• 1-A Most Trusted Soldier
• 2-2
• 3-3
• 4-4
• 5-5
• 6-6
• 7-7
• 8-8
• 9-9
• 10-10
• 11-11
• 12-12
• 13-13
• 14-14
• 15-15
• 16-16
• 17-17
• 18-18
• 19-19
• 20-20
• 21-21
• 22-22
• 23-23
• 24-24
• 25-25
• 26-26
• 27-Author's Note: update
• 28-Still getting reviews...

By the time Severus made his way up to the bedroom the day had begun to retreat for the night, dusk creating shadows where the sun had once shown. Several hours had passed since he and Harry had argued and in that time Harry had not reappeared, not even for dinner. Severus had intentionally made a hearty and aromatic dish of ham croquets, garlic mash and sautéed buttercup squash, hoping to entice his lover downstairs. Yet, when the smell of food failed to bring Harry out of hiding Severus found his own appetite lacking. Dinner a failure, he had placed the food under a stasis charm and left it on the fully set table, preferring instead to suck down a couple glasses of wine in place of true sustenance.

He turned the doorknob to their bedroom slowly, not wanting to disturb Harry, who he expected to be asleep in bed. However, once inside he looked at the large platform bed sitting so prominently and found no body there. The room was dim; only the low light of the early eve illuminated the room. Severus thought that perhaps Harry might be in the bathroom, but as he began to head that way a presence prickled along his spine. It was that feeling of being watched. He spun around; his eyes making a quick pass from one wall to the next until they came to a startled rest on the obscure figure of Harry nestled in the far eastern corner of the room. Although it was the corner next to the windows, Harry was just far enough out of the light that almost his entire body was covered in shadow. Only those beautiful bare feet, soles flush against the floor, peeked out into the light shining through the windows.

From where Severus stood Harry could almost be mistaken for some scared and perhaps disaffected teenager. His back was nestled into the corner; his forearms resting on bent knees which were spread wide, while his head lay against the wall at a careless angle.

Neither man spoke as they watched each other in the dark, but their eyes were not silent. Severus’ screamed a thousand apologies, while Harry’s seemed to cry out doubts and uncertainty. Even in the dark those green eyes were like a beacon to Severus, guiding his heart and pulling him back to the safety of love.

Severus slipped off his own shoes and walked cautiously towards where Harry was nestled, the dark corner coming more into focus as his steps brought him closer. Just as he passed the final window Severus took in a cleansing breath and knelt down on all fours, crawling the final few paces and shifting his body between Harry’s bent knees, laying his head against his lover’s warm chest, relaxing painstakingly slow into the curve of Harry’s torso.

At first Harry made no movement to accept Severus into his arms, his impassive gaze looking off into the dim light of the evening. Severus settled against Harry, his body still as death while his heart thumped a wild staccato of fear. Expecting to be rejected at any moment, Severus let out a trembling, angst-filled breath when one of Harry’s hands finally began stroking through his hair.

Harry’s heart was heavy and he was stressed, more so than he had been in quite a number of years. He ached to take comfort from his sub, to be cared for, to be made to feel that he once again had what it took to see this latest battle through; and perhaps if he did not, if the outcome were bad, that the man he loved would be there waiting for him on the other side when he finally made it through the current drama. Severus’ response to the ring had hurt. Harry knew that giving the ring would be a risk, but he expected the resistance to come more from Severus’ pride. He had not expected Severus to twist reasons so easily, to be so quick to assume the worst of him as the public seemed eager to do. Of everyone in his life he expected Severus to know better, to know him.

Lost in his own feelings of hurt at having his motives misunderstood, Harry nearly failed to hear the soft “Forgive me” that Severus uttered, the older man’s breath ghosting across his collar bone where Severus’ cool cheek rested.

Harry’s hand paused in mid stroke through the silky strands of Severus’ hair, his eyes beginning to fill with tears. He had only wanted Severus to understand and accept all that he had to offer. He only wanted to do what he had promised, take care of the man and give him everything he had. His grip tightened involuntarily around Severus’ skull as he let go of all the anger and resentment he had been holding in for the last few days. Harry hugged Severus’ tighter against his chest and closed his eyes in relief as Severus’ apology washed away all his aforementioned doubts.

Severus gasped as both of his lover’s arms wrapped around his neck and head in a near bone-cracking embrace. He took the opportunity to nuzzle his face into the soft skin along the underside of Harry’s jaw and ear, his lips placing shallow kisses wherever they could.

“I need you, Harry,” Severus whispered. “There is so little to say beyond that. It’s time I learned to admit that, if only to you. Please smile for me…can you…wear that smile that lights up your eyes. Don’t be sad any more. Try to understand that I…”

Severus never got to finish his babbling sentence, because the minute he angled his head upward Harry snatched his face up in both hands and planted their mouths against one another. Time stood still as the two men kissed away every hurt, every misunderstanding, every fear, every shallow wound created between them. As their kisses grew deeper and more intense Harry felt something inside him break free and purr, stretch out like long cramped wings. The feeling continued to spread deep down inside him, in a place that was hard to describe, beyond the pit of his stomach and possibly beyond his very soul.

Before long the two men had slouched further down the wall, their bodies entwined like garden snakes, their hands all over one another, delving into places that made their breath hitch and their thoughts turn primal.

Harry was grunting shallowly like a tired bull, his teeth beginning to gnaw against Severus’ lips in a way that made the older sub cry out like a woman. It was a sound that Harry had not heard in far too many months and the Amoral in him wanted to hear it over and over again.

Severus had managed to ruck up Harry’s T-shirt so that his fingers could roam across those compact muscles along Harry’s abdomen. Wanting more than just kisses this night, Severus flicked his index finger over one of Harry’s nipples, gasping like a needy whore when it peaked and pebbled. Without thinking, Severus grabbed the nub between his thumb and index finger and pinched, making Harry tremble and moan.

“Sev, stop,” Harry panted between kisses. “We have to stop. No.”

Severus however was deaf with desire. He wanted Harry and he wanted him right here and now. His body needed this.

When Severus failed to stop or respond Harry yanked Severus by the hair, pulling their faces apart. “I said stop, Severus,” Harry said firmly. “We can’t.”

Severus nearly smirked at the raw passion Harry exuded, taking pride that he could still elicit it.

“Yes, we can,” Severus added quietly, casting his eyes down at his right hand which rested on Harry’s chest.

“You…you’re wearing it,” Harry said, tangling his fingers with Severus’ as he admired the controversial ring the older man wore.

Severus nodded looking Harry squarely in the eye. “I was wrong. Things are complicated and they may always be, but…this, you and I, couldn’t be simpler to understand. You didn’t create this ring for me, or for you. I know that now. You did it for us. So that we could survive. I forget sometimes, Harry, that no matter your gifts or your faults. The one thing you are and always will be is a survivor. You know no other way. That characteristic is all you. Not the Amoral; Not the savior; Not the powerful wizard. Just Harry. Just plain Harry.”

That was music to Harry’s ears. All his life he had wanted someone to know him. To understand him. To realize that beneath all the glory, the fame, the magic, he was just a man, in desperate need of someone to love him. To love just Harry.

“I’m tired,” Harry said through teary eyes.

“Then, you should rest,” Severus replied, tilting his body away in an attempt to get up from the floor, only to be tugged back into a tight embrace by Harry.

“I’m tired of fighting myself. I am tired of not having you,” Harry clarified, before he pushed Severus flat onto the floor and covered his sub’s body with his own.

Without ever needing be prodded, Severus spread his legs and wrapped them around Harry’s waist, his long arms shoving Harry’s t-shirt up and overhead. Within minutes they were both naked as the day they were born, their skin hot and smooth as they writhed in search of ecstasy.

“I need to taste you,” Harry panted to the side of Severus’ neck, before he bit into the flesh just shy of the jugular. The bite did not break skin but it elicited another of those wanton cries of passion that Harry loved to hear so much.

Severus pressed his head into the floor, his pelvis arching in search of friction, even as Harry began licking and laving his most private area, that wet, firm tongue circling the head of his cock before sliding down and back up again.

“More, Harry. Please,” Severus moaned. It had been so long since he had been handled, been made to beg. At this point he wasn’t sure how long their lovemaking would last, since they had both been abstaining from intercourse for nearly four months at this point. He refused to think that he’d come like a faucet from just the shallow licks he was receiving; yet he knew if he did, Harry would continue on.

Harry swallowed Severus’ cock deep, holding is breath as the tip of his sub’s cock tickled his gag reflex. The taste was heavenly and missed, dark, smooth, and just a tad bitter, much like the man himself. Severus was arching up into Harry’s throat, his hands gripping the thick, wild strands of Harry’s hair so hard the younger man was sure they’d find tuffs of it on the floor come morning. Wanting more of that luscious taste to fill his mouth, Harry slipped a hand just behind Severus’ balls to massage the soft skin of his sub’s perineum, knowing how the added sensation would drive the man over the edge. Harry knew it had been too long. Neither he or Severus were big on orgasm control as it was to begin with, preferring to sate themselves as their bodies allowed. Knowing that there would always be more chances to do so again and again.

With the saliva from his blow job having trickled down to add a little lubrication to Severus’ opening, Harry slipped in his middle finger, going straight for the magic button that would make Severus go still and burst.

“Oh…Oh…Oh, my…Haarrryyy,” Severus grunted before going silent and rigid just before he climaxed, filling Harry’s willing mouth with the first jets of his orgasm.

As Severus came down from the euphoria of his first orgasm by fellatio in four long months, he opened his eyes to look directly into the amber-ringed irises of his lover, who was not yet sated and hungry as a wolf in winter.

“I could fuck a hole in you tonight,” Harry whispered seriously, the timbre of his voice deep with arousal. The comment caught Severus so off guard he nearly laughed. “We have to be careful. Even with the ring.”

“Why?”

“I just know that we do. I feel it. The ring will help and protect you, but I could still drain you to a dangerous level,” Harry explained.

“Can..” god he hated being so graphic outside the actual act of sex. “Can’t you pull out?” Severus asked, glad that the dim light of the bedroom obscured the flush he felt in his cheeks.

“That would be wise,” Harry said, dropping his head to place a peck to Severus’ lips. “Yet, I could get lost. You smell…like you. And I’ve missed you so much. I don’t want to forget. What is your safe word? You have never used it, but you may need it tonight. Do you remember it?”

“James,” Severus said without hesitation.

Harry gave him a solemn nod and a warm embrace before pulling Severus up into a stand and leading him over to the bed. Instead of sitting Severus on the bed, Harry pushed him to his knees.

“I need you too, Severus. Just so you know,” Harry said quietly, before he yanked Severus by the hair, forcing the older man to wince and involuntarily open his mouth, which gave Harry an opportunity to shove three of his fingers inside, nearly choking Severus with the force.

“I want to hear you say you’re mine. I want to hear you say you’ll always be mine. I want to hear you call me love. I want…to hear you say you will NEVER doubt me again,” Harry whispered menacingly in Severus’ ear.

The older wizard was nearly drunk with submission, happy to be once again under the control of his man, his dom.

As Harry removed his fingers he flung Severus forward, forcing the older man’s body into child’s pose. Severus remained in that position; his forehead pressed into the floor, his adrenaline pumping with anticipation, and his mouth watering with the need to have his post reconfirmed.

He heard Harry shuffling in the background, the doors of their armoire opening and closing. When Harry came back over he pulled Severus up by the hair, before tying on a blindfold and bending him over the edge of the bed. With his torso and face pressed into the mattress and his feet planted firmly on the floor at hips width apart, Severus could only barely manage to suppress a squeal of delight when he heard the whoosh of something flying through the air before slapping into Harry’s palm.

The only question Harry asked before he began was, “Do you trust me?”

“Always.”

With his mind willing, his need great, his heart warm and his body supple, Severus braced when he heard the first whistle of wind as the flogger cut through the air.

The twitter of birds flying off to find their morning meal woke Severus. He rolled over, immediately wincing when his welted back came into contact with the cool, crisp sheets. His lips curled into a smile once the sting of his whip marks dulled to a pleasurable ache. Last night Harry had been so in control. So domineering, yet careful. The younger man needed not be worried that Severus would need his safeword. The older man had an extremely tough constitution, strengthened by war and strife, and fortified with magic. Even without the ring, Severus knew he was strong enough to take a session from Harry, but if the ring made Harry feel safer, then so be it.

After having taken well over one hundred lashings, which grew incrementally in intensity from the lightest brush to skin rippling impacts, Severus was sweaty and high from endorphins, and eager for more. It was only Harry’s own awareness that kept them from going further. Severus was behaving like a man who had been without food too long, unable to fight the urge to gorge oneself to a dangerous level. Harry had noticed. When the light in Severus’ eyes went from excited to accepting things were good, but when the light of acceptance gave way to the emptiness of the high, Harry had ended whipping.

He coated Severus’ back in a light smear of antiseptic salve, but did nothing more to negate the natural bruising of the skin. Once Severus had been cared for, Harry made use of his sub’s willing body, fucking every orifice with one appendage or another. Sometimes he fucked an orifice with two. He would stick his tongue in Severus ear while fingering his ass; in the middle of fucking the man doggy style Harry had seen fit to include a thumb along with his cock inside Severus’ anus, making Severus spread out wide like an angel’s wings.

For hours Harry rode him, never coming until the very end. Harry would make love to him, then pull out before he could orgasm. At first Severus thought Harry was doing so to hold up his promise to not siphon off magic from Severus. Yet, after Harry had done so nearly three times, each time bringing them both near the brink before stopping for a rest, Severus realized Harry was having fun. The younger man was purposefully drawing out their pleasure, fucking Severus mentally as much as physically. By the time Harry finally came, Severus was silly with suspense, his entire body limp and compliant. Harry had but to snap his fingers and Severus would have likely fucked Voldemort’s rotting corpse if it looked like Harry.

Harry had pulled out from his well stretched bottom one last time, performed a hasty cleaning charm and crawled up to straddle Severus’ chest. He put one of his own fingers just behind his balls and jerked himself to climax, coating Severus’ greedy tongue, face and neck in the process.

One or two cleaning charms later, Harry had spooned up behind a Severus who was close to passing out and asked, “Everything ok, babe?”

“Everything is perfect,” Severus had replied with a slur before drifting off into a coma like sleep.

Suspecting that Harry was out in the woods around the house this early in the morning, Severus helped himself to a leisurely soak in the tub. When he emerged the bed had been made and the room was in tip-top shape. Knowing it meant one of the elves had been by to clean a bit, Severus dressed and left for the kitchen. Feeling invigorated and happy, he couldn’t help but smile brightly when he saw the breakfast laid out for him on the kitchen table.

As he sat down to tea, soft boiled eggs, toast, and fruit, Severus noticed a folded copy of the day’s Prophet tucked beneath his plate. Harry had no doubt placed it there on purpose before scampering off to enjoy Mother Nature. Severus just hoped that whatever the vultures had to report today had not displeased Harry too much. Yet, what he found on the front page when he opened it was the last thing he would have ever suspected.

Potter loses honorary seat on Wizengamot amidst recent controversy, killing

Severus began to laugh, hard. So hard that he had to lay the paper down and hold his sides. He couldn’t remember ever laughing so hard in all his life, not even as a child.

Harry bounded into the kitchen, his shirt clinging to his torso with the sweat from jogging, to find Severus with tears streaming down his cheeks and cackling like a clown. Not quite knowing what to make of this scene, Harry walked over and looked at the table. He took in the headline, which he had already seen, and then looked back at Severus who was still chuckling like Sirius on dope.

“We’re…you…they…,” Severus wheezed between laughter.

Harry waited for Severus to compose himself further.

The older wizard cleared his throat and wiped his eyes with a napkin before continuing, “That has got to be the funniest thing I’ve read in some time. They don’t know you at all do they?”

“No. And I kind of prefer it that way,” Harry said with a smirk.

“I suppose you do. Little do they know you don’t need a seat on the Wizengamot do you, love,” Severus said with a knowing look.

Harry just gave a soft snort in agreement. They both knew the next few weeks were likely to be filled with seemingly earth-shattering revelations about Harry Potter losing this post, this endorsement, no longer affiliated with this organization, etcetera. It would all mostly be for show anyhow. Why did he need a seat on the Wizengamot when he secretly had the vast majority of its members firmly in his camp.

Yet, it all mattered very little in the end. Harry had survived worse and would continue on, because Harry Potter would always have what he needed most—loyal friends, a loving family, well-connected allies and most of all, a man that he loved and trusted above all others. He had a most trusted soldier, a soldier to stand by his side through any battle that may come.

--FINIS--

A/N: Okay so I said a long time ago that there would be no sequel to this fic. Apparently I lied. There will be a one-shot sequel/epilogue that will perhaps answer some of the lingering questions many of you may have after reading this fic.

WARNING: the epi will be a threesome ( Harry and Sev will remain together however) **smirks evilly**. I should have it posted shortly. It will be posted singularly, not as a new chapter to this fic. If you would like to be added to an announcement list when it is posted please sign up here:

http://rettavex.livejournal.com/2731.html

TO MY MPREG-ERS: I truly intended this fic to include MPREG. However, you know what they say about the best laid plans, yes? That said, there will be kids in the epilogue/sequel. We will not actually go through a Sev pregnancy though. He will be a father with Harry in the sequel.

I want to thank you all for the encouragement, reviews, and fic-love. This is my first completed fanfic, and it is because of all my reviewers that I plan to keep writing; hoping that you will all continue to boot-up and see my stuff. Toodles, BF

OH I almost forgot, I have inaugurated the annual "Luna Fan Wank Society" at my ljpage. Help me develop it :P

http://rettavex.livejournal.com/2223.html

LASTLY: If you would like to create a banner for me for either the Luna Fan Wank, or a lovely banner for my next Snarry (already in the works) please contact me. I would be happy to compensate you via a personal one-shot fic, or a reasonable fee to your paypal account.