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Chapter 24 Sweet Dreams
Severus woke early despite the lack of sleep he had.
By the time he left Albus' office it was after two am. He opened the box that
had been abandoned for brewing Harry's potion. The large strawberries were now
dried up and shriveled away from their chocolate cocoons. Now at his desk, Sev took the last sips of
his 'wake me up' peppermint tea, and turned to the next essay on the pile,
Neville Longbottom. Too early for this, he said to himself and put
Neville's parchment to the bottom of the stack. Next one is Harry Potter. Sev
looked at the essay and shook his head. He had forgotten about it completely.
When he unrolled the parchment fully to show the bottom where he himself had
added to the essay to make it worthy of an A, Severus dipped his quill into the
red ink ready to write a scathing remark, but was surprised to see his part had
been removed. I guess I'm not too surprised. A small smile crept onto
his face, and he wrote a B on the top of the essay. He found his thoughts going
back to Harry and the previous evening.
The memory of Harry screaming was still clear in his
head; his body thrashing as Severus had seen others doing under the evil curse.
How often had he been at DE meetings, and seen the curse used again and again?
Surely there must have been plenty of times that Harry would have felt what he
had seen done to others, and even felt himself on occasion. Severus’ mind
drifted off to a meeting five weeks prior. It had been a hideous day.
McGonagall was gloating over the most recent Gryffindor win over Slytherin, and
he'd lost twenty sickles on a bet with her. He had almost a full day of classes
with Hufflepuffs, and then was called to a DE meeting. A slight miscalculation
in an attempt at a truth serum reversal potion had cost him. It was no mistake,
but was worth the consequences of the harsh beating and Cruciatus Curse. The
next morning had been a Saturday and he'd given Potter detention. Severus
remembered being pissed off that after such a bad day and night, he was once again
given a list of potions to brew for Poppy. He had stood over his cauldron that
Saturday morning brewing pain potions, thankful that the Potter brat had been
very sedate the entire time he spent scrubbing cauldrons. He hadn't even
complained about missing his quidditch practice.
Severus shook himself from the memory. It was then
that he realized Harry must have been recovering from his previous night as he
himself had been. Not to the same extent, but for a teen to be asleep and
suddenly feel the effects of that curse… How many times had this
happened and he had been too wrapped up in his own thoughts to notice changes
in Harry's behavior?
That’s why Poppy has the timing she does!
Most times Harry needed new potions because Severus
had had a DE meeting the night before. That was why Sev hated making the
potion, he always had to do it when he was recovering, or agitated by his
current position as spy after having had to spend time close to Voldemort.
He suddenly wanted to go down to the infirmary to see
how Harry was doing. He knew he shouldn't be seen checking on Potter. Harry
shouldn't have had to suffer as long as he did last night. Severus was getting
angry again that this had happened to his Harry. He would worry later
that he thought about Harry as his. Right now he was too angry about how Harry
had been so brainless as to make such an error in judgment not to get more pain
potions from Poppy earlier.
What the hell was he thinking?
Having grabbed a few extra vials of potions, Severus
headed to the infirmary on the premise of delivering medications to Poppy. He
walked with purpose down the corridor. When he turned a familiar corner, he
couldn't resist the urge to look down at his pouch of vials to be sure there
wasn't a house elf attached to it, grinning at the memory. A first year
Ravenclaw student froze on sight of her Professor with an evil grin on his face
when he strode past. He didn't go out of his way to be cruel to the creatures,
but couldn’t help but enjoy a moment when something did happen. House elves
were so easy to frighten; he did so enjoy instilling fear in others, and it
didn't matter if they were human or not.
Severus had glanced in the Great Hall when he had
passed. He saw Albus seated for breakfast. The older man gave him a knowing
smile as he passed. Sev's grip on his potions increased as he approached the
infirmary. He could hear screaming again. It wasn’t Harry; no it was several
people at once. They didn’t seem to be in the same conversation, but yelling
over one another. Why would Poppy allow such a commotion in her wing? Was that
two more voices now? When the door opened Severus had not expected to see the
room empty, save Harry with his head under his pillow. Over his bed were at
least five vibrant red envelops screaming profanities and shrieking their
opinions of the Boy Who Lived being the Boy Who Was Gay. Severus looked around
the floor at what must have been the remains of a dozen other howlers that had
been sent to Harry this morning. On the bed under the pile of shredded red
envelopes was a copy of today's Daily Prophet. The headline read
Death Eater Trial
finds Nott guilty
'Did they realize how odd that sounded?' He
thought. At first glance he wasn't sure if the Death Eater was not guilty, or
was it Mr. Nott was guilty.
A smaller article in the lower left corner of the
front page was the announcement of Harry Potter's coming out of the closet. It
went on to quote an anonymous seventh year classmate stating the savior’s
predilection for Scottish fellows; it also mentioned that his recent break up
with an unnamed dorm-mate had left the Boy Who Lived devastated and unavailable
for comment. Severus scoffed. Out of
five dorm-mates, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out whom they're speaking
of.
Harry pulled the pillow off his face when he
couldn't hear the howlers any longer.
Severus raised an eyebrow, as if to ask what was going on in here. He
turned away from Harry when he heard a large tawny owl coming his way with yet
another large scarlet envelope. Harry held the pillow with one hand while his
other tried to open the howler rather awkwardly. He was quite a sight in a
hospital-type gown that was tied behind his neck. His hair went in every
direction; it could have been from hiding under the pillow or sleep, Severus couldn't
tell. It was an amusing sight.
"What are you doing?" asked Severus
edgily.
"I'm opening this before it blows up. Then I'm
going to bury myself under this pillow," Harry said as a mater of fact.
Severus glowered, and banished the howler with a spell.
From the look he was giving Harry, it seemed Severus expected him to know that
spell.
"What? Are you accustomed to getting red
fan mail? I'm not," asked Harry sarcastically. "These blasted things
are giving me a headache." Harry rubbed the back of his head. Severus
suddenly remembered what it was that provoked him to come here in the first
place.
"Poppy never leaves a patient unattended while
in her care, one who obviously needs watching over. Where is she?" he said
curtly. Harry frowned; he’d hoped they would be on better terms.
"She's in the Great Hall. I'm fine. I don't
need watching over. Madam Pomfrey told me to get some extra sleep, and then I
could leave after breakfast." Harry smirked. "Is that why you’re
here, to watch over me?" he said in a low tone, licking his lips,
but was disappointed when his comment didn’t have the desired effect.
"So, you don’t need watching over? Why the hell
didn't you get your potions restocked?"
"Why the hell didn't you give it to me
when you knew Ron was trying to get it? You were there that day last week, you
saw!"
"I was mad! I wanted to you leave me alone, and
I foolishly thought that you were smart enough to get the potion from Pomfrey
the way you're supposed to!" Severus was seething. He was now holding the
paper pointing to the headline. "If I knew the source of your pain, I
could have told you there was an excellent chance of him getting angry last
night." Sev said just above a whisper, which was surprisingly scarier than
when he yelled. Severus knew before it even happened that Malfoy would fail,
and there was a better than excellent chance of Nott getting sent to Azkaban.
"You could have taken a potion…"
"Dreamless sleep doesn't work for this,"
Harry interrupted.
"As I was saying," he said furiously.
"You could have taken a potion to keep you awake."
Harry lowered his eyes. It had been a bad call in
judgment and he knew it. Now Severus was mad at him. He had the previous week
to show him how mature he was and had completely nullified that in a few days’
time. The wind was all but out of Sev's sails now. Harry was looking pitiful,
and well chastised.
Severus heard the flapping of wings off in the
distance. As a spy he was much more aware of his surroundings than most, and
certainly more than Harry would be lying here in bed. Had he known the note he
wrote would have caused such a chain of events, he never would have sent it.
"Nothing good came of it. I wish I hadn't done it," muttered Sev,
holding his wand ready for he owl he knew was approaching with another
howler.
Harry hadn't heard the owl; he only heard what Sev
had said. It cut him deeply to think that Sev wished they had never had the
time together that they had. Harry didn’t realize the man was referring to the
note he sent to the Potions class and not his time with Harry. It hurt. Above
all, Sev was now holding out his wand at the ready. Hermione had told Harry
that she could tell her memory had been changed, but she felt it was for the
best, and didn’t want anything to hinder her relationship with Ron. Harry
looked up at Sev's wand in fear, and then anger.
"I'm warning you right now, Professor Snape," he
emphasized the title and clearly he struck a cord. "Don't you even think
about messing around with my memories." Severus looked at him
incredulously. "You cant' take the chance that no one else knows. I know
what my friends’ first times were like." Harry continued to ramble.
"Oh, sure they were thrilled they got laid. Who cared if it was in the
Astronomy tower on a cold stone floor? If you take this from me, my next time
will then be my first, and if it's not every bit as wonderful an experience,
then you'll have taken much more than my virginity."
Finishing his rant, Harry’s eyes narrowed when Severus
raised his wand higher. Sev banished the howler that was coming their way.
Harry flinched away. The howler was now on its way somewhere; Harry wondered
where. Then with all the Gryffindor courage he could muster, he looked up again
to meet Sev's gaze. Surely he would be livid from Harry's outburst. He blinked
a few times to be sure. Did Sev look sad? Maybe it was a mix of fear and grief?
Harry was so confused. It was hard to stay focused.
"Harry," he said softly. "I can't Obliviate a
time span of several days that happened over a week ago, though I won't deny I
thought about it on Monday." Severus was going to say more, but Harry was
starting to look off in the distance. Oh shit.
"I'm gonna be sick." was all Harry could get out
before he clambered out of bed. He stumbled as his legs were entangled in the
bed sheets. Severus spelled open the door to the loo, and Harry ran in. He was
worried for Harry, but couldn’t help but smirk at the sight of him running
across the room with the back of his hospital gown wide open, exposing his
backside. What a delectable backside it is. Before he could finish
ogling the young man's form and be of some comfort, the infirmary door opened.
"Severus!" screeched Poppy, with the sight of him
standing there, wand out and smirking. "What is going on here?"
Walking in behind the nurse was Draco Malfoy, looking rather
annoyed. Annoyed looking to most, but Severus knew him too well. He pocketed
his wand. "I am here," he said holding up his pouch of vials,
"with your potion supplies, not to tend to your patients."
Draco winced in disgust when he heard the sounds of retching echo off the tiles
in the loo. Severus walked over to Draco, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"I expect better care for my students."
Poppy knew Severus was speaking of Harry when he said that
last line. She had seen him and Harry become fast friends last week, and
couldn't have missed him being such a comfort the night before. She left Draco
in Snape's capable hands and tended to Harry's needs.
Severus gave Draco a once over. "What brings you here;
you look healthy enough?" He listened for Draco's answer as he opened a
nearby supply cupboard and placed the vials from his pouch into their
respective places.
"I don't need to be here," snarled the blond.
"Dumbledore made me."
Severus eyed his student and put a vial of calming potion in
his pouch, then closed the cupboard.
"Professor Dumbledore," he corrected.
"Come Draco, let’s go for a walk." He paused, hoping to hear if Harry
was ok. "Potter could be contagious."
When they reached the lawn past the entrance, Severus asked
him what had prompted the headmaster sending him to the infirmary.
"I hexed Goyle for being a
prat, and Professor Dumbledore suggested that I return with Madam Pomfrey for
some calming potions." Draco kicked a rock as they walked. He no longer
looked annoyed, but sullen. "I told him I'd give him the chocolate frogs
from my care package this week, and he was foolish enough to complain when I
didn’t get anything from home this morning."
Now Severus knew what was bothering the young Slytherin. His
mother sent him a package every Friday. The only time she failed to send one
was when something happened. If Lucius had a particularly hard time at a
meeting, she would forget to send it. Severus was rather certain that she did
this on purpose. A house elf could have easily done it for her if she was too
busy, but she knew it was a subtle way of letting her son know not all was
well. She was adamant about him not receiving the mark. Not that she didn't
believe in what they wanted to accomplish, but she had no desire for her son to
be tied to a madman, as her husband was. She thought it was best if Draco could
take a position of power and influence like his father, and still serve to aid
the cause of their Lord, without having to answer to every call and take part
in the barbaric activities of the Death Eaters. Severus had always supported
Narcissa in her quest to keep Draco unmarked, but for his own reasons, and
certainly not to aid the Dark Lord.
"Dumbledore is a wise man," said Severus, pulling
out the vial of calming potion and giving it to the boy. Draco made a face. He
looked so young when he did this, Severus thought. Funny how he still thought
of Draco as such a child, but when he thought about Harry he thought about …
well, bending him over his desk mostly, but certainly not a child. He was so
lost in the memory of bending over Harry, making him moan in pleasure and beg
for more, that he almost missed the complaints from the young Slytherin at his
side. Draco did not care for his head of house's assessment of the old wizard.
"He is wise, and I agree, you do need that potion, so drink it.
Now." Draco uncorked the vial and downed the potion in one. "Using
your recourses wisely means knowing what your resources are. A smart man knows
other’s strengths in addition to their weaknesses."
Draco considered that thought for a moment, deciding not to
comment. Instead, he changed the subject altogether. It was the best way to
keep himself out of trouble when he didn't agree, or understand something.
"What happens to Mr. Nott and his family now?"
asked Draco, not really caring in the least; except that he knew that his
father could be in the same circumstance one day.
"I haven't received the details of the trial yet. He
will go to Azkaban, but I don’t know for how long. It depends on what they
found out from his wand. Those caught attempting to break the wards to get to
Mr. Potter were given a lot of years, and more to those who used the
Unforgivables in the battle.
They continued their walk and conversation for the
remainder of time left while the other students were at breakfast.
Two other students were also leaving the Great Hall
early. Harry was to meet them after breakfast; too impatient to wait, they
headed to the hospital wing to see their friend. They had been expecting to see
Harry about ready to leave, not sound asleep on the bed. Madam Pomfrey was
angrily cleaning up the shreds of red paper all over the floor. Harry looked
peaceful enough, sleeping under a blanket that Hermione had never seen before.
It was white like the rest, but had red stripes on it. And some writing, but
she couldn't read it yet.
"What is that for?" she asked, pointing to
the striped bed linens.
"CNS blanket," replied Poppy, then
muttered on about the rudeness of some wizards as she continued to clean up the
howler remains."See-anes?" she asked, confused. Ron
helped out. He pressed the wrinkles out of the blanket so the words were even
and Hermione could read them.
"C. N. S. Cast No Spells.
Get it?" Ron said as he pointed to the red words on the covers. Her eyes
grew wide in understanding. There were several reasons it could be unsafe to
cast a spell on a patient. But she was of the understanding that Harry was to
be released today. What was he healing from?
"Mr. Weasley, in your quest to get Mr. Potter
here last night, was he dropped or injured in some way?"
"No!" Ron yelled indignantly. "He was
levitated all the way here. We would have told you if he fell. After what
happened to Neville last year, we promised you we'd fess up if that were to
happen again." Ron looked nervously at Harry sleeping. "Did something
happen?"
"He has a concussion," she stated with a
frown. "What about his bed linens? Did you see any blood?" said
Poppy.
Hermione gasped.
"No, but Dobby had been in to replace the
potions; I assumed he made the bed. It was made up when I woke up,"
explained Ron.
Poppy explained to them that when she was helping
Harry in the loo around the time Severus left, she noticed a patch of dried
blood on the back of his head. It was then that she checked him for concussion.
She had been very irritated with herself for missing it. She explained to
Hermione and Ron that the symptoms he had been experiencing so far could have
been from his head injury or the more serious problem of his crossing
the safe line of the extended Cruciatus Curse. They would still have to look
for symptoms, but she wasn't going to count what they had witnessed thus far.
Once he woke from his magically induced healing sleep and the concussion was
gone, they would know that any future symptoms would be from the curse. All
three of them were quite relieved. Summoning Dobby was the key to the mystery.
He had changed the bedclothes. There had been blood on a pillowcase. They determined
that Harry had violently banged his head during the thrashing around. In the
commotion no one had noticed.
"How long will he have to sleep for the healing
to be complete?" asked Hermione. "Is it dreamless sleep?"
Poppy gave her a tired smile. Hermione always had a
load of questions.
"He has been given a potion that greatly speeds
the healing. He'll sleep until tomorrow morning; he is spelled motionless to
keep his head from moving during the rapid healing, it will wear off tomorrow
sometime after he wakes. Any spell on him now could effect the motionless
charm, and I'm afraid the dreamless sleep potion conflicts with the healing
potion. He will have to live with any nightmares he may have this
evening," Poppy said with a sigh.
Ron's face lit up as he got an idea.
"What about 'Sweet Dreams'? It's safe with
potions." Ron said excitedly. Madam Pomfrey smiled. In fact she seemed to
be biting her lip to keep from laughing. Hermione asked what it was. "It's
a powder, or sparkly stuff that gives you 'sweet dreams'. My mum used to give
it to us when we were sick. You dream about sweet stuff like candy and
chocolates."
"We do have some, but it's for little children.
We only keep it for first years that are homesick."
Ron huffed, but didn't push the issue.
The day went on from there with very little
excitement. Harry's concussion was explained away as a Quidditch practice
accident. Later that evening the four remaining seventh years talked about the
latest gossip, since they were the latest gossip. Seamus had also
received a few howlers at breakfast. His past experiences all being with girls,
the rumor of him being bisexual was spread. It wasn’t that horribly uncommon
for teens to experiment. They wondered how some of the crazy stories even got
started. One boy had been telling people that he was sure Seamus had been
checking him out last year. As it turned out, the girl that Seamus had been
dating off and on for the last few months found it very endearing that he had
chosen her over Harry Potter. When he found out, Harry would be happy to hear
his friend had found a way to take advantage of the situation, and wasn't
suffering too much since his sacrifice on Harry's behalf.
A few hours later, Ron woke shaking, perspiration
beading on his face. It was a very odd dream that had startled him. He couldn’t
remember much of it, but Malfoy Sr. was there casting Unforgivables on Harry,
who was screaming like he had been the night before. It had been upsetting to
hear, but he couldn't escape from the sound, as he was held in place by a black
cage. The bars on the cage grew hairy. They were spider legs trapping Ron in.
Seamus was there also. He was holding a large bug spray canister, but he
refused to spray the spider until Ron gave him a kiss. Ron had been considering
his options between the spider and Seamus, when the spider tried to spin him in
a web. Ron had woken up all twisted in his bed sheets. He glanced ove
Se
Seamus' bed grateful everyone else was sleeping.
Shortly after his dream, Ron was snooping around
Poppy's office. "Bingo." he found what he had been looking for.
Determined that Harry would have a peaceful night’s sleep while recovering, he
took a pinch of the gold flecked substance from the vial labeled 'Sweet Dreams'
and blew it from his palm onto Harry's face, just as Ron remembered his mum
doing when he was a young child. A few minutes passed and Harry smiled in his
sleep. Ron smiled too. Harry wouldn't have had a chance to have 'Sweet Dream'
sparkles as a child in the muggle world. He was glad he could do this for him.
Ron didn't notice a tall dark figure enter the room.
Severus took in the scene before him. Ron was
grinning, Harry was sleeping with gold flecks shining in the little bit of
light there was at this time of night in the infirmary.
"That's a sick joke to pull on a defenseless
friend. Not very Gryffindor of you, Weasley," Snape said icily. Ron's head
snapped up, surprised to see someone there. "To think I had been impressed
by what a loyal friend you are to Harry."
"What are you talking about?" Ron wasn’t
sure if he'd heard right. "What joke? Wait… you're impressed with
me?"
"Was impressed, but you are losing
credibility with every passing moment. Why would you do that? Did it even occur
to you that when he woke up, he wouldn't be able to move and save himself from
certain embarrassment?"
"What embarrassment? So the stuff is for kids,
Harry loves it when he gets to do things only wizard children do. He'll like a
good dream about sweets. One year my little cousin came over with his toy
broom, and Harry rode it all over the yard as a joke." Ron snorted at the
memory of Harry flying the tiny broom that wouldn't fly more than a gnome's
height above the ground.
Sev huffed. Ron was a good friend, but still had a
lot of growing up to do. Not surprising being the youngest boy in such a large
family.
"Sweet Dreams', as in 'Good Dreams', not
necessarily confections. You dreamed about sweets as a child. In my own
childhood, I dreamed of racing brooms. What do you suppose Harry, at age 17,
would consider a very good dream? Severus asked silkily, with a raised
brow. Ron's vacant expression suddenly lit with realization, his mouth agape. Oh.
Severus lips curled. "When his dream is… shall we say finished, he will
not have the ability to move. Will a homophobe like yourself be here to help
out?" Severus was having fun with this. He couldn’t have planned this
better if he'd tried.
"I'm not a homophobe!" cried Ron
indignantly. "I…I'm fine with Harry's choices." He stuttered.
"Then it shouldn't bother you in the least that
you have given him such a sweet dream; of course, since he can’t move, you’ll
help him out?" Sev said with a straight face, glancing down at the CNS
blanket that was noticeably rising with the effects of Harry's dream. Ron was
looking green by now. He could convince himself that he was fine with Harry's
sexuality, he was really, but giving him a wet dream was too much for Ron to
handle. Ron held his hand over his mouth, and started at a run for the door.
Part of him knew he was abandoning his friend, but the other part knew he was
leaving him in Snape's care, and that was another thought he couldn't contend
with just now. When the doors swung closed behind the retreating redhead,
Severus spelled them locked.
He pulled a chair closer to the bed where Harry lay.
Pulling his hand into his own, Sev watched Harry smile with the touch. Sev had
been all too aware of the effects of 'Sweet Dreams'; it had been a common
practical joke when he was a student. He paused. He was still a teacher; Harry
wasn't conscious to give approval. But… the dream was going to happen whether
he was there or not. It couldn't hurt to observe, and perhaps clean up any
potential embarrassments. Severus knew he was acting out of character. He was a
man of principle. It had been so long since someone had this effect on him. In
fact he couldn’t remember anyone affecting him as much as Harry had.
A long slender hand gently brushed the dark hair
from Harry's face, and continued to caress along the side of his head, then
down behind his ear. Sev was very careful not to move Harry's head. His
delicate touch traced a line behind Harry's ear where he liked to be kissed.
The hairs on his neck reached up to the hand as if to lean into the touch. For
sure, Harry would have shivered had he not been spelled into stillness. The
gentle fingers reached the end of their course as the covers were now in his
path. Sev traced the line of Harry's collarbone, edging the fabric away from
his chest and lower still to reveal his peaked nipples. Harry was having a fine
dream indeed. Sev's fingertips ran through the sparse chest hairs, rubbing over
the taut nipples. Resisting the urge to take the nub into his mouth, Sev
continued his stroking of the flawless tan skin before him, as if it would have
made it worse to touch him with his lips than only his hands. Severus stood up for better reach. His
fingers on the left played with the hard nipples as the right meandered through
the hairs that lead down the center of his chest and abdomen.
Severus looked at his own belly for a moment. It was
firm and flat, but no longer had the washboard look that Harry had seen last
week. Harry's six-pack abs were clearly evident despite his love for food. Who
would have guessed that Harry and I share a love of cooking? He had been
afraid that they only had sex in common, and that wouldn't keep him interested
in the potions maker forever. Yes, he would let Harry get to know him; and for
right now, he would get to know this magnificent body lying in front of
him.
Harry did have a teen body. His neck and shoulders
were still relatively slender, his body was well muscled, but would fill out
more in time. Sev's now warm hand caressed down Harry's sides, following the
oblique muscle lines from his side toward the front. The area where the sides
curved into the hips in a triangular shape was so sexy. The sparse hairs were
now denser the closer he was to where the muscles would end and his hard shaft
began. Harry remained still, but his breathing would fluctuate depending on
what was going on in his dream. Severus continued mapping out Harry's muscles
wondering what they would look and feel like pressed against his adult
body. The long slender fingers wrapped
around the hard shaft. He squeezed and a drop of pre-come appeared and was
spread around the now glistening head. Sev could feel the blood pulsing beneath
his fingers as he stroked the hard cock. The head was almost purple now as it
wept. Severus listened to Harry's breath shorten, and felt the balls he was fondling
getting tighter. He could tell Harry was so close to climax.
Grateful for his height, Sev leaned over the side of
the bed. He reached up with one hand again and pinched one of Harry's nipples
while he licked and sucked at the head, then laved the line along the vein on
the underside. Gliding back to the tip, his warm mouth caressed the head, then
took in every inch Harry had to offer. It was a struggle to not gag on his
impressive member. He moved one hand down to stroke slowly from behind the sac
to the pink rosette, circling it as he swallowed around the hard cock a few
times more before he was rewarded. Harry's mouth was slightly open in a silent
moan; his body of course unnaturally still with the exception of his now
softening cock. It has been licked clean; leaving no traces of a dream that
would have caused him embarrassment when Poppy returned in the morning to check
on her patient.
Severus dragged a lazy hand back up the tanned body
as he replaced the gown and blanket. Harry's breathing has evened out once
again, and Sev wondered if Weasley will ‘fess up to his friend regarding the
'Sweet Dreams'. With a final glance at the beauty that slept on peacefully,
Severus pocketed the remaining vial of the gold-flecked powder and returned to
his chambers.