clamped down on it with his molars. Water flooded into his mouth and he struggled to choke it down. There was too much. He opened his mouth and the liquid flooded out. When he could breathe again, he asked, "How much did you shove in that tiny thing?"



"Six to eight ounces, depending on the spell and the liquid." Selecting a whiskey, Snape said, "Don\'t try to chew up the capsule. Push it to the back, bite down, swallow straight away." Snape threw the pill in his mouth, bit, swallowed, and opened his mouth to reveal it free of liquid.



Harry picked up a butterbeer and tossed it into his mouth. Wiggling it in place with his tongue, he bit, swallowing hard. The beverage flooded his mouth, but he managed to work the capsule down his throat, the liquid flowing out as it tumbled. He wrinkled his nose at the sensation, then swallowed several times to make sure all the liquid had gone down. "That feels really strange."



Snape nodded and selected another whiskey. He twisted off the lid and easily drank down the contents.



Show-off. Harry grabbed another butterbeer, managing to keep most of it down his throat. "This is brilliant! Why don\'t you give all potions this way? It must work really well for all the nasty tasting stuff."



Leaving the tray floating in midair, Snape pushed back the robes over his left arm and rolled up his sleeve, revealing his Dark Mark. "Feel my arm. Right here." Grabbing Harry\'s hand, he pressed Harry\'s fingers against his skin. Beneath the surface, Harry could feel something round.



"You\'ve got-!" Harry dropped the string down on the workbench and grabbed Snape\'s arm with both his hands, feeling beneath the Dark Mark which was warm against his thumbs. "That\'s bloody brilliant! How many potions do you have in here?" He could make out at least four distinct ovoid shapes.



"Enough. If others knew about this method, they would realise its applications."



"Not even....?"



Snape just looked at him.



Not even Voldemort knew. Pride swelled through Harry and he couldn\'t help but grin. Snape\'s secrets weren\'t easily discovered. "Are you putting them in me as well? I want some healing potions. Those can\'t do any harm, can they? You activate them with a spell, right? I can do that. I\'ve got my magic. I-"



"Quiet!" Snape yanked his arm away and rolled down his sleeve. "Give me time to answer." He picked a gin pill and swallowed it whole.



"Should you be drinking so much?"



"I\'m not drinking. Anyway, spells are used to open them. Alohomora works, oddly enough. Most minor destruction spells work as well, provided you focus them on the container. It\'s best to use an Alohomora to pop it open, letting a bit of it bleed out. That way, when you destroy the capsule, you lessen the pain and trauma caused by the sudden appearance of mass which can\'t be contained in such a small space. If you don\'t release the potion using a spell, the capsule will dissolve slowly, releasing its contents over time. You must destroy the black capsule, the poison, in a week if you don\'t use it. It\'ll not even be safe to hold in your hand after a certain point. As you\'ll not have your magic and you shouldn\'t attempt to use it, you\'ll store them in your mouth rather than your skin."



"Won\'t that be obvious? How can I talk with them?"



"I\'ll show you in a bit. Now, try the whiskey."



Harry selected one of the amber pills. "Cheers." He popped it into his mouth, bit down, and swallowed. Or rather, tried to swallow. It burned his throat and filled his mouth with a sharp, spicy taste. Coughing, Harry choked for breath, his lungs on fire. Snape pounded on his back and Harry nodded, answering the unasked question.



Harry shoved away Snape\'s arm and rasped, "I\'m good." The gin might be better, but it could also be worse, and Harry selected the devil he knew. Snape chose a gin and Harry knocked his own pill against Snape\'s.



"Cheers." They swallowed in unison. It was easier to take them, once he figured out how to have most of it open in his throat rather than his mouth. The gin tasted just as bad as the whiskey, but Harry managed to take them with Snape, matching him pill for pill.



"Ummmm...." said Harry after they had finished the last of the liquors. "Should we be drinking if we are going to brew?"



"We\'re going to eat lunch," announced Snape as the tray disappeared and he plucked the string off the tabletop. "By that time, the alcohol should have left your system. You can\'t be that much of a lightweight."



"I\'m not." At least he hoped he wasn\'t. Scooping Mephistopheles up in his arms, Harry waited by the stairway while Snape fluttered like a bat around the lab, adding ingredients and adjusting flames.



At first, he didn\'t feel anything, but then, the alcohol crashed into him like a wave. He stumbled, holding Mephistopheles with one hand while he braced himself against the wall with the other. His legs were weak and his head swam. He was drunk.



"I\'m drunk," he announced to Snape when the Potions Master approached.



"Lightweight." Snape was standing so close. Closer and closer. They were kissing and he was holding an owl. Baby owls shouldn\'t see that. Harry shifted to cover its eyes, but then Snape\'s warm hand pressed his arm into the stones and he couldn\'t move. Pinned between the rough, cold stone of the wall and Snape\'s scratchy wool robes, Harry tasted alcohol. He shouldn\'t drink anymore. He\'d had enough. Too much. But Snape kept kissing him and he kept tasting liquor until Snape stepped away and he could breathe fresh air again.



Cold air rushed into his lungs and chased away some of the clouds in his head. Mephistopheles somehow was sleeping safely in the crook of his arm.



"Did you get me drunk to have sex with me?" Harry asked Snape, trying to focus on his face. At least that\'s what he tried to ask him. His words weren\'t sounding right.



One caterpillar eyebrow arched. "I don\'t need to get you drunk to do that. Come." The collar appeared around his neck and Snape tugged on the leash, heading up the stairs.



Harry stumbled up the stairs and they stepped outside again and it smelled so sweet. The sun shone high above them and sent shivers all over his pale skin. "I\'m going to fly."



Snape sent Mephistopheles back to his nest in the rafters and then they were back in the kitchen. Harry grabbed the leash and yanked Snape against him. They stumbled, falling to the floor, and Harry landed on a rough cloud of robes. He wanted more to drink and he tried to kiss Snape, but he couldn\'t find his mouth, there was too much hair. Snape kept most of his hair on his head. Long, black hair everywhere. Pools and pools of ink. He realised he was kissing Snape\'s forehead and he laughed.



"Stop moving your face."



"You\'re quite intoxicated, aren\'t you?"



"It\'s your fault." He closed his mouth over Snape\'s, tasting the alcohol, tasting him.



"Bed," said Snape.



"Here," said Harry, his grip tight in Snape\'s hair.



Magic wrapped around him and hauled him to his feet. They stumbled towards the bedroom in a bizarre dance, bumping into walls, tripping over furniture, neither one able to stop kissing the other. Somehow, they ended up in the practice room, draped over a sofa. The spinning practice room.



"Why won\'t it stand still?"



Snape stopped kissing him long enough to ask, "Hm?"



"Everything. Spinning."



"Wait here." Snape\'s body left him.



"Snape?" Harry rolled over and found himself lying on a soft carpet. Nice, soft carpet. "Snape?"



A cloud of black appeared, scooping Harry up and sweeping him onto the couch. "Drink." It was Snape\'s voice and Snape\'s fingers curled in his hair. He had had too much to drink, but Snape was rarely wrong and so he drank.



It was thick and creamy and a bit disgusting, but once it hit his stomach, the room stopped spinning.



"There\'s a potion for everything, isn\'t there?" His tongue felt thick in his mouth, like a slug had crawled in there and refused to budge.



Snape somehow made out the words. He understood Harry better than anyone. "No, not everything."



There was something sad in those words and Harry ached for him, his heart bleeding the pain that Snape couldn\'t express. He was the only person alive who loved Snape and soon he would die. However, he would save him. He would free him from Voldemort forever. Harry wrapped his arms around Snape\'s neck and whispered, "Don\'t worry. I\'ll fix everything. I\'m better than a potion."



Dark eyes vanished behind lids. "You\'re still intoxicated."



"Noooooo." He felt wonderful.



"Drink more." Snape\'s eyes flew open and he pressed more potion to Harry\'s lips, but Harry shook his head. He\'d had too much to drink.



"No more drinking. Sex." Harry grabbed Snape\'s hair and yanked him down for a kiss.



Snape pushed Harry away by the shoulders. "Drink what is left in this bottle. Otherwise, you may vomit."



"Give me the potion." Harry grabbed for it, finding only Snape\'s robes.



"Hold still." Fingers curled in Harry\'s hair and the potion bottle found his lips again. Harry tried to drink it, but most of it slopped down his front instead.



Snape sighed. "What am I going to do with you?"



"You\'re gonna fuck me. Fuuuuck me." Fuck was such a wonderful word. F, U, C, K. What could be better?



"I\'ll-"



Harry pounced on him and they landed on the floor. Capturing Snape\'s mouth, he kissed him hard, ignoring the tightness in his neck where Snape was gripping it in strong fingers. Gradually, Snape\'s fingers loosened and Harry could breathe freely again. The buttons were guarding Snape\'s chest fiercely and Harry couldn\'t break through their defences, but the trousers yielded even to his clumsy fingers and soon Snape\'s hot flesh seared his fingertips.



Each squeeze, each tight pull drew low sounds from Snape\'s throat and made his cock pulse, blood pouring in. Slipping his hand up under the shirt, Snape found one of Harry\'s nipples and ran his thumb back and forth over it, each stroke sending shivers down his spine.



Snape pushed him onto his side and rolled to face him, his huge nose pressing against Harry\'s smaller one. They lay facing each other, their legs intertwining like titi monkeys\' tails. Harry had seen a programme on them once. They mated for life. The programme had said that when one died, the other soon followed. But neither of them were monkeys, and Snape would live long after he had gone.



Snape\'s hand slipped inside Harry\'s bottoms and caressed him in glorious strokes. Soft enough to leave goosepimples all over his skin, hard ones that curled his toes and spilled moans from his throat. He tried to replicate the actions on Snape, glancing at Snape\'s face to see what effect he was having.



Intense black eyes met his own. They weren\'t truly black though, more like a deep, rich brown, the colour of dark earth. Snape better not think of anyone else. No one else but him. Not his mum. Snape shouldn\'t love Lily. He couldn\'t.



"Think about me," he said, his grip tight.



"Mm," moaned Snape. "Of course."



"Me," insisted Harry, needing agreement. "Not anybody else."



"Nobody else." Snape caught his mouth in a fierce kiss and for a moment, Harry could do nothing but hold on as Snape pressed so firmly against him, he couldn\'t breathe. Snape broke the kiss and his other hand joined the one already under the waistband of Harry\'s bottoms. His hands firmly slid up and down Harry\'s cock, urging him to completion.



"We\'ll go.... nhm... to Australia," Harry said. He didn\'t know why; happy endings only happened in fairy tales. He had to believe though. Believe it was possible that they could somehow make it through this with both of them alive and the Horcrux gone. "Australia, yeah?"



"Yes," gasped Snape, but Harry didn\'t know if he was agreeing to go to Australia or just excited because Harry now had both hands rubbing his straining cock. Snape\'s head curled in and he closed his mouth on Harry\'s lower lip as his cock grew even thicker and harder. His grip relaxed, but Harry barely noticed; Snape\'s palpable excitement was enough to keep him on edge.



Harry tightened his grip and suddenly warm, thick fluid filled his hands and squeezed between his fingers. A moan filled the room and, for a moment, Harry wasn\'t sure it had come from Snape at all, until Snape\'s fingers relaxed and the noise stopped.



Harry slowed down his hands, but even the slight friction still sent shivers down Snape\'s frame until he grabbed Harry\'s wrist, pulling his hands away.



He\'d done it! He\'d made Snape come first. Snape had come first! He was about to remark on this brilliant fact when Snape\'s hands returned to his groin and then he could think of nothing but how wonderful it felt to have his dick enclosed in those amazing hands. One slipped down and then two impossibly slick fingers pushed inside him. He rocked back and forth between those incredible hands, orgasm just around the corner. What was the point of getting drunk to get laid if you couldn\'t get off? He was close. So fucking close and yet he just couldn\'t get past the finish line.



He shut his eyes and tried desperately to break through the barrier.



Snape misunderstood his groans. "Don\'t hold yourself back," he whispered in Harry\'s ear, his voice a seductive purr. "We can do more later."



"I\'m not- I can\'t-"



"Oh?" The satisfaction could be heard if not seen. "Have we finally found an easy way to prevent you from spilling like a third year who\'s just discovered masturbation?"



"Piss off, you wanker."



Snape\'s hands stilled and Harry\'s eyes flew open. He grabbed Snape\'s shoulders and held him tightly in place. "You\'re not leaving."



"No," growled Snape, his eyes burning. "You\'re going to come now." His hands began moving again. "And then later, after we\'ve finished with the potions and the necessary training, I\'m going to fuck you."



God, Harry loved the way he said \'fuck\'. So forceful as if he had just thrust in at that very moment. "Ye-yeah?"



Snape\'s hand quickened over his foreskin. "He\'s gay. Enitan. The wizard who will be watching you."



"Leave the sheets unwashed." Harry thrust his hips hard, pressing into Snape\'s fingers. "Make him sleep in our spunk."



Snape chuckled and that low, deep sound was almost enough to push Harry off the edge. "You are a disgusting, foul boy."



"Put aphrodisiacs in the food." Seeing Snape\'s face darken and feeling his grip tighten, Harry added, "Just enough to keep him distracted. I\'ll bite my tongue if he tries to touch me."



"I\'ll kill him if he touches you."



The truth behind those words made Harry tremble. "Just like Hathaway. Just like you\'ll kill Avery."



Snape\'s eyes lit up. "I already have." He captured Harry\'s mouth again and they kissed, Harry surging closer and closer.



He burst through the barrier biting Snape\'s lip. With the alcohol, the sensations seemed a bit distant, as if he were experiencing someone else\'s orgasm, but the intense relief still swept him away and for a moment, he drifted on a cloud of bliss. He wanted to lie there forever, half embraced by Snape, but soon Snape pulled away and cleaned them both with sparks of magic.



"Lunch now," said Snape with no room for disagreement in his voice. Harry accepted the offered hand and walked unsteadily to the kitchen. As they made lunch, Snape not only quizzed him on the potions, but also on healing spells. He seemed to know how to fix every single problem and soon Harry began quizzing him.



"Broken ribs?"



"Remove the bones and support the area until you can get your hands on Skele-Gro. Ingest a healing potion to close any punctured organs."



"Fulcio?" asked Harry, guessing the spell necessary to support the area.



"Auxilium is actually better for supporting the chest cavity because you need it flexible enough to breathe. Fulcio works when you only need support such as when you\'ve broken a bone other than your ribs. How do you stop Fiendfyre?"



"No idea."



"You can\'t. Fiendfyre can destroy Horcruxes, but you should only use it after you have prepared a place for it to burn itself out and even then, only as a last resort unless you\'ve practised with it. Oddly enough, it can also be contained within glass, but getting it to erupt only within the glass is near impossible."



They only paused to eat and even then, the silence didn\'t last long. Snape wanted to know every single detail of the visions Harry had seen in Voldemort\'s mind before his capture, and the stories of where and how they found the Horcruxes. Harry told them as best he could, trying to be sure he didn\'t leave out a single detail.



He was still telling the story about the Sword of Gryffindor when they walked back to the lab. "Ron pulled me out of the water, then we killed the Horcrux. It tried to take over Ron - they don\'t just die quietly - but Ron fought against it. They don\'t want to be destroyed, and they\'ll often try to trick you. You can\'t listen to anything they say."



"Who do you think cast the doe Patronus?" asked Snape.



"I don\'t know. An ally, I\'m sure, and not just because it led me to the Sword. Do you think my mum somehow made it appear? I\'d bet her Patronus would be a doe since my dad was a stag."



"I doubt it," said Snape, walking behind Harry. "Patronuses can only be cast by the living. While the Order members have more use for Patronuses than Death Eaters, you shouldn\'t assume that a Patronus can only be cast by an Order member."



"I\'m not," Harry assured him. "I saw Umbridge cast a Patronus and I know she\'s no ally of mine. The doe was beautiful though. I knew the moment I saw her that she wouldn\'t harm me. I can\'t explain it and I know it sounds stupid, but it was as if she was made of love."



Snape scoffed behind him. "That does sound stupid."



"What do you know?" asked Harry playfully. He jumped off the last step and turned around. "Have you even been in love?"



Snape adopted a look as if Harry had just gravely insulted him. "Of course."



But with whom? Surely not Lily. "With who?"



"Undress and lie on the table." Snape motioned to a work bench and strode over towards the table where the ovals lay. It was only there, with his back to Harry, that he answered, "With several individuals."



\'Several individuals\' meant more than just his mum and himself like Tom had implied. He knew Tom had been lying. Pulling off his clothing, Harry asked, "Why aren\'t you in a relationship right now?"



Snape turned around, arching an eyebrow at him. "What makes you think I\'m not?"



Jealously spiked through Harry\'s gut and he glared at Snape. "With who?"



"Wouldn\'t you like to know?" Snape sounded amused.



"Yes," said Harry straight away. "Is it Narcissa?"



"She is beautiful, is she not?" Snape held a potion out towards Harry.



"No." Harry glared at him as he snatched the potion and quaffed it. "She\'s a stuck up, snotty bitch."



Snape\'s eyebrows shot up and a low chuckle emerged from his throat. He pushed Harry back on the table and arranged his limbs.



"That she is, but she can be quite charming too. She\'s not like her husband, and will give you pity."



Harry didn\'t want pity. Sleep overwhelmed him and he swiftly slipped from consciousness.



~



The soft clicking of vials and knives brought Harry back from sleep. He opened his eyes, and through his fuzzy vision, made out a giant black cloud he assumed to be Snape brewing at the other end of the lab.



Too tired to move at first, he rested and watched. He didn\'t need to see Snape to get a perfect picture of how he looked. He could see Snape\'s furrowed brow, the intense concentration of his eyes, and the smooth, confident shifts of his hands and fingers as the problem became the sole focus of his attention.



Harry sat up, his limbs still sluggish as he searched for his clothing. "What did you put in me and how many?"



The cloud shifted and Snape\'s pale face appeared. "Five healing potions - one near each main artery in your limbs and one near your heart."



Harry felt his upper arm but couldn\'t find it.



"The one near your heart is old and probably leaking small amounts of potion as we speak."



"That\'s safe?" Harry ran his fingers over his chest.



"It won\'t be a problem at all. It\'s nearly impossible to overdose on healing potions." Sweeping over, Snape held up the string of potion capsules. "Now, put this in your mouth. It should shrink and stick to the back of your teeth."



Accepting the chain, Harry pushed the end into his mouth. Just as Snape said, it shrunk and clung to his tooth as if they had both been magnetised. After he had the whole collection hidden in his mouth, Snape ordered him to practise removing the string and replacing it as stealthily as he could. It wasn\'t a problem to find and remove the correct vial - even without glancing at them.



Snape watched him until the motion was flawless. Then he said, "Come now. We must do more training." Without waiting for Harry to dress, he conjured the leash and yanked on the end of it.



Hopping off the table, Harry followed him out of the lab, forced to remain in a quick step or else risk being dragged along.



"Slow down a bit," said Harry as he stumbled over the threshold to the practice room. He grabbed the leash and pulled back on it.



"Hurry up," retorted Snape, yanking harder. "We have little time left."



Still holding onto the leash, Harry held his ground and pulled hard, keeping Snape in place. "Then maybe you should\'ve planned this better."



Snape\'s white face turned around to stare at Harry. "And how long did it take you to learn Occlumency? How long-"



Anger burst into flame in Harry\'s gut. "Don\'t try to pin this on me. I\'ve done my part."



"And you think I\'ve not done mine?" Snape\'s eyes dared him to say \'yes\'.



His gaze steady, Harry said, "You\'ve made mistakes."



"I\'m sure you would\'ve been perfect." Snape sneered the last word before he tugged hard on the leash, knocking Harry off-balance and nearly into an end table.



Grabbing the table, Harry straightened himself, holding his head high. "Look at what you did! You\'re so fucking childish sometimes!"



Snape whipped out his wand.



"Oh?" said Harry recklessly. "Now you\'re going to threaten me unless I obey you." He adopted his best slave expression and voice. "Oh, don\'t hurt me, Master. I\'ll obey you completely, Master." With a wide flourish of his arm, Harry mock-bowed, ignoring the danger of the wand pointed at him. He straightened and Snape cast a spell. His instincts screamed at him to dodge, but he held himself steady, letting the spell strike his neck. The leash and collar vanished, which made no sense considering that Snape\'s face was twisted with anger. The distance between them disappeared as Snape swooped in, closing one strong hand around Harry\'s neck. Harry silently dared him to squeeze.



"Now listen to me, you stupid brat-"



No. He was not some child who\'d made an error in the potions lab. He\'d let Snape dictate the plan and course of training before, but now that he\'d decided to die, he wouldn\'t spend his last moments under the thumb of a man who couldn\'t be honest with him or treat him fully as a partner rather than a subject. He said, "Oh, shut it."



Snape\'s face went more sallow, but Harry didn\'t care. Tom had warned him that Snape would always control him unless he fought it. "I don\'t care what you threaten me with. If you want me to do something, then ask. Nicely. Don\'t call me names. I\'m not your slave. Instead of ordering me around, plan with me. This is my life."



Although Snape\'s lips curled up in a sneer, he released Harry\'s neck. "As if you\'ve been the best judge of what is required. If I left the defeat of the Dark Lord up to you-"



"You\'ve had more time to plan than I\'ve been alive! I didn\'t even know I was a wizard until six years ago!" Harry crossed his arms over his chest. "What\'s your excuse?"



Snape snorted. "And I suppose circumstances never change?"



This was pointless. "Look," said Harry, taking a deep breath to calm himself. "Neither of us can defeat him on our own. We need each other. I want him dead just the same as you. Just- Just tell me what we\'re working on now."



Snape\'s shoulders lost their tension and he glanced around the room. "You will attempt to take my wand while I shoot spells at you. Start in your slave position in the middle of the room. I\'ll be shooting Obscuro."



Harry strode to the centre of the room just as Snape called in the balls and reconstructed the fake Death Eaters. After putting his wand back in his robes and removing one of the wooden sticks they had used earlier for wands, he said, "They\'ll also be attempting to kill you. If a single ball hits you, you must begin again."



"I can do that," Harry acknowledged.



Without warning, Snape shot off the first spell and the Death Eaters attacked. Although he had been dodging for weeks, it had been a while since he\'d attempted to evade several moving targets, and it took him several tries before he made it out of the centre of the room.



"Fuck," he said when Obscuro hit him once again.



Lifting the spell, Snape said, "Concentrate on me. You can attempt to trick them into killing each other after you\'ve stolen my wand. Again."



Snape ran him mercilessly through the routines, pushing him harder at every step even as he added wards, increased the number of Death Eaters, and shot the spells more frequently. Harry, determined to win, didn\'t complain, but pushed himself as hard as he could. He had just managed to touch Snape\'s hand before being blinded when suddenly Snape returned his vision and everything in the room vanished.



"On your knees," ordered Snape, as he waved the room back to its normal settings.



The other guard was here. Based on Snape\'s hurried wandstrokes, Harry guessed he\'d arrived earlier than expected.



As soon as the room looked like a regular sitting room, Snape dropped onto a sofa, conjured the leash and collar for Harry, and removed scrolls from his robes. Harry curled up by his feet, closed his eyes and pretended to sleep. After a moment of sitting, Snape got to his feet, tucking his scrolls back into his robes.



The door to the practice room opened and a rich baritone voice said, "Severus," in greeting as a Death Eater wearing crimson and black robes swept in.



"Enitan," said Severus in a matched tone and the two of them crossed the room towards each other, clasping hands in greeting.



"Would you care for some tea?" asked Severus.



"If you don\'t mind, I\'d love a meal. Something simple would be fine. I\'ve spent the entire day travelling."



"Certainly. Follow me." A tug on the leash pulled Harry towards the kitchen and he followed, crawling as close to Snape as he could. "You\'ve not seen the Dark Lord?"



"I paid him a visit first, but he was in the middle of planning and asked that I begin my work straight away. I\'ve brought the samples you requested."



"I trust they weren\'t too difficult to obtain," said Snape as he led Harry and Enitan into the kitchen.



"No. I am proud to aid a fellow Death Eater." Enitan settled himself comfortably in a chair. "Besides, the specimens you sent me proved to be just what I needed to complete my Grigori Potion."



Snape Summoned the apron and dropped it on Harry as he removed the leash with a wave of his hand. "Fix a meal for us."



Harry couldn\'t believe that Snape wanted him to cook for a Death Eater, but it was far better than going back to his cell. Pulling on the apron, he cautiously climbed to his feet and headed to the fridge. What to make? Snape hadn\'t said, but he doubted Snape wanted something simple for his guest. There wasn\'t much he could do without using a knife though.



"Did you use the Penemue root?" Snape asked as he took a seat at the table across from Enitan.



Not knowing what else to do, Harry stole a cookbook off one of the shelves and flipped it open. Shrimp fettuccine alfredo. He could cook that, especially since he\'d seen how Snape cooked the shrimp earlier. Setting the book on the countertop, he hunted for the ingredients as quietly as he could while the Potions Masters talked potion talk behind him at the table. While he was working, he sneaked glances at Enitan, who was a tall, thin, handsome man with short, black hair, mocha skin, and a wide, infectious smile.



Harry\'d never got used to the friendliness of the Death Eaters towards each other. It was strange to see such a handsome, nice-looking man and know that he\'d kill innocent Muggles for pleasure. Would he or Snape have to kill him? Did Snape view him as a friend? Although Snape was speaking about potions, he had an ease to his voice that he used when chatting to individuals he got along with.



Harry pushed the thoughts from his mind, trying to concentrate only on the meal. He supposed it didn\'t matter. The man had chosen to join the Death Eaters and was still a loyal member. If he fought to maintain Death Eater ideals, he deserved whatever came to him.



After having toasted some bread and prepared a small salad (having carried everything that needed to be cut over to Snape), Harry served them dinner, fixed Snape\'s tea, and poured elf wine for Enitan. Both men gave him orders without looking at him, but he didn\'t mind. It was better to be treated as a fixture than a punching bag. When no more orders came, Harry sat on the floor by Snape\'s chair and planned his escape while the Potions Masters debated cauldron types.



When Snape had finished with his plate, he sent it down to Harry who finished off the meal. Soon after had he finished eating, Enitan said, "I\'ve been curious to see what type of lab the Dark Lord provides his faithful servants."



"I\'ll take you to see it," said Snape. "But first, I must put my pet away. He\'s not permitted access to the lab."



"He\'s not trusted?"



"It\'s too dangerous."



"Yes, of course."



As Enitan followed them back to Harry\'s cell, Harry couldn\'t request that Snape come fetch him later. The last thing he wanted to do on his last day as a prisoner, was spend the entire time alone, but it looked as though that were unavoidable. Brushing by Snape\'s leg as he crawled into his cell, he climbed onto the bed and prepared to spend the rest of the day bored out of his mind.









[Despite all that we learn about Harry\'s father, as far as I can tell, what profession James would have eventually undertaken is never mentioned in the books. JK says simply that he had enough money that he could devote himself to the Order full-time.



I look forward to your feedback! We\'re so close to the end now!]