The Journey Cycle pt 1: Europe *pt 1 now complete*

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The Squig



9

Severus ran his hands down Harry’s chest trying to lighten the atmosphere between them, but he could sense his lover’s concern thrumming through his whole body even while he rained kisses into Harry’s hair. Harry broke away and collapsed over the desk bursting into tears as his head folded over his arms. One fist thumped the wood of the table, “I fucking hate this”, he exclaimed as his body shook with the violence of his emotion. In an instant, Severus knelt beside him and took him into his arms, holding on and trying his best to comfort him wordlessly before succumbing to his own tears and they clung together.

Eventually the storm of tears lessened to sniffles and they drew away slightly, all red eyes and sniffly noses, wiping away each other’s tears. Severus stood and moved into the kitchen banging pots and pans as he began to prepare a meal for them that neither would eat, but in the absence of anything else to do, he relied on what he knew, and in the absence of Potions making, he did the next best thing: cook.

The smell of frying garlic brought Harry to the table, his belly rumbling despite himself and both managed to eat something that night to Severus’ delight. Harry crashed the cans after dinner and explained, “I think I need to get spectacularly pissed”, as he cracked the first one and they did just that. Later they wandered out onto their private bit of beach and paddled in the rising tide, then rolled about in the sand and fucked spectacularly trying to exorcise the ugliness of the last few weeks, dipping into the water to clean off then going again with vigour, entering the villa again, showering the salt off, then throwing each other to the bed and taking again with a sense of urgency until they could give no more that night, stunning themselves and each other with their stamina. They rolled into a sated ball and eventually slept.

They spent the rest of their stay exploring the delights of Barcelona and that chunk of the coast, travelling north towards the French border, visiting Dali’s old homeland and the Museo in Figuerres, travelling further to Cadaques and the Cap de Creus, spending many hours just enjoying the sea. Severus wound his arms around his lover and murmured, “Many of the places we travel to seem to involve the sea”. Harry shrugged, “Always wanted to see the sea. Never got a chance to as a kid. Forgive me if I indulge a bit”. Severus smiled and held his lover close, “It wasn’t a complaint, sweetheart, merely an observation”. Harry grinned at the endearment and snuggled into safe arms, “I’ve always had an affinity with the sea. I can’t explain it, so I’ll not try to. I just love it. I love to be in the presence of something bigger than little old me, if you see what I mean”. Severus laughed softly into the balmy night, “I know just what you mean, love. It’s very calming and restorative”.

They gave up their villa and re-packed Bessie with all their new books and the rest of their stuff. They were off to Italy next, a place that Severus had always wanted to visit but had never had the chance to before and his excitement was palpable as they crossed back into France south of Perpignan and drove along the coast. They would be in Italy in a day or two and spent the night just outside Montpellier.

They picked their way along the coast through Arles and Marseille and decided to spend a couple of nights there in the ancient sailing town before pressing on through Toulon, Cannes and Nice to the Italian border. They didn’t tarry in France, it being full of tourists and not to either of their tastes. They sought a quieter place before they stopped for any length of time.

Harry needed a rest from driving once they crossed the border and they stayed in a little campsite away from the tourist beat for a few days so that Harry could recharge his batteries, staying along the coast that Harry loved so much in a tiny village campsite where they were completely ignored which suited them both fine.

After their customary walk on the beach, they held each other in bed and made love. Severus had never had such a wild and free time ever before and told his Harry as much as they came down, gasping and sighing, re-iterating their love for each other, “I can’t ever get enough of you, my Harry. You are the moon and the stars to me”. Harry giggled, “I bet you tell that to all the boys”, to be met with a serious look by his lover. “No, Harry. No-one has ever made me feel like you do, including Rem. He would never have taken a journey like this, never knowing where we were going to end up that night, going with the flow, so to speak. You are so exciting and brave and this whole thing is just so wonderful and freeing. In all my years, I never knew that travel could be like this, with no real thought for our destination, the journey itself being the main thing. I totally love this, all of it. I love you, more than you can ever know”, as he gazed into Harry’s eyes.

Harry gazed back, smiling, “Draco would never have done this. When we first set out, I was so worried that you would hate it all. The roughing it, the long hours driving, the tourists and the traffic jams, the lack of Apparition and arriving, just the very fact of going from one place to another, but in you, I have found the perfect travelling companion. You haven’t whinged once and I cannot for the life of me have imagined that it would be as good as this, squished together on Bessie, barreling through the night, going Merlin knows where. This is always how I imagined real travel to be and you are helping me realise a dream that I have always had, and for that, I thank you. I love you so much”.

****

They meandered along the coast to Livorno, via Pisa to see the leaning tower and the palazzo, where they stayed a few days, laughing, eating fine food and having lots of lovely sex, relaxing totally from their travails in Spain before heading inland to Florence to feed Severus’ art ‘jones’. He was a big fan of Renaissance Art and got a headful, weeping at angels, early altar panels, the discovery of perspective and relaying that love to an amazed Harry who lapped it all up. They were loving Italy already.

They had once again rented accommodation, a large villa in a quiet neighbourhood just a taxi-ride from the city centre as the parking was a total nightmare.

Harry was in one of the bathrooms and playing with his hair when Severus found him through all the steam clearing it away with vigorous sweeps of his hand to find his naked lover fussing over said hair and looking stressed. “What are you trying to do?” Harry rolled his eyes, “Whaddya think, loony? We’re going to one of the fanciest wizarding districts in the known world and I am to be accompanied by one of the best-looking wizards on the planet and I have permanent fucking bed-hair. Sometimes I hate it. It looks fine with the jeans or board shorts but with formal-wear, it just looks a bloody mess”, he turned to see Severus with his hair neatly tied back, “I’m just having a jealous moment, okay?”

Severus stepped up behind him and grinned into the mirror over Harry’s shoulder, “Stop fussing, idiot, I love your hair and once it grows out, you can tie it back”, he raked a hand through the mess of damp curls but Harry was having none of it, dragging a comb through it, “It just looks so damned girly like this”, and Severus laughed, “Actually”, he ruffled it with his fingers so it fell in it’s natural waves, “I think it looks lovely if you must know”. Harry humphed loudly, “Drae was right, I should have kept it short, that way it looks okay whatever I wear”.

Severus looped his arms around Harry’s waist and pulled him flush to his chest, “I think it suits you better long, it just takes time to grow it out”, he nuzzled Harry’s ear, “I also think that you are beautiful”, he whispered. Harry snorted, “Yeah, right”. Severus turned him round to face him, “Actually I do”, there was no sign of piss-taking either in his voice or expression and Harry looked surprised, “Really?” He frowned. Severus looked him in the eye, “Yes, I really do, idiot. I thought that all your amours would think so”. Harry shook his head, “Nope, not one. In all the years I was with Drae, he never said it once. Sexy, yes, shaggable, cute even, but never beautiful”.

Severus pondered on this, “I find that rather hard to believe. You don’t have Draco’s rather obvious prettiness but that fades with time but you have a real beauty about you that will last you into old age. Maybe the little git was just jealous. You are a work of art in your own right, Harry and have been since you were sixteen” Harry shook his head and frowned and chuckled at the same time, “Nah, you must need glasses, love”. Severus lightly whacked his lover’s arse, “Shut up, Potter, I have a fine appreciation of beauty as you well know, and I think you are beautiful. Truly. And you know I never say anything just to massage your ego”. Harry chuckled, “Aye, that you don’t”, he shrugged, “Thank-you. And for your information I think you are too”, and blushed prettily as he regarded his lover’s face, “And I’m dead jealous of your straight hair. I’d prefer it if you wore it loose though”, he yanked out the tie and it fell around his lover’s shoulders and down his back. He ran his hands through it, “Your hair never looks a mess”, he whispered then tipped their heads together and kissed him. Severus snorted, “Now who needs stronger glasses?”, he smirked, “I am definitely no beauty”, but Harry just nodded, “Don’t be daft, cheekbones to die for, eyes to drown in, that fine ‘Roman’ nose, the delicate jawline, tall forehead, even the patrician sneer and that ruddy curtain of hair to top it all off with, wide shoulders, perfectly proportioned body, legs all the way up to your armpits, fuck, you even have beautiful feet, and don’t even get me started on your hands. You’re quite a package, Severus Snape, and I won’t even go into that, plus you’re tall, not a stunted little short-arse like me”.

The older man drew back, “Yes, you really do need stronger glasses”. He turned Harry back the mirror, “Look at you, you gorgeous creature, perfect face, an air of delicacy about your whole body yet you are as strong as an ox, you are also in perfect proportion. I could wax lyrical about your back for an hour or more, the way your shoulders have the perfect slope, your gorgeous arse, the way your ankles taper just so. You have the sweetest little nipples I ever had the pleasure of tasting and an enviously flat stomach with the perfect glimpse of muscle beneath. Look at that wonderful mouth and even teeth instead of the tombstones I have, that sweet underlip that drives me crazy, kissable long neck, tiny ears. You are really beautiful, my Harry”, and he meant every word.

He reached down and cupped Harry’s cock and balls with one hand, “You even have the prettiest cock I ever saw, nice tight balls that aren’t showing any signs of sag”, he continued his hands’ roving over Harry’s thighs, “Perfect, fucking perfect. You don’t even have knobbly knees. Granted, you will never be a man-mountain in height but I love every ruddy inch of you”, he rested his head on Harry’s shoulder and caught his eye in the mirror as his hands wandered and he watched as Harry’s cock started to revel in the attention and brought his hand back to lightly play over his thickening length, “You’re no slouch here either”, he murmured in his silkiest voice that made Harry close his eyes and lay his head back with a soft moan, “I’ll even let you read my mind on the matter if you wish, then you will know that I do not lie about such things. You are a Michelangelo David my love. The original is over fifteen feet in height, but if proportionately rendered down, he would be no taller than you in real height and he is considered to be perfection of the male body. Oh, and he has the same kind of hair and your cock is bigger. I’ll take you to see him tomorrow, he’s in another gallery here in Florence that we haven’t been to yet”, his hands continued stroking, “You are perfect, Harry”.

By this time, Harry had his hand wound behind him into his beloved’s hair and he pulled the taller man’s head down for a kiss as he kept one eye in the mirror watching the lazy stroking of Severus’ hand over his cock while the other toyed with his nipples and stomach. The kiss ended and Severus was licking his lips at the sight before him and he pressed himself into Harry’s back to hear a moan escape from Harry’s lips, “Perfect, and so bloody erotic. I have my very own David to play with”, his hand increased it’s tempo and Harry bit his lip as he watched, his face flushing fetchingly until he arched into the touch and his come splashed onto the mirror before them as he groaned and Severus gently bit his shoulder before gently bending him forward over the sink and fucking him slowly to oblivion as Harry braced himself and pushed back on his lover’s length both of them locking eyes in the mirror and Harry got to see his lover’s face as he was being fucked and watched, fascinated as he saw Severus’ face contort and flush as he came and came again at the powerfully erotic picture they made.

As they came down and caught at the steamy air for breath, Harry giggled, “I wonder if the artist ever laid his model”, and Severus laughed, “Well, Michelangelo was reputedly as queer as a nine-sickle coin, so, probably”, as he continued to hold Harry as they disengaged and cleaned up. They finally dressed and Harry ruffled his own hair a bit more letting the damp and the steam sculpt curls in the mess. In truth, they both presented as sexy and gorgeous a picture of wizardkind as anyone could hope to find, though neither of them was in the first flush of youth, dressed to the nines in their best robes. When they were ready, Severus held Harry close and they Apparated right into the middle of Magical Florence.

Although it was a small city compared to, say, London, the magical district was as big as London’s and a lot more cosmopolitan with more eating establishments and it’s very own gay bar as Hermione had informed them. They found themselves in the public Apparation point in an elegant street and stepped away quickly and started to explore. Most of the shops were still open and they checked it all out. They even had the equivalent to Knockturn Alley but tonight they were intent on eating and drinking so made a note to return to the shops at a later date and set about finding a restaurant.

They ate at a pleasant looking little trattoria with the smell of garlic washing out of the door and enticing them in. They enjoyed a delicious meal of seafood and pasta and the maitre’d made a fuss of them as he seated them and served them personally, especially as he recognised Harry. He asked for an autograph for his children and gave them a bottle of a very soft house red with their meal on the house and didn’t let the other patrons disturb them although they were aware of the odd nod and point in their direction. Harry bore it all with a polite stoicism that made Severus smile. Harry rolled his eyes, “Now you know why I haven’t been exploring the wizarding hotspots as we have travelled”. Severus smiled at him and laid a hand over his, squeezing gently, “It’s only because this district is supposed to be really good and civilised that I suggested that we come here. If you’d rather not, we can head back and change and go see the mundane nightlife instead”, but Harry shook his head, “We’ll see if we are bothered too much. If we are left alone then it’s okay. Fuck, you’d think that after all this time, the hoo-hah would have died down. I’ll tell you what though, that poor kid Graciela has no idea what she’s in for if she does defeat the new Lord Nasty. I pity her, I really do, unless she’s a shameless attention seeker”, he sighed.

Just then, they were aware of a commotion quickly hushed up, over by the door and turned to see a photographer being turned away by the owner. Harry sighed, “News sure travels fast around here. I bet one of the patrons have phoned it in. I wouldn’t be at all surprised”. The owner came over to the table, “I apologise gentiluomos for the intrusion. I do not know how the papers have found out. I swear it was not I or my personale, we thrive on discretion here. Please accept the meal offre la casa”, and as Harry tried to object, the man wouldn’t hear of it obviously deeply embarrassed. “We so rarely see a true celebrity in here”. He left them in peace and Harry sank his head in his hands and Severus could feel the waves of palpable distress pouring off his lover, “Sorry, Harry, I never meant to subject you to this”. Harry raised his head, “I hope that that de Santos guy doesn’t read the Italian papers otherwise we could be sitting ducks as well”. Severus screwed his face up and winced, “Truly, I never thought of this. It just didn’t cross my mind. Forgive me, love”. Harry smiled weakly, the evening ruined for him now. “Take me home. See if the owner will let us apparate out from his kitchen or something”. Severus called the owner over and asked him in a low voice and they were led to a quiet storeroom and left to apparate away in privacy, landing on the terrace outside their rented accommodation.

Harry rushed inside and threw himself down on the couch in a snit, “Now you know why I travel like a muggle, babe”, he sighed. “Sorry, love, no more Magical locations from now on”, and Severus felt rotten until Harry bundled him up in a hug, “Don’t feel too bad about it, you weren’t to know. Damn! I was hoping to check out the gay bar too”. They sat in silence, the food turning sour in Harry’s guts. Severus could feel Harry shake in his arms and realised just how insidious this whole fame thing was and how much Harry hated it and felt supremely guilty for every snide remark he had ever made regarding Harry’s celebrity in the past and held him tight, saying nothing while the shakes played themselves out. “You’re right, Harry, no more magical places. I thought that your fame was perhaps a British thing but I couldn’t have been more wrong. I’m so sorry”. Harry smiled wanly, “Now you know. I’m a fucking international superstar. In many ways I’m lucky, no-one in Muggle-world knows me from Adam and I like it that way. Out here, I’m just plain old Harry. I’d hate to be a film or pop star or something always having to be hustled from place to place and surrounded by ‘my people’ keeping a wall between me and the world. I think this is why I wanted to travel like this, just disappear into the fabric of the world. I feel freer this way. In Muggle-world, I’m a complete non-entity”, and he slumped in Severus’ arms.

****

True to his word, Severus took them both to the Galleria dell’Accademia the following day and excitedly led them to the glass covered sculpture that he had described to Harry the previous evening and whispered their similarities in a low voice. Harry couldn’t quite see it but felt a thrill go through him at the thought that this vision of physical perfection was how his lover saw him and in a quiet part of the gallery he kissed Severus briefly and loved him all the more. No-one recognised him here, the parties of chattering tourists and school children cheerfully jostled them and completely ignored them both. They were anonymous again as they looked around. In the Gallery shop, Severus bought postcards and sent them to friends back home with the simple message on the reverse, ‘This is my Harry. A good likeness, yes?” and signed them with a flourish. Harry laughed with pride and a little bashfulness going a delightful shade of pink, batting him on the arm and murmuring, “Oh, Sev”, as the cards were dropped into the letterbox.

They spent a few more days in Florence then were restless to be travelling onwards. Harry loved the moment when everything was packed back into Bessie and he sparked her to life feeling the dull roar of the Perkins engine beneath him. Severus was also coming to love the vehicle they travelled in. He now had an impressive selection of postcards from their travels blu-tacked to the wardrobe door. The one of David, he placed prominently with ‘Harry’ in black ink across one corner that made Harry blush again. For the first time in his life, he felt truly beautiful in someone’s eyes and blew kisses at his lover as they drove, casting him shy looks to have smoulders meeting his eyes and expressive winks.

They avoided the motorways in favour of the small back roads, heading for Rome, driving back to the coast south of Siena. They took several days about it, stopping here and there to replenish supplies of food and they tried out the local wines at tiny restaurants along the way. Harry relaxed again and they stayed in Bessie at night, both glad to be back to their anonymous traveller status once more. They booked another villa for a couple of weeks just outside the city intending to thoroughly explore this most ancient of cities. Once again they were right on the coast which made Severus smile. Harry definitely had an affinity with the sea.

Once they installed themselves, Harry plugged in the computer and they read their e-mails and Harry uploaded his latest travelogues for his friends to read. Hermione was saddened by the incident in the restaurant and they all chuckled at Severus’ comments about Harry and David. She noted to her husband that obviously Severus adored her best friend and Ron agreed, “I never thought I’d ever say this, but Severus Snape is totally love-struck”, as he and Oliver read the commentaries from the two of them. They obtained a copy of Il Quotidiano Resoconto, the Italian magical newspaper for the day after the ‘restaurant incident’ to see Harry’s name on page three, no pictures, and scanned it and uploaded it and attached it to an e-mail for the lovers to read. A gushy piece of nonsense that made them both smile in the aftermath of the incident. Hermione had no further news on de Santos but was following up a few interesting leads vis-a-vis the virus/curse that had felled Remus and Draco but had nothing definite yet. Harry laughed, “If anyone can suss this out, then it’s our ‘Mione”, he said as he closed the machine down.

A couple of days after they had arrived, Severus awoke to an empty bed and rose, gazing out onto the strip of beach which belonged to the villa to see his lover all scrunched up sitting on the sand, rocking, his arms around his raised knees. This didn’t look good, so Severus flung on a pair of shorts and stalked outside. As he approached, he could hear Harry talking to himself and sank down on the sand, taking Harry in his arms, “What’s the matter, love?”, he enquired gently. Harry sniffled, “It’s V-day today. Twenty-three years since we killed the bastard, when he gave Remus and Draco the illness. I had nightmares last night. It was like I could remember every move in the endgame but I still can’t remember the curses he cast. I can see his mouth moving but I can’t hear the words. Everything moved so fast. I can see the sickly yellow light from the tip of his wand. I know the curse was meant for you and I but they got in front of it instead. His nemesis and his traitor. It was us that the curses were meant for, but the others absorbed the curses with no seeming ill effects so we carried on fighting and it killed them instead of us, a long slow, agonising death. Sorry, love, I shouldn’t be such a sentimental git”. Severus held him, “Don’t be silly. Of course you should remember. You know me, I’m crap at anniversaries and the like. It hadn’t occurred to me. Come here. Ssshhh”, he cradled his lover and let him cry it out on his shoulder.

They had a quiet few days. Harry always seemed to need the time to iron out the kinks caused by long drives and Severus was quite happy to indulge his lover. He was thoroughly enjoying the travelling and if Harry needed these introspective times then that was okay with him. The pace suited him just fine and they spent the days quietly, reading and eating. Severus was getting quite a crash course in European history as they had continued with their reading and studying of religious and other secret groups amassing knowledge as they went trying to figure out the depth of the threat posed by the new Dark Lord.

When Harry was ready they set out to explore Rome in all it’s glory, doing all the most touristy things first, the Spanish Steps, San Marco, the Baroque churches then made their way across the river to the Vatican City. While they appreciated the beauty of the buildings and the paintings, including the obligatory look at the Sistine Chapel, Severus felt a deep unease entering the stronghold of a religion that had persecuted so many of their own kind in times past. They carried their wands with them into the place. As they were wooden, they didn’t show up on x-rays but both felt safer having them with them even though, as tourists, they had no need of them as they mingled with the other touristas gaping and goggling at the sites. They had a vaguely uneasy feeling as they shuffled along with the tour groups and the collections of older people that congregated there, the bored schoolkids being lectured to by teachers. They had felt no such unease when touring the Alhambra, an old Muslim fortress/stronghold in Spain.

They found excellent places to eat and even a few gay bars mainly catering to a younger crowd but were directed to an out of the way place that seemed to be a haunt of the slightly older crowd and enjoyed drinking and dancing together, close, kissing, being totally ignored by all around them. The clientele seemed to be mainly composed of couples and this suited them down to the ground. They didn’t want a place with crowds of men all out to pick up casual encounters and even Severus enjoyed the music, holding his lover close as they moved to the music.

It felt good to love his Harry in a public place and they both revelled in it. They only had eyes for each other despite the fact that they could feel interested eyes upon them. They tuned out everyone but themselves although they ended up sharing a table with an established American couple and the four had a pleasant couple of nights in each other’s company.

The issue came up as to whether they wanted to ‘share’, but after a quick consultation, it appeared that neither Harry or Severus wanted such a thing any more and the others dropped it without rancour, “You can’t blame us for asking. You are both very attractive”, said Paul from Vermont. His lover, Brad from Los Angeles agreed but they left it be. They all left the bar and the two Americans took them to a late-night restaurant that was gay-friendly and treated them to an excellent supper and they enjoyed the intelligent conversation and lively minds of the other two who were in their early fifties. In time-honoured traveller tradition, they exchanged e-mail addresses and chaste kisses at the end of the evening before going their separate ways. Harry laughed as they climbed into a taxi to take them back to the villa, “That was the perfect travelling encounter. We’ll never hear from them again, but it’s no big deal, it’s in the nature of travel. Ships that pass in the night and all that”, he yawned. They made love on their bit of beach that night, laid out on a blanket.