Another Kind Of Magic

AN: In response to some comments: This story is supposed to show the side of the BDSM lifestyle that you usually don't see – at least I haven't seen it while reading fanfic. In fact quite a few of the stories made me cringe because what I saw was abuse and not BDSM.
That being said; there are a couple of really good stories about Master/slave r/ships, but that's not my cup of tea – no offence intended! You rock, but I'm just to darn stubborn for that ;o)
Anyway, as I put it into the summary: it's about basic education, so Luci, better get some Sherbet Lemons while you wait for the LEMONS *g*

@ Duchess Ravenheart: their first meeting is in chapter IV, maybe you have overlooked this part?

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Most of the seventh years were standing in the room of requirement, which was once again their room for DADA practice. Harry and Snape stood in the middle of the students.

Harry looked around the room. "I'm glad to see so many faces here although I have to admit that I am fairly surprised about it." Once again his eyes scanned the room including Snape.

"I'm surprised because many of you don't like me," Harry continued while looking at the Slytherins. "And the rest isn't really fond of Professor Snape." Harry's eyes set on Ron who blushed before he lowered his head.

"I'm wondering if some of you are here because they believe or hope that Professor Snape will accidentally harm or even kill me or the other way around."

Hermione and Neville burst out laughing and Harry winked at them. Even Snape had trouble to keep his mask of indifference in place. But others did actually avoid Harry's gaze.

"Well I have bad news for those who did come for this reason because it won't happen. I'm glad that Professor Snape has offered his help since he has a lot to teach." Harry stepped back and inclined his head to Snape who gave a curt nod.

"Thank you, Mr Potter, for the insurance that you do not intend to threaten my life. It puts my mind on rest," Snape drawled.

Harry bit back his snort of laughter and lowered his head staring at the floor to keep himself from laughing. Like Snape had needed this assurance.

"The same goes for me. I do not plan to harm or kill Mr Potter or anyone else. However," Snape glowered at the students. "I am going to sharpen your handling with the wand. And first of all we will work on a charm that all of you should be able to perform perfectly while sleeping."

Harry knew that he was blushing slightly and couldn't help but grin sheepishly. He knew very well which charm the teacher was talking about.

Snape looked at Harry. "If you please."

Harry nodded and moved away from the older wizard who continued to talk. "I am talking about the shield-charm. Mr Potter has agreed to demonstrate for you the consequences of an inaccurate one. The rest of you will move over here so you can see what I am talking about."

While Harry watched his schoolmates getting into position he imagined what would happen if he would cast a perfect shield for a change. He nervously gripped his wand tighter and bit his lip to keep him from snickering.

"Cast your shield, Mr Potter."

"Protego!"

Just a second later, Harry had the feeling of looking through blue coloured glass at Snape and the others. The teacher must have cast the colouring charm silently, that he had taught him for this lesson.

Snape looked at Harry. "You do realise, Mr Potter, that most curses would hit you with full impact even if you would only been hit on your foot?"

The teacher smirked causing Harry to look down. There was a red blotch on his left shoe.

"Great! Those are my new shoes!"

Soft snickers were heard throughout the room.

"Oh, how rude of me. Let me get rid of this," Snape slyly said. With a lazy wave of his wand the stain on the shoe was gone but instead Harry had one on his right elbow.

"I believe I made my point. Lower your shield, Potter."

Harry lowered his wand while releasing the charm whereas Snape turned to the others. With his wand he created a line between the students.

"Divide into two groups and no bullying around or else you will leave the room at once." The teacher ignored the soft muttering and told them that everyone had to cast the shield in front of Snape or Harry and that the two of them would check it.

Harry had a funny feeling in his stomach but as he saw that Hermione turned towards Snape, who was closer to her without hesitating, he relaxed. But then he noticed that he had nearly all the Slytherins in his group. Harry took a deep breath. Even though the open hostility of the snakes had stopped, they still weren't on friendly terms.

"Let's start."

Only three of the Ravenclaws before Harry had cast their shields when Snape asked them all to stop. Harry turned to Snape wondering what had caused the break. Neville was in front of the professor, his wand hand halfway lowered.

"Mr Longbottom, you had another growth spurt last summer, right?"

Neville looked rather surprised about the question and his cheeks were dusted with pink as he answered with a nod.

"I thought so." Snape glanced over the rest of the students. "You all learned that charm in your third year, or second? I don't know. But you all seem to have forgotten that you have grown since then and I mean that literally. You aren't twelve anymore so you have to adjust your shield to your size."

Harry had the impression that he looked at their teacher just as dumbfounded as the others.

"Hasn't anyone told you that?" Snape looked first at Harry, then to the others and everyone shook their heads.

Harry wasn't sure he really heard Snape muttering something about a bunch of dilettantes because he then said that they would have start from the beginning.

"Remember your first instructions. You were supposed to imagine a shield that reaches from the ground to above your head, covering also both of your sides. Something solid that can't be breached."

Harry closed his eyes as Snape told them to and concentrated on his body first before he pictured the wanted shield. Just to be sure, he added a little to the size of the shield and held that picture in his mind for a moment.

"Mr Potter, if you please."

Harry turned towards Snape his eyes still closed. He lifted his hand and cast the image from his head into the wand. "Protego!"

Harry opened his eyes again and the smirk in Snape's face told him all he needed to know.

"What a sweet sight for my sore eyes, Mr Potter. Finally I see a perfect shield from you."

Harry grinned and lowered his wand again.

The dark haired wizard turned back to the others. "My guess would be that you all should be doing fairly well now. If not get back to the first step," he said. "Get all in line again we will check out how you are doing."

Snape had been right. Almost all of the students now had a shield that protected them well. Quickly they were through with the trial and still had time left.

"Let's move to the second most important thing when handling a wand. What might that be, Mr Potter?"

"Er-" Harry grinned sheepishly as he remembered those lessons. "Aiming, Professor?"

"Precisely. I refused to use my classroom once more after Mr Potter had demolished it three times. I left him spending some time on this."

Snape cast a silent spell and an old fashioned black and yellow target appeared on one wall. "Remember those, Mr Potter?"

"Sure do, Professor. I've dreamed of those after spending hours in front of them," Harry replied jauntily.

Then something happened that no student had ever thought of: Severus Snape chuckled in a room full of students.

"Would you please, Mr Potter."

Turning around to face the target, Harry saw the stunned expressions from his schoolmates. Everyone was still staring at the teacher. Harry lifted his wand and cast a silent spell at the goal. His aim was true and he hit the bull's eye three times in a row, each time making the centre shine in bright red for a moment.

"Excellent. Divide into pairs and practice in turns until the time is over." Snape flicked his wand and produced enough targets for all of them. "And next time we will be able to work on some advanced defence."

Harry turned away from the target he had occupied and strolled over to where the older wizard stood. "No comments from you that would haunt them at night, Professor?" Harry asked casually.

Snape turned his head to Harry. "It was haunting you?"

Harry snorted good-natured. "Hearing 'Finally you're getting somewhere, Potter!' every time I hit the bull's eye wasn't really funny after two hours, twice a week."

"I can't imagine why," Snape said with a smirk. "You should have told me though that you had caught up that quickly."

"Never mind that anymore. I wouldn't have had thought about it if it weren't for a certain setting here." Harry smiled at his teacher and mentor and then went to look around to see how the others were doing.

*

Everyone from Gryffindor was happily chatting along as they went back to their common room after the practice. Well, everyone except Ron who was quiet and looked like he was brooding over something.

They were seated at their favourite spot and Harry looked enquiring from Neville to Hermione gesturing with his head towards the redhead. Both shrugged their shoulders.

"What's up, Ron?" Harry asked his best mate.

Ron looked up and around as if he had come back out of reverie. "What?"

"Something's going on and we would like to know what it is."

Ron took a deep breath. "You know, when Hermione and you started telling me off about Snape, I really thought he had you under the Imperio."

Harry frowned. Ron should know that Harry could shake off the Imperius Curse. But he decided to let it slip as long as Ron continued.

"But then Neville chimed right in and Ginny as well, thanks to Neville." Ron cast a glance around to see if his younger sister was around. "I asked her if she had gone bonkers now as well." Ron at least had the decency to blush as he looked at his friends. "Well, you know my sister."

Hermione and Neville laughed and Harry smirked.

"She probably told you off in a fashion that reminded you very much of your mother," Hermione snorted.

"Yeah, that's pretty much what she did." Ron rubbed his face. "Did I imagine this or did he really laugh today?"

This time it was Neville who answered. Harry stayed silent and thought about the many times he had seen his mentor smile and laugh. And he didn't mention that this smile made Snape look several years younger and quite handsome. Ron's next words brought Harry back from his thoughts.

"Well, maybe I have been misjudging him a little."

Harry grinned. He knew his mate good enough to realise that Ron actually meant a great deal.

"And apparently he would have made an excellent DADA teacher. He gets into details nobody else has ever bothered about."

Harry nodded thoughtfully. "It's like with Potions, if he decides to do something he puts his heart into it."

Ron looked at Harry saucer-eyed. "Sorry, mate. I might believe that he isn't as much a git as I thought, but you're not going to convince me that he has a heart beating in his chest."

Hermione slapped Ron's leg. "Oi! Blimey! I was kidding!" The redhead said, rubbing his leg.

Harry remembered Snape's thoughts that the wizard had given him believing that he was about to die. He looked at none in particular as he softly said that it had been exactly because of his heart that Snape had sworn to protect him after his parents had been killed.

Nobody said anything and Harry got up and headed for the door. He needed to walk around for a bit. He heard steps running after him and wasn't surprised to hear Hermione's voice, asking him if it was all right to join him. Harry accepted and together they made their way through the castle neither of them speaking before they were outside.

Harry decided to share something with Hermione that he had not told a single soul before. He knew that his friend would not tell someone else not even Ron if he asked her too.

"Snape was in love with my mom and begged Voldemort to not kill her." Harry glanced briefly at Hermione who looked back with a thoughtful expression.

"And because he didn't spare her, Snape changed sides," the witch said more to herself.

Harry nodded.

After a moment Hermione wanted to know what was going on between Harry and Snape.

Harry stopped dead in his tracks. Had she found out anything? "What do you mean?"

"I'm not stupid, Harry. Since a few weeks you've been away for hours at a time and you seem to be much more relaxed. Snape on the other hand has changed as well. Yes, he hasn't been as harsh as he used to be but he was still far from being friendly. Now he even praises the once so hated Gryffindors and Harry Potter no less!"

Harry snickered. "But he made it sound like an insult."

Hermione glanced at him sideways. "Sarcasm is an art, Harry," she primly said. Then they both grinned.

"And now he even starts to laugh."

"He was chuckling and not laughing," Harry corrected her.

Hermione frowned at Harry. "You know what I mean! Anyway, I don't believe that the two of you need hours to prepare DADA. As a matter of fact I am sure you could be through with it in half an hour."

"Make that fifteen minutes," Harry said with a wink. After a moment he opted to confide in Hermione.

"You know that I'm into guys but there is something else that leaves me curious about my sexuality. And since I didn't know anyone else that I trusted and might know something about the subject I asked him."

"Are you talking about sadomasochism?"

"How do you-" Harry stopped as he saw the glare Hermione shot at him.

"I am not stupid, Harry Potter! Even I heard the rumours in our first years here."

"Sorry, Hermione. I know that you are not stupid." Harry rubbed his forehead, it was a gesture he had gotten accustomed too and sighed.

"I know I don't need to tell you this, but it really is important that you won't even tell Ron about anything we speak here."

Hermione just nodded.

Harry nodded as well and took a deep breath. Then he told his friend everything he had learned so far. It felt good to finally be able to talk someone else besides Snape. Hermione listened without interrupting him. Only after Harry had stopped she said that it would sound quite different from what you usually hear.

"It is," Harry confirmed.

Hermione turned her head to Harry. "How do you feel with it?"

"Good so far. I don't know how it will actually feel, though, when…" Harry broke off and gazed into the distance.

"You mean, you haven't…" Hermione didn't finish her sentence either obviously struggling for words.

Harry glanced at her and noticed her pink dusted cheeks. With a grin he shook his head. "I mean that Snape and I sit in a room and talk. He won't touch me as long as I'm still his student. I respect him even more for it. Sometimes I don't like his decision but I respect it."

"You like him a lot, don't you?"

They had stopped walking and Harry's eyes moved over the lake. Another deep sigh came from Harry as he nodded. "I do." He looked at the young witch beside him. "Even though I have no clue why things have changed so suddenly."

Hermione laughed. "Maybe because it's the first time that you two have civil conversations instead of being busy hating each other?"

Harry grinned. "You know, you could have a point there."

They started walking again, heading back towards the castle.

"I get to know a very different Snape. For the first time I get to see behind the teacher and former spy."

"He's been living like what seventeen years or something behind a mask? One doesn't change that so easily I guess."

Harry thought about how Snape had grown up and his time here at Hogwarts. More to himself he said that Snape actually had more then just one reason to stay an embittered man. Only when he saw Hermione's intrigued look, he realised that he had spoken out loud. "Don't ask, I've shouldn't have said that in the first place." He paused for a moment. "It's amazing how different he is when he doesn't have to be on guard. He even looks different."

Hermione linked her arm with Harry's. "I hope he likes you as much as you like him."

tbc