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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Tasks	By : QueenB Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Snape Views: 5179 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter in anyway, shape or form. The rights of such belong solely to J.K Rowling. I do not make any money or accrue any monetary benefit on this story.

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Ron burst into the room, startling Harry, as he was packing. “Hey, Harry, hurry up! We don’t want to be late getting to the station.”
“Sure, Ron. Just wanted to make sure all of my stuff was put away.” He dropped the trunk lid but not before Ron had seen the shimmering substance of the Invisibility Cloak.
“Why’re you bringing your Cloak, Harry?”
“Ever since Dad gave it to me, I just felt like keeping it close, is all.”
“Why? You never bring it with you when we’re going to Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade. Why bring it now?”
“No reason. Didn’t you say we were going to be late?”
Anticipation gleamed in Ron’s eyes. “It’s for the tasks, isn’t it?” The redhead bounced on his feet. “You’ll take me with you when you start searching, will you?”
“Ron…” This was going to be hard; Harry just knew it. “Maybe this is something we all need to do…solo.”
Hurt filled the brown eyes. “You don’t want me and Hermione along? Come on, Harry, I thought we were a team!”
“We have to turn in individual items, don’t we, Ron? And what I think is fantastic might not be the same thing you do. I just…I just want a chance to get something on my own.”
“Guess after the Triwizard Tournament, you can’t be bothered to be with your old mate, huh?” Ron said stiffly.
Great, now he was going to sulk. “If that were true, I wouldn’t want to be spending time at the Burrow, would I?” Harry asked, trying to keep hold of his temper.
“Sure. You just don’t want me with you searching for a prize that could win us 200 points,” Ron huffed, kicking at Harry’s trunk.
Harry bit back his first response. Ron was a good mate but he could be such a prat sometimes. “Ron, you know when I was in the maze looking for the Triwizard cup, I got to it about the same time that Cedric did.”
“You told me this story.”
“Maybe you need to hear it again.” Harry sat down on his bed, silently inviting Ron to do likewise. The redhead pointedly sat on his own bed, opposite from Harry.
Harry ignored the unfriendly gesture. “When we found the cup, I wanted Cedric to take it. I’d been injured; there was no way I could get to it in time. But he claimed he’d never have made it that far in the Tournament if I hadn’t helped him with the dragons. He decided we both should hold the cup; it was going to be a Hogwarts win either way so why not have us both stride into the Great Hall with the prize?
“It was just typical Hufflepuff loyalty but he was right. So we staggered out of the maze, me leaning on him, both of us holding on to that cup. It was a great moment. I don’t think Cedric’s parents have ever been so proud of him.”
A reluctant smile twitched at Ron’s mouth. “Yeah, I remember that dad of his banging on about how obvious it was that Cedric was the rightful winner since you were hurt; his son was just being a nice bloke in letting you share the win.”
Harry grimaced, recalling Amos Diggory’s puffed-up pride in his son. Hufflepuff loyalty could go overboard, it seemed.
“Cedric showed me what was important then. This wasn’t about just getting a prize but showing school loyalty. Can’t you do the same for me?”
The sullen look settled on Ron’s face again. “That’s different. We’re mates, you and me. You barely know Cedric.”
“And yet he was willing to help me with the mermaid egg, just as I was willing to help him with the dragons. Can’t you understand this isn’t about you and let me go my own way with this?” Harry pleaded.
Brown eyes searched green before Ron nodded slowly. “If it means that much to you, Harry…”
“It does.”
“Then it’s fine with me.” Ron mustered a smile. He was still upset, Harry could tell. But he wasn’t going to let this ruin their summer.
Suddenly the red-haired teenager started. “Fuck.”
“What?”
“What’re we going to tell Hermione?”
“We don’t tell her anything. She’s not coming to the Burrow, is she?”
Ron squirmed. “Actually…”
“Ron, you’re joking! You didn’t tell me Hermione was coming!”
“Hey, it was a spur-of-the moment thing! She said she wanted to go over some ideas about the tasks and wanted to talk it over with me. Ginny’s gone to stay with Katie Bell for the summer and mum said it was okay to put Hermione in her room, so…” He petered out under Harry’s amused stare.
“I guess now that the twins are busy with the shop, Percy’s at his new place and Bill and Charlie are gone, there’s plenty of space for Hermione. So how come you and her don’t get to share a room?” he joked.
“Mum knows how I feel about Hermione but she’s not that understanding,” Ron muttered.
Harry bit his lip, holding back a laugh. He wondered how his mother would feel if he ever brought home someone. He wondered what his father would think if he knew…
Harry shut off that line of thinking. Lately, he got all flustered whenever he thought about that particular subject, especially how his parents might react to it.
Ron went on, unaware of his mate’s inner turmoil. “Harry, I don’t think we can keep this a secret from Hermione. She’s been a friend since first year, eh?”
“Yeah, nothing like fighting off one of Hagrid’s dangerous beasts to cement a friendship,” Harry joked.
Ron smirked, shaking his head at the memory. During one of Hagrid’s lectures, one of his creatures, an oversized bat-winged squirrel monstrosity, had escaped from its cage and attacked the girls. Hermione had whipped out her wand but the creature had been upon her before she could come up with any spell. Only Ron and Harry’s timely intervention had saved her from serious injury.
“What are we going to tell her?” Ron insisted.
“I don’t know. We’ll mount that fence when we come to it.”
__________
The ride on the Hogwarts Express was even more hectic than usual. The houses were in an uproar, chattering about the tasks and concocting furious plans. First and second year students raced up and down the corridors, talking in high, excited voices, blocking the aisles for the food trays. The Head Boys and Girls of the four houses tried to instill order. But that was difficult to do when school was over for the year.
All three teenagers had been glad to reach the Burrow. Molly Weasley’s happiness at having her youngest son home managed to make the place seem as if every single member of the family were present. Smothered under her attention and pressed full of food, Ron and Hermione had snuck away at the first opportunity, leaving Harry to endure Mrs. Weasley’s attentions.
Finally, he’d been released. Showered and dressed in an undershirt and boxers, Harry let his body relax, listening to Ron shifting in the next bed.
“Hey, Harry?”
“Mmm?”
“You know how much I like Hermione, right?”
“Really? You like Hermione? I’d never have guessed! How long has this been going on?” Harry mocked.
Ron snorted. “Prat.” He paused. “What I mean is…I know we’re only 16 and all. But mum and dad got engaged when they were only 16. And then they got married when they reached 17. And after listening to what Hagrid said… it might not be smart to wait. Hermione’s a great girl.”
“And smart.”
“And beautiful.”
“And a first-rate snogger.”
“And a – hang on, how would you know how she kisses?” Ron demanded.
“Well, there had to be a reason Viktor Krum invited her to the Yule Ball.”
“Viktor Krum?” Ron’s voice had lowered to a growl.
Harry laughed. “I was just joshing, Ron! Merlin, you’re fair easy to kid, you know that?”
“You’re a bastard, Harry Potter. You’re as bad as the twins.”
“No one can be as bad as the twins.”
“That’s true.”
There was another silence. “Is there…anyone special in your life, Harry?”
“Um, no, not really,” Harry stammered, startled by the suddenness of the question.
“What? What about that Ravenclaw girl you were with at Madam Puddifoot’s? Cho Chang? I thought the two of you were getting close. What happened?”
“Nothing happened. Cho and I didn’t really get along, is all.” Harry squirmed under the duvet. He hadn’t advertised his Valentine’s Day date but had told Ron about it – especially the disaster it had turned out to be. His best mate didn’t talk about it much though; up until this year Ron had pretty much ignored the subject of dates with girls. Guess he’d decided this was a topic that needed going over now.
Cho had been nice. Really really nice. But Harry had found himself tongue-tied, nervous and unable to speak to her. It wasn’t shyness, per se. It was the dreadful conclusion that she really didn’t attract him. On the Quidditch pitch, he’d admired her quickness in the air, her skill on a broom and her sparkling smile. Something about her dark eyes and hair had been pleasing, too. But it hadn’t been enough.
When he’d come staggering out of that maze leaning on Cedric Diggory, he had been startled to find himself inhaling the older teenager’s scent. It wasn’t like a girl’s cloying perfume; it had been muskier with a woody accent yet scented with cloves – perhaps something Cedric used to oil his broomstick. It had made Harry dizzy and he’d been startled to find an awkward stirring in his trousers. Only the appearance of Cedric and his parents and the other folks involved had kept him from making a complete prat of himself in front of the Hufflepuff teen.
Cedric was good looking, too: tall, bulky without being fat, square jawed with reddish-brown hair and the most amazing blue-gray eyes he’d ever seen. But the attraction, if that was what it was, had passed quickly enough – especially after Cedric started dating Cho.
Since then, Harry had found himself looking at other boys. He wasn’t drawn to any one in particular – he only knew an itching that told him, more and more, it was boys that he liked. Not that he’d gotten the chance to experiment either way. No other bloke had given him any hint that they shared his…interest and Harry didn’t want to risk a smashed face or school gossip by hitting on someone who wasn’t inclined that way.
So where did that leave him? Didn’t you have to have sex before you knew for sure whether you preferred girls or boys?
Ron thought he read his silence correctly. “Too bad, mate. But you can’t give up, Harry. There’s plenty other fish in the sea.”
“Yeah. Cho was a nice girl. She just wasn’t…the one,” he finished lamely.
“Tough break, yeah?” Ron commiserated. “That girl doesn’t know what she’s missing.”
No, she didn’t. But once she knew the truth – and being gay wasn’t something Harry wanted to hide forever – she’d realize she hadn’t missed much.
He changed the subject quickly. “Are you planning to go see Hermione anytime soon or are you waiting for the ghoul in the attic to fall asleep?”
“Just waiting for you to shut up,” Ron retorted.
“You’re the one who started talking!”
They ribbed each other for a few more minutes until Harry yawned loud enough for his jaws to crack. A full meal, a plump comfortable bed and the long day of packing, unpacking and travel were enough to push him solidly towards sleep. He only hoped Ron wouldn’t wake him up when he snuck back from seeing his girlfriend.
“Harry?”
“Mmmm?”
“Can I borrow…?”
“The Cloak’s in the trunk, right on the top. Now shut up and let me sleep.”
“You’re a brick, Harry.”
“Ronnnn.”
“Okay, shutting up now.”
Harry grinned to himself as he heard first his trunk then the bedroom door creak open and shut.
__________
Hermione was happily flushed and Ron barely hiding his smugness when they appeared for the morning’s breakfast. It was enough to make Harry feel just a little envious. Even if Ron wasn’t quite certain whether it was too soon to think about marriage, Harry had no doubt the two of them would get hitched almost as soon as they could decently manage it.
He had woken early and started thinking again about the tasks. Should he take along his two best friends? They were so wrapped up in each other. Would they even miss him if he took off by himself?
“Harry, I’ve got something to tell you,” Ron whispered.
Harry’s eyes got wide. “You haven’t asked her already, have you?” he whispered back.
Ron went red and then white. Hermione was watching them and jumped right in.
“There’s no need for you two to whisper. Ron told me about your plan, Harry. It’s really unfair of you to think you could go off without letting me know or leaving us out of it. We’ve always worked best as a team. You know that,” Hermione scolded.
The relief on Ron’s face was comical. For a moment, Harry wanted to tease the redhead by mentioning last night’s conversation. Then he settled for glaring at his mate as if furious at him for spilling the beans.
“I brought some books with me that I thought would help. “There’s Hogwarts, A History, for a start. It can give us all the relevant information about the forest.”
“Naturally. How could we live without that book?” Ron asked, rolling his eyes.
Just then Mrs. Weasley came bustling in with their breakfast – plates piled high with pancakes, sausages and toast, bangers and mash. “Here you go, children. Enjoy yourselves.”
“You shouldn’t go to all this trouble, Mrs. Weasley. This is way too much,” Hermione chided even as she took a couple of slices from the pancake stack.
“I think this is as much as you fix when the whole family’s home. It’s not like they’re starving us at Hogwarts, you know.” In spite of his protest, Ron and Harry both heaped their plates with as much as they could hold.
Mrs. Weasley looked on approvingly as she watched them eat. “Nonsense. You’re still growing children.” As they chewed, she added with deceptive calm, “And after you’re finished, you and Harry can de-gnome the garden, Ron.”
“Again?” Harry groaned.
“Mum! It’s the summer holidays! We’re supposed to be enjoying ourselves, not working!” Ron spluttered, his mouth crammed with food.
“Don’t talk with your mouth full, Ronald Weasley. I taught you better manners than that. Besides, there’s no reason you can’t do both. Exercise is good for the character. Have your meal and then off to the garden with the both of you.”
“Actually, I’d like to help, too, Mrs. Weasley,” Hermione added quickly.
“Oh, I wouldn’t ask that of you, dear. It’s not pleasant work. Gnomes can be nasty creatures.”
“But it’s all right for us, eh?” Ron mumbled under his breath.
Hermione gave Mrs. Weasley a sunny smile while darting a quick glance at both boys. “It’s all right, Mrs. Weasley. I want to help, if I can.”
Ron grumbled around a mouthful of sausage, “You won’t think that when the gnomes are biting.”
__________
“Isn’t there any way to keep these things from coming back?” Harry groused. “Some kind of repellant like Doxycide or something like that?” He grabbed the wriggling gnome and gave it a good heave, sending it winging out of the garden where it landed several yards away with a thump and a muffled squawk.
“We can’t use anything like that in the garden. It would poison the plants. At least that’s what mum always says.” Ron squinted and then dove, coming up with a fat gnome that he twirled by its hair before sending it sailing over the wall.
“About the tasks,” Hermione prodded. “That’s why I asked to come out here, after all.” She grimaced as she picked up a particularly ugly specimen of garden pest. This gnome had numerous bumps all over its skull and piggy, reddened eyes. It gnashed its teeth and snapped at her fingers. Hermione threw it but it barely managed to clear the garden gate and Harry could hear it scrabbling to climb back over it.
“I was thinking we could ride our brooms through the forest real low so we don’t hit the tree branches,” Harry ventured.
“The forest is over 50 square miles in acreage and we’ve got no idea where to begin searching,” Hermione pointed out.
Harry thought hard, tossing out ideas at random. “We could use a spell to suss out any kind of unusual magic. That would be sure to lead us to the secret.”
Hermione shook her head, nixing the idea. “The forbidden forest is magical in nature as are the animals in it, Harry. The centaurs, unicorns, werewolves, Acromantulas…”
“Acromantulas? Those giant spider things we learned about in DADA class?” Ron had turned a sour green. Harry had forgotten his friend’s intense fear of spiders. This could be a problem.
Hermione rushed on, overriding her boyfriend’s panic. “All such beings give off magical signatures of some sort. Without something specific to focus on, no such spell would work…” Her voice trailed off, her face acquiring a distant expression that Harry recognized.
“What? What is it, Hermione? You thought of something?” Harry grabbed at a gnome that was sneaking up and hurled it before it could attack her unguarded ankle.
“We could use a spell to focus on manmade magic, the kind that has nothing to do with nature.”
“There are spells for that?”
“Of course, Ron!” Hermione’s voice rose slightly and the other two shushed her, gesturing to the open window of the Burrow. Hermione went on in slightly lower tones. “There are spells that can detect other spells, curses, hexes and so on. Madam Pomfrey uses spells like that all the time when students come in with spell- and potion-induced injuries. They’re seventh-year spells, I think, but they shouldn’t be hard to master. I brought spell books that could help…”
“How many textbooks did you bring, Hermione?” Ron demanded.
“Only a few so I could study for the next year, of course. Why not?”
“Why not, she says,” Harry repeated. “Just how many are ‘a few’?”
“Three, no more than four really. And Hogwarts, A History doesn’t count as a spell book, Ron.”
Ron let out a snort of laughter and caught up two more gnomes with both hands from the vegetable patch before chucking them out of the garden.

TBC
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Tasks