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The Morning Star	By : varnalesa Category: Harry Potter Crossovers > Slash - Male/Male Views: 7860 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I do not own The Twelve Kingdoms either. I do not make any money from these writings.

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
- 10
A/N The next chapter will be either smut or a plot twister�Thank you for
reading. �

Chapter 9

Welcome home��

Severus was sitting on the corner of his bed, staring at rather gruesome
picture in the book in his lap. �The second phase of the demon warding barrier.
Placing out the dog�s hearts.� was written at the bottom of the page. With an
annoyed sigh the raven snapped the book shut. He knew, even before starting
reading, he knew - it was unlikely he would find any mentioning of the bloody
curses that the dark lord placed on the bloody bracelet. And despite that, like
some last fool he let himself get hopeful.

It was the title, �Wards and Bindings�, and the age of the tome that
were misleadingly promising. He hadn�t recalled ever reading that book before,
so probably it was a gift form Lucius. Thus, the book was most likely pricy,
rare, unpractical and useless like his all other gifts. Still the interest was
piqued. And the dedication seemed to imply that maybe this was what he needed�
It was better than checking his ex-student�s papers, anyway - he reasoned. So
yes, the raven deluded himself, got worked up and all for nothing like some
cripple in search of a miracle remedy - the disappointment tasted bitter, made
him want to scream, maybe break something. But Severus wouldn�t act in such
demeaning manner, even if he was in private.�

And the annoying ticking of the pocket watch lying on the dustless desk
� thank house elves for that � continued. An ongoing mocking, another reminder
of how helpless, vulnerable the raven now was. With the bracelet on his hand,
he was not even able to cast a simple �Tempus�.

Basically he was a free target
for anyone who cared enough to look for him. Worse yet, it wasn�t like his legs
could save him. They were short true, but that was not the problem. Thanks to
his dear deceased father the raven had learned to deal with what he got long ago during his early childhood. The problem was, if the problem ever arose, not only he�d have to trust his
short legs he�d also have to preserve
himself while trying to escape. Merlin forbid it he hit his toe with a stone or
another such huge misfortune befell
him- the self-preservation spell would all but paralyze him. �You are the greatessst
danger to yourself, ssweet.��

A shudder ran down his spine, but he suppressed it. As sickening as the
ghostly memories of the touches so real, so tainting, so vivid were Severus had
learned to ignore them. For the treat and horror that they represented was so
bizarre, so unreal - in his mind the raven had linked it solely to the dark
lord and no one else. At times it even seemed to him that the memories were
just another version of bloody nightmarish visions that the dark lord so loved
to torture him with. And he could
deal with those.

The only good thing about the watch was the message that was sent
together with it. Albus apologized for the fact that
they won�t be able to meet today. It meant that he wouldn�t have to deal with
Potter or his other saviors, but Potter especially. Truthfully the raven had no
idea how to act then the boy he�d been snapping at for 7 years participated in
his rescue. Also he wouldn�t be nagged into attending supper.

Knock at the door startled him. And here the raven thought he would be granted
at least one quiet evening.

XXX

Looking
down at the expressionless youth, Snape,
Harry corrected himself, the Gryffindor golden boy felt completely at a loss.
�Professor McGonagall asked me to get you to the Great Hall...� he finally said
as a way of greeting and Snape glared at him. It was good that Harry hadn�t
told the man that he volunteered to do the job, or Snape would have probably
hexed him wand or no wand. What had he said to deserve the glares, anyway?

Right. It was about
what Harry had not said. Despite
being so different and little now, the raven in front of him was still the same
old proud petty git. ��sir� he added and was
surprised not to feel any usual irritation then he said the word. It might have
all been skin deep, but Harry just couldn�t say �sir� to the little youth and
mean it. It was more like saying some sort of endearment rather than giving the
man undeserved respect. Ok, so maybe it was deserved�But Harry just couldn�t
give it to the man who didn�t respect him in return.

The raven
raised an eyebrow. He must have done it unintentionally for as soon as it rose
it fell. Snape�s facial features regained their usual stone mask properties.
Just for that small slip it has been worth saying �sir�. �I appreciate that you
finally learned how to properly address me, Potter. Alas, I�m not going
anywhere.� Snape took a step away from the doorway and was about to shut the
door. He stopped in midway, because Harry had one of his feet in its way.

�Professor McGonagal said she was going to come and drag you herself
if you refused to go with me, sir. And that she would make you sit through all
the supper.��

Snape shot
him another death glare and stepped outside slamming the door behind him with
unnecessary force. Harry smiled broadly. The smile was a bad habit that he�d
picked up while associating with certain Malfoy heir � a modified version of
his patent smirk of sorts � habit that he promised to drop. But, really, he
just couldn�t help it in situations like this one.

XXX

�I could
refit your robes if you wanted, sir.� A statement came from nothing and Severus
all but froze. Ok, truth to be told, he was already standing frozen. They were
at the end of the green mile in front of the massive door behind which a horde
of teenagers could be heard �interacting�. Still, there were no reason for the
statement � despite the quick pace blasted Potter kept not once had Severus
tripped on the brim of his robes. And he�d rather trip a million times than let
another wizard anywhere near his clothes with an intention of �fitting�.� But, there was a horde of teenagers at the other side of the door� and Severus
really didn�t want to become their main dish.��

�I wouldn�t
have imagined that the famous Harry Potter would know how to cast a domestic
charm.� He sneered not with an intention of declining the offer, but to hide
his discomfort. The fact that he was more than annoyed by the boy mothering
him, the smiles that the Gryffindor would cast him every time he said �sir�
were also part reasons of the sneer. The golden boy did not react to the bite.
He simply raised his wand, cast �Adaptare� and smiled. �Here you go, sir.�

He had to
admit that Potter actually did a pretty good job. It might have been a small
thing � fitting robes � and it did not really help with his anxiety. But
really, he was being ridiculous. How much confidence does one need to face a
bunch of students? It was like pulling a tooth � unpleasant yet unavoidable.
�Thank you, Potter.� �for saving me from the crazy
Dark Lord� He said not really looking the boy in the eyes and opened the door.
Now that he and Potter were even, it was time to face other brats.

They
weren�t all staring them. Not until
McGonagall waved and beckoned him the teacher�s table, anyway. Then he got all
the attention. �Mr. Potter, I�m surprised you actually made him come. Five
points to Gryffindor.� The woman that he used to think of as a friend said then
Severus glared at her. �Unsubtle, really unsubtle you old witch� he thought,
rolled eyes and sat in his usual seat.

�Student�s�
Minerva raised her voice to get their attention. Unlike the certain old man,
she did not have peculiar habit of drumming at the glass before making official
announcements. �I would like to introduce you to the man that will be staying
at Hogwarts for a while, Phoebus Prince. Mr. Prince came to Hogwarts in order
to continue his research. Please welcome our guest and show him respect.�
Severus stood up to accept the greetings and the whistling? He raised an
eyebrow at the antiques of the young, quickly corrected his expression and sat
down. No way was he giving them some kind of newcomer�s speech.

�It seems
that I am no longer the student�s most favored faculty member, Mr. Prince.�
Severus turned to glare at the smiling werewolf, but quickly changed his mind.
The man�s cheeks were sunken and the usual spark was missing from the hazel
pools. Never had he seen the Gryffindor so dimmed not even the following
morning after the full-moon. It was startling to realize that Severus had no
idea what day or month it was. But that was not the point, here. More pressing
question needed to be answered - was Remus sick?

�It isn�t
all that surprising if taken into the account your appearance, Mr. Lupin.� Snape sneered. �I�ve made enough of the potion to
last for 7 months�� Where did the blasted Gryffindor spent it all on? Did he
share �the bottle� with his werewolf buddies? Or maybe, the Dark Lord had kept
him captive longer than he thought? It seemed like eternity, it might as well
been��

�..ce I am still fully loaded, so to
speak. It is personal matters that I suffer lack of sleep from. And please,
call me Remus.� Severus let the briefest of smiles pass his lips. �Thank you. And you can call me Phoebus.
Remus, Ms. McGonagall I bid you goodnight.� He said the feeling of satisfaction
warm him from inside � two down four to go.

Severus
left before Minerva could stop him. He guessed correctly that the woman
wouldn�t go running after him causing a scene. The golden trio and Draco also
refrained from following him then Severus shot them a glare. But unlike the
Gryffindors or his godson one of his Slytherin students was not so easy to get
rid off. Theodore Nott. The seventh year caught up to him then he had reached
the staircase and just wouldn�t get the hint to leave him alone. Where did he
get the impression that the boy was sharp and a loner? Anyway, Snape was soon
changing his opinion the topic.

�So, do you
want to be showed around, Phoebus? The scenery from the astronomy tower is
breathtaking.� He glared at the boy. Thank Merlin, Theodore did get that and
dropped the idea. �I could also take you to the library. You must be really
smart and diligent to have already finished your studies. How old are you,
anyway? � �Or maybe not.

�17� ��at
least 17 years more than you think I am.� He spat, but Nott only smiled at
obvious his lack of manners. �Not very talkative, are you?� Severus hardly
refrained from rolling his eyes. �Well that suits you - makes you all so
secretive and cute. Besides, what else could be expected from Pr. Snape�s
relative? He was my favorite professor, you know. Unlike all the other
�professors� here at Hogwarts, the man actually knew what he was teaching.
Potions used to be my favorite subject, because of him.� This time Snape did
roll his eyes. Despite being quite sharp in other subjects, Nott couldn�t stand
potions. Really now, �favorite subject� - some statements were beyond
ridiculous.

�I can�t
stand potions.� Snape stated just to spite the brat and watched his face fall.
The satisfaction lasted only for a moment though, because the joyful soon
returned to Nott�s face. �Can�t be everyone�s favorite subject, I suppose. So,
what is your study about?��

Severus was
saved from answering by his suite�s door and the blood wards that protected
them � even before the accident Snape wasn�t so fool
as to trust the password to protect his privacy. Thank Merlin for that, if not
for these wards the persistent pest would have probably followed him behind.

TBC
- 8
- 9
- 10
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The Morning Star