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A Promise	By : blossomingart Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Snape Views: 3635 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor am I making any money off of writing this piece of fiction.

Chapter List
- 5
- 6
Chapter 6

Pain. A ripping sensation in his side. Scream. Gurgling. Blood. Spittle. Red. Agony.

Pain, worse than before. Fire. Cracking. Scream. More pain. Like nails. Black.

Pain. Pain, pain, pain, pain, pain! A reprieve. Pain. White. Stars. The moon, pale as death, pale as the masks surrounding him on all sides.

Pain, fainter than before. Lights. Bright, flashing, multicoloured. A lightening of the darkness before him.

He felt numb. It was hardly surprising. After all, if the signs of approaching dawn were to be believed, he had likely been tortured for the past two hours, if not more. His body was experiencing excruciating pain, and yet...he could no longer feel it. He was floating. His mind was drifting in and out of the proceedings, as if a spectator to its own slow unhinging. He tried to move away from the viciously aimed kick, even though he knew he could not avoid it. He had been reduced to instincts. It was his body’s instinct that led him to curl protectively around his middle. It was his body’s instinct to try to jerk away from the fire running through his nerves. But still his mind did not process the pain. Still, he felt numb.

He had long ago given up on screaming. He felt like the nerves there may have died. The last time his mind had allowed him to actually feel the pain, his throat had been raw and he could barely croak when the next round of Cruciatus was applied. The only thing that he allowed himself to think of, the only thing he could think of at the moment, was Harry. He did not think of how sad Harry would be when he inevitably found out that Severus had been tortured to death. No, he could not think on that. Because with those thoughts came the realization that he would never be able to hold the other man in his arms again. Never be able to say those coveted and rarely-spoken—at least by Severus—three words. Never see those green eyes open lazily, but with delighted content whenever they managed to sleep in the same bed. Never kiss those lips, or feel Harry’s eager tongue against his own. Never make love to him. If the torture didn’t kill him, the regrets surely would.

All he had ever wanted, since the moment they had been engaged, was to give Harry everything he wanted and more. To give the man he loved all that he desired and the only thing Harry had wanted was to come out to their friends. Why hadn’t Severus said yes? Why hadn’t he said anything? Why hadn’t he given Harry that, at the very least? It would not have been so bad. Certainly, they would have received their fair share of criticism and scorn from those who did not understand, but they would have faced that together. And it would not have mattered if they were slandered, because they would have had each other. Now, Harry would be left to face the opposition and contempt alone. And it was for that reason, and that one alone, that Severus finally allowed the tears to come.

He had not cried when they had shattered the bones in his legs. He had not cried when they had used the Cruciatus on him until he could scream no longer. He had not even cried when they had broken his ribcage so that he had a flailing chest wound. All of this pained him physically, of course, but they would not, could not break him with pain alone. Nor could they even do it emotionally or mentally, really. It was only Harry who could do that. It had always been Harry. He finally allowed a small sob to escape his chest, curling even tighter into himself; it was a small comfort as the jeers and laughter of the Death Eaters reached his ears.

“Look at the ickle traitor now! Not so tough now he’s had a dose of what we do to scum like him, is he?” he heard Bellatrix cackle gleefully.

He didn’t know how, or why, but this above all else was what broke him out of his reverie of thinking about Harry. The anger licked at his wounds, at his insides, and he forced himself to unfurl from his foetal position.

“You will never break me Bella. That cannot be done by you or any spell you can think up,” he managed to croak.

He saw the surprise on her features clear as day, as though his mind had come back for just a moment. A moment in which all thought became clear, as he gazed at her in challenge. He was flat on his back, looking her dead in the face, goading her on to whatever she and the others could cook up. Because they could not, would not break him with their pain. He would only succumb when his mind was too undisciplined to keep him away from thoughts of Harry. He would only give in to the darkness when he could no longer stand the heartbreak of thinking about leaving Harry behind. As the next round of Cruciatus began, Severus felt it more strongly than ever because of his brief clarity of mind.

Pain. With this, he was familiar. Severus smiled a red smile, and let the pain take him away.

Soon enough, his mind was drifting in and out, lulling him to a gentle passing while his body suffered the trauma. He thought he could hear screaming, someone other than himself, but he chalked that up to his damaged mind and tried to keep his thoughts light and inconsequential. Thoughts of how his students would react made him smirk in his mind’s eye. He had long ago lost all control over his own bodily functions. The stench surrounding him confirmed that.

Screaming. Not his own, no. He could tell only because the fire in his throat was not licking at him so fiercely any longer. No, he had not been able to make himself scream in a while. It was too much effort now. He was too tired. Too tired. He imagined that since his physical body was no longer able to produce the sound, his mind had conjured a lovely tactile version just for his own amusement. Numb calm, as the screams continued in his head.

Panic. Sudden, fierce, and painful. The screams. Whose were they? Could they be his? Or had something else happened? Where had he left Harry again?

Pain, flooding his senses as his eyes flew open. He felt his body jerk hard from the Cruciatus Curse, something he felt it had not done in a long time. He could not remember, however. The physical pain stopped as more senses assailed him. He could hear the Death Eaters now, their voices muddled still, but the fact that he could physically hear again was something new. Strange, but the screams he had been hearing for the past little while were still going, even though he could sense that his own vocal chords were not capable of those particular sounds and his own torture had been halted for the moment.

Panic. Harry. How else would they have known of his betrayal? They must have found out. Oh god, Harry. Harry, I’m sorry.

Panic, even stronger than before. What if the person screaming was Harry? What if they had captured him too, somehow? Severus tried to recall where he had left the blasted brat, but he could not. Every time he got close, the thoughts slipped away, like water slipping through his fingers. He was jarred most unkindly out of his thoughts by a harsh slap to his face.

“...dead yet?”

“Nah...”

“...Lord...keep going?”



“...still alive...Lord.”



“What...he saying?”



“Quiet!”

The hissing voice cut through the continued chatter and Severus’ muddled thoughts more effectively than anything else had.



Panic, fading, weaker than before. No. They could not have Harry. He was certain of it. The screams had stopped now too, and Severus had convinced himself that he had made them up, that they were a figment of his dying brain. But—

Severus summoned what he felt was Herculean effort to turn his head the small distance he did in order to better see his former master. The snake-faced wizard was slowly rising from his conjured throne and approaching the traitor within his ranks. Severus tried to see around him, but it was impossible. He caught a glimpse of something behind the throne, of more people there, but it was so brief that he dismissed it as fiction before the thought could form. But he had bigger problems now. Severus rolled his eyes up to look at the Dark Lord, and his brow furrowed very slightly. He could see the advancing man’s expression now; it was not one of contempt, as Severus expected, but one of curiosity. This struck him as rather odd, considering the circumstances. Focus, Severus. He is talking to you.



“...that, Severus?”



Severus allowed his own confusion to show through, as he could not make himself form words. The Dark Lord knelt beside his head, crouching low over his form and cocking his ear towards his former servant. Severus’ mind was blank now. This was so unexpected, he could not believe it was happening. He blinked his eyes hard, then screwed them up again when a sharp slap hit him in the face once again.



“What were you saying, Severus? Answer me!”



A scream, much clearer than before. Panic flooded Severus’ thoughts again. He gurgled as he tried to shout, tried to make more sounds than whispers. Oh god, Harry. No. No, they could not. Severus would not allow it. Harry. Harry, no! The scream that he had heard was choked off quite abruptly. Severus heard someone laugh, “finally! He was a loud one!” Severus felt his heart break in two as the laughter and cheers erupted from the other side of the clearing. Harry, no...



Severus could not contain his hopeless sobs now. He was convinced that Harry was on the other side of that wall of bodies, convinced that he had lost the only person he had ever loved. His anguish was plain to see to those surrounding him, and that only served to make them even more celebratory it seemed. That is, until Voldemort silenced them all with a hissed threat. Severus continued to sob breathlessly, unheeding and uncaring of the words now pouring out of his mouth. Blindly, he reached for the ring dangling from his neck, the one he constantly kept on his person at all times. It did not matter now. Harry was gone, and Severus would be joining him soon.



His numb fingers fumbled for the precious piece of jewellery, still struggling to speak in clearer tones. The Dark Lord’s continued confusion was evident as Severus looked into the red eyes he hated so. Those eyes were responsible for the death of the one person he had ever loved with his entire heart. That monstrous face, which was bending nearer to him now, was the reason Harry and him would never get the chance to live a normal, peaceful life together. Now, the claw-like fingers were reaching for his chest, brushing away Severus’ weakened hand carelessly. Severus’ outrage grew and he attempted to swing his arm up in retaliation. No! He could not have that! It was Severus’, given to him by Harry a little over nine months ago.



“Give it here, Severus,” Voldemort tisked, as if to a fussy babe.



And just like that, he tore the chain holding the ring to Severus’ chest, bringing it up to serpent-like eyes for observation. Severus could tell the moment his former master realized what the ring was—or rather, whose it was. Incredulous red eyes moved from the ring to Severus’ face, even as the former spy snarled weakly at him to give it back. Severus was aware of the Legilimency only at the very last moment, but was unable to parry the Dark Lord’s superior—not to mention, intact—mind.



“Oh, but this is perfect,” Voldemort hissed with laughter after he had pulled away from the Potions Master’s memories.



The Death Eaters surrounding them shifted uneasily, wondering what was so perfect, but not daring to say anything. The Dark Lord was notorious for using the Cruciatus Curse on his servants for any perceived impertinence.



“Severus, you’ve been quite the naughty boy, haven’t you? I wonder...does Dumbledore know you’ve been fucking his golden boy? Or should I say toy—after all, that is how you treat him, isn’t it?”



Voldemort issued another laugh, this time even more malicious. Severus spat as well as he could to convey his displeasure with the assumption. The Death Eaters were completely silent and still now, as if they could not, or would not, believe that their former brother—in addition to the capital offence of spying—was screwing Harry Potter.



“I bet he simply gags for it, doesn’t he Severus? Is that why you keep the boy around in that farce of a relationship? Does he beg you to fuck his sweet, tight arse? Or is it because he sucks your cock like a Knockturn whore?”



Severus somehow found the energy to snarl, absolute loathing in his expression. How dare he talk about Harry like that!



“Mmm, I can picture it, Severus. Harry Potter on his knees, hands bound and mouth prised open to receive your cock. Your cum spraying all over his dirty Half-Blood face. Do you make him lick it up, Severus? Or do you prefer the evidence of your conquest?”



Now, the Death Eaters did laugh, despite their continued disbelief.



“Or perhaps it is you who is the one on the receiving end? Tell me, Severus: do you take the golden boy’s cock up your arse? Are you the one begging for him to fuck you, to punish you for your sins? Do you let him cover you with his filthy spunk, or do you swallow it like a good boy?”



More laughter as Severus felt tears coming to his eyes. Voldemort was dirtying his relationship with Harry. What Harry and him had together was beautiful. It was tender, it was sweet. Severus could never abide any violence or degradation in a sexual relationship, having experienced too much of both in his double life. What was more, he loved Harry! He could never do those things to him. An all-consuming anger, now. With the very last of his strength, he lashed out at the Dark Lord with his fist. Since the dark wizard was still crouching by his torso, it was easy to strike him across his face. The crunch of broken bone resounded in the clearing before Severus experienced the intense pain of the Cruciatus. It reeked of Bellatrix’s curse.



When he was finally released, his screams and sobs dying down again, he opened aching eyes to see the Dark Lord standing over him with a bloodied nose. His expression was thunderous and Severus felt that his end was very near now. Good riddance. He could abide by the torture, but the taunts were something he could no longer endure.



“That was very foolish of you, Severus,” Voldemort murmured. “Very foolish, indeed. Do you have any last words, traitor?”



“F...fuck...y-you,” Severus strained to say.



“Very well, then.”



In the infinitesimal moment before the Dark Lord raised his wand, Severus allowed his thoughts to stray to his fiancé. He could see Harry now, clear and bright and happy. He was running away from Severus, down a beachfront. Harry turned, laughing, egging Severus on to chase the younger man. And Severus gave chase...



With a final flash of light, Severus knew no more.

A/N: Voldemort's a cruel SOB. I am SO sorry it's taken me this long to give you another chapter. I won't go into details, but as usual, real life seems to be taking over. But I will NOT be abandoning this story. I have a very clear vision of where I want it to go, but I just need to find the time to write it and get over this stupid writer's block. As long as it may take me to update, I will finish this story. Please review! I'd love to hear what you thought of it! They make me incandescently happy haha. Review responses now! And thank you SO much to all those who have rated the story, I really appreciate it!

qwerty: Thank you so much! Yeah, it’s funny because I normally can’t handle reading them myself, but I adore writing about them. Torturous, but fun at the same time.

Lady Laran: Haha you and me both! I know where I’d like to take the story, but one never knows what the characters will have to say until it’s over.

Luski: Goodness gracious! I’m blushing so hard right now. Thank you so much for reviewing and letting me know what you think! And I hear you on the outcome. I love to write happy endings, but somehow, they just don’t seem to be as good as the tragic ones.

Snapy: Oh yay! (In a completely “I’m sorry I made you cry, but the fact that I inspired emotion from you is amazing!” way haha). Thanks so much for the review!

Visitkarte: I’m sorry to hear that you cried. Really hard. But I’m quite flattered that I was able to inspire that emotion. Thanks for reviewing!

Meg: Wow...I’m stunned speechless that you think my characterization is as true as you’ve ever seen. Thank you so much!

aaliyah1963: Oh thank you so much! You have no idea how much your comment helped me. People so far haven’t been critical at all and so receptive, but I have seen it happen with similar fics, so I’m ecstatic to see this so well-received. I am SO on your side with Severus in Book 7. As much as I loved the book, I hated the outcome for Severus, since he’s my favourite character. So sad.

Sevluv: I know! I don’t cry when I write, it’s weird, but people have been telling me that they’ve cried throughout this fic and it’s so astounding and gratifying to hear that your work is appreciated. So thanks for your review.
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A Promise