Saturday, December 26, 1998 ---- 9:27 p.m.

Harry opened an eye as Severus reached the end of the story and closed the book. "Mmm. That was a good one. Have I mentioned that you read out loud really well?" Sitting up on the settee, he rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "It makes me hot and bothered, you know?"

Severus laid aside 1001 Wizard Nights. "Perhaps the subject matter has something to do with that, eh?"

Harry laughed. "I still can't believe that a woman wrote most of those. Anyway, though, I think I'm ready for bed, now." He shot a glance to Severus' trouser placket. Hmm. Not tented, but there was a definite bulge, there. "Looks like you are, too."

"I really shouldn't be, after last night, and your waking me up in the middle of the night, and then again this morning."

Harry grinned, thinking back to each one of those times. Severus' back arching as Harry pounded into him. The way he would turn his head to look backwards, his eyes glazed with pleasure, his mouth open, panting.

Though this morning had been different. Severus had suggested a new position. He'd straddled Harry's lap and played with his own cock as Harry thrust up into him. They'd probably looked silly, but Harry didn't care. He kept remembering something Severus had said a long time ago.

They had only themselves to please.

"Yeah. It's been my best Boxing Day, yet," Harry said, sighing with pleasure. "Best everything. Really, Severus. I couldn't have asked for better."

Severus stood up and drew Harry into his arms. "That's very good to hear. And don't think I haven't enjoyed bottoming for you--"

"Hey, I know you have." Harry waggled his eyebrows a little. "The man on the bottom can't exactly fake it, you know."

Severus kissed him. "No, I couldn't. No need to, with you on top. But I think you remember what we discussed yesterday morning. Yes?"

"Yeah, I know." Harry shrugged. "You've been great, but I know I can't top every time. Especially not now. So . . . it's time, you think? To switch back?"

The look in Severus' eyes was answer enough.

"All right," said Harry, trying not to sigh, or sound disappointed about it. That would just be petty, in the circumstances. What did he have to complain about? Severus really had been great. About everything. "How about a bath first, and we can drive each other into a froth, first?"

Severus kissed him again, but this time it felt a little different than usual. Almost like the man was thanking him. For being a good sport? Harry didn't know, but he didn't much like it.

Drawing Severus closer, Harry changed the kiss into something more passionate. A hot, sizzling kiss. There, that was better, he thought, as he led the way to the bath.

Saturday, December 26, 1998 ---- 10:12 p.m.

"Brrr," said Harry, burrowing under the blankets, shivering. "It's really cold."

"That's what you get for dashing from the bathroom still damp," said Severus, shaking his head. "There's a reason I use a drying charm."

"But then you don't get that warm-up-in-bed feeling. I like it."

"So much so that you just complained about it?"

Harry moved closer the moment Severus slid smoothly in beside him. "Oh, you have to complain. Besides, I told you, drying charms make my hair stick up."

"Stick up more, you mean?"

Harry laughed. Once, a comment like that would have really bothered him, but he could tell now that the attempt at mockery was really Severus' way of being affectionate. "Let's make you stick up more." Harry made a show of looking under the sheets. "Oh, my, look at that. Maybe you should cut back on those drying charms."

"Very droll." Severus carded his fingers through Harry's hair, but not to smooth it down. He was running his hand upwards, and the look in his eyes was . . . Harry didn't know what to call it, except affectionate also. But then Severus seemed to realise what he was doing, and he jerked his hand away to reach for his wand.

"Are you still cold?" Without waiting for an answer, Severus cast a warming spell all around. When he looked at Harry again, his dark eyes were flashing in a way Harry easily recognised. Not affection, not now. That look was pure desire. Or more than desire.

Lust.

Harry felt an answering rush of desire in his own cock. Which was strange, in a way, since he knew what was coming. Or rather, he knew who would be coming, and it wouldn't be him. Not while he was bottoming, at any rate.

But, it was time to get back to that now; Severus was right. And no point in complaining. He'd just spoil the mood.

Harry shoved the blankets off both of them and scooted down a little, off the pillows. "Right. All set, then."

Severus trailed his fingers down Harry's thigh, his fingertips just barely brushing against cock and balls. The whole thing gave Harry a pleasant shiver. "There are other positions, you know."

Harry did know, but he wasn't about to get on his hands and knees. Severus might like that, and that was fine for him, but Harry didn't think he'd ever be able to stand the position. Not that Severus probably meant that. He was more likely thinking of having Harry on his lap.

Even that made Harry feel a little . . . squishy inside, somehow. It would just be so obvious what was going on. He'd rather keep on as they had been. At least lying on his back, he could pretend there was nothing going on but frottage.

"This one's best," he said.

"I suppose it must be," said Severus, a comment that was lost on Harry until he realised that the other man must be referring to the mind bond: Severus knew Harry was telling the truth about his preferences.

Not a very sexy thought, reminding him as it did that no matter how affectionate Severus ever got, Harry was going to remain a slave until the end of his days. His erection visibly drooped.

Severus' lips tightened, but then, like a man determined, he changed positions to face the bottom of the bed, and went down on Harry.

Taken somewhat by surprise, Harry groaned low in his throat and thrust upwards. For a moment he just let himself enjoy the attention, but then he remembered that as good as a blowjob was, sixty-nine was usually even more brilliant, so he manoeuvred a little until he could work Severus' cock into his mouth, too.

Yeah, that was what he liked. A long, hard cock sliding smoothly between his lips, going down his throat when Harry shifted to let it, and all the while, his own cock was being . . . well, practically worshipped, down there.

Harry didn't know another word for it.

Severus kept it up until Harry was needy. Gasping. Primed. And then he raised his head, just enough to speak. "More?"

The temptation to say yes was practically overwhelming, but Harry wasn't really selfish enough to do it. He knew what Severus wanted most, and it wasn't sixty-nine.

"No," he panted, as soon as he worked his mouth free from Severus' cock. No easy feat, that, when Harry was on the bottom . . . though mutual cocksucking didn't make him feel like he was really on the bottom. "I want you in me."

No headache, no blazing surge of pain. Of course not. It wasn't quite the truth, but it wasn't quite a lie, either. He did want Severus inside him. He just didn't want it for the usual reasons.

Probably there weren't too many people thinking of Voldemort when they made love, Harry thought, some kind of maudlin dark humour sweeping through him. He might actually be the only one.

And that was one too many, wasn't it? Harry pushed the evil git from his mind, focussing instead on the fall of Severus' black hair as the man moved to lay atop him, face to face again. Harry concentrated on that hair, and on the way it looked against the pale backdrop of the man's skin. Oh, yes. That was what he liked.

As Severus bent to kiss him, his hips striking up the familiar rhythm of frottage, cock sliding on wet cock, Harry wrapped his arms around him and held on tight.Mmmm. Good. Perfect . . .

Harry let his eyes drift shut and just enjoyed.

When Severus shifted off him a little, Harry kept his eyes closed, but not because he was afraid to look or anything. Those days were long past. He was just content now to float. Preferred it, actually. Staying suspended in a kind of sexual haze, his cock hard, his balls feeling high and tight and heavy.

But this time, the haze was a little different from usual. A sharp scent drifted across him. It didn't take Harry an instant to place it, not after the number of times he'd opened the bottle of Happy Bottoming Lubricant in the past couple of days.

Green apple and raspberry, and this time, Severus was the one pouring it into his hands.

The scent instantly conjured something inside Harry. Memories . . . no, nothing as overt as that. It was more like an awareness that recently, Harry had been the one spreading that lubricant over arse cheeks, the one sliding one finger, then two, inside a tight arse.

Or not even an awareness.

A connection, from that to this. Like yesterday and today were the same, except in reverse. Mirrored images.

Something inside Harry seemed to open up, somewhere deep inside his chest. He didn't know what it was. He just knew that all of a sudden, he felt more relaxed. He hadn't thought he could get more that way, but now, even with Severus' fingers deep inside him, he didn't need to remind himself to breathe.

Harry moaned, thrusting his hips up, and as Severus' finger almost brushed against his prostate, memory did snap into him, as sharp as brilliant sunlight. Yes, yes. He had to roll his hips, that was right. Roll them just so, and Severus' finger would do more than brush, wouldn't it? It would stroke his prostate, roll right over it, circling it, almost.

Harry curled his pelvis and gave a little roll of his hips, and felt the world explode inside him.

Or maybe that was him, exploding outwards, for all he hadn't come.

"God--" he gasped, biting his lip as shudders of pleasure wracked him. It was almost too much to take. If Severus had still been sucking his cock, he'd have come for sure. "Oh, my God--"

Severus said something then, his deep voice washing over Harry, but Harry was too far gone in sensation to sort out the sounds. Good sounds, though. When Severus stopped talking, Harry sort of clouted him on the side of the head. He didn't mean to, really. It was just that he felt so uncoordinated. Unhinged, even.

But there was nothing wrong with his hips. It was like they were rolling on their own now, while Harry could do very little but arch his neck back and babble something mindless as pulses of pleasure surged through his balls and cock, radiating out in milder waves that coursed across his thighs and chest and shoulders and calves.

"Talk--" he managed, finally, his hands coming up to grab hold of Severus' hair. "Keep--"

"Feels good, does it?" asked Severus in a voice full of good humour. Or delight, really. Well, this would delight him, wouldn't it, Harry gasping in pleasure at his hand? Literally, at his hand.

And Harry knew, knew, from experience that this time, that if fingers were good, then a cock filling him would be even better. Severus had liked cock better than fingers, anyway, had begged for it, almost--

Harry could suddenly understand that, better than before.

No . . . like never before.

"You," he said, the syllable crisp and clear. Keen, almost. Though his ability to speak seemed to be dissolving as Severus began to slide his fingers out of Harry's bum. "Sev-- Sev'rus--"

"Shh," said the other man, moving into position atop him, kissing Harry as he settled in. Harry spread his thighs open, liking the feeling it gave him, this time. Control, in a strange way. Because he wanted Severus, this time. He was welcoming him in, getting more of what he wanted . . .

"Just enjoy," whispered Severus, holding Harry's hips with both his hands as the hard, blunt end of his cock pressed against Harry's entrance.

Harry opened his legs wider, wanting like he'd never wanted before, angling his hips up, his cock feeling like it would just die if something didn't happen soon.

"I'm trying to," groaned Harry, yanking his hands from where they'd been tangled in Severus hair, so he could push against the man's lean buttocks, urging him on.

"There's value in anticipation," said Severus, clearly teasing, as he nudged his cock in just a bit. Just an inch, when Harry needed all of him, now.

But that was right . . . Harry didn't have to just lie here and take it, for all he wanted it. He could have it, whatever he wanted. All he wanted.

Grabbing Severus' hips, hard, his nails digging in, Harry rolled his pelvis up again, and felt Severus sink into him, balls-deep.

He very nearly shouted, that felt so good, even though there'd been none of that zinging sensation he'd been enjoying earlier. No problem, though; Harry knew how to get that, too.

As Severus pulled out and began to plunge forward again, Harry rolled his hips once more, his hands on Severus' hips pushing, shoving really, to get that cock sliding into him at a better angle.

And then, he did shout. Or scream, maybe. Harry heard it through another haze, the scent of green apple and raspberry filling his nostrils as Severus filled him, every bit of him, the sensation of that so good and right that Harry almost felt like he was coming without coming.

Or like every part of him was climaxing. Like there was pleasure everywhere. Harry wrapped his arms around Severus, holding him tightly. As tightly as he could, and then, he just rocked with him.

In, out, in, out, Harry's straining cock caught between their sweat-slicked bodies.

The beast with two backs, he suddenly thought, the phrase coming out of nowhere. And then, another thought, this one very nearly as startling. How could I have wanted Severus' cock to be anything but long and thick? What was I thinking?

Harry suddenly laughed, feeling like he was snapping out of a bad dream into a good one. Not that that had ever happened to him, but it was happening now. "This . . . great," he gasped, kissing Severus in between the words. "You . . . ahhhh!"

Severus abruptly stilled, panting hard as he raised his face away from Harry, who didn't understand.

The sudden stillness made him more able to speak, however. Well, slightly more able. "What . . . no, it's great, I . . . keep on, would you?"

Harry rolled his hips again to get his point across. It felt good. Fantastic . . . but without Severus moving too, it wasn't mind-blowing.

"It'll be over in two seconds if I don't take a moment," said Severus in a rough voice.

"Oh . . ." Harry gave his lover a wicked smile. He remembered that feeling. Topping, and wanting to make sure he didn't come too fast. "In that case, take a minute, yeah. We wouldn't want you to do worse than I did, after all."

"Whelp," muttered Severus, rolling his own hips in a sudden, almost vicious motion that had him balls-deep again. But then he stilled. "Enjoying this, are you? Seeing me about to boil over too soon?"

Harry smoothed his hands down Severus' back. "Yes, I am enjoying it," he said. "And not just that part of it."

"Oh, I can tell you are," drawled Severus, beginning to move again. "Going to give as good as you get this time, aren't you?"

"Going to get as good as--" Harry tried to finish the sentence, but Severus was making love to him in earnest again, by then, and he was the one about to boil over. Or come apart at the seams, maybe. All he knew was that speech danced out of reach. Everything did, except motion and sensation and pure need, burning through him like firewhiskey.

Harry ground his hips up, almost there. Almost, almost . . . but there wasn't quite enough to push him over the edge of the cliff. He made a noise of frustration, something between a grunt and a yelp, and then remembered Severus fondling himself as he'd straddled Harry's lap.

Well, hell. Why hadn't he thought of that before? All the times he'd bottomed, and it had never even crossed his mind, not even when Severus had grabbed hold of his cock . . .

Harry plunged both his hands down between their bodies and began to stroke himself. There, and oh yes, there, some attention to the head, then long, hard pulls up and down, his hands matching the rhythm of Severus pushing into him, full-length, and pulling out nearly as far.

"Harder," gasped Harry. He wanted more, harder, faster, everything Severus had, he wanted.

The other man suddenly shifted positions, sliding backwards, completely out of Harry, rising up on his knees and lifting Harry up over his angled legs, plunging into him again, impaling him.

Harry screamed, his hands rubbing frantically over his cock. He pulled it vertical, liking the edge of tension he got that way, and squeezed harder as he pumped himself. Almost, almost, almost--

And then Severus' cock stroked his prostate, and Harry rolled his hips for all he was worth, keeping the sensation strong and constant, more and more, and before he even knew it was going to happen, it did. He was coming, his climax so fierce that it was like the ritual bath all over again, his semen practically under pressure, spraying out and up into the air to rain back down onto his legs and Severus' thighs.

Severus' whole body seemed to spasm, his hands dragging Harry even harder onto his cock, and then his own cock began pulsing, deep inside Harry. And then he was grunting, his head flung back, the tendons in his neck standing out as he opened his mouth and howled.

Wow . . . amazing, that's all Harry could think, and not just because he'd got Severus to howl like that. It was also that he was still coming, a little, his orgasm beginning to ebb away just as Severus' began. And Harry could swear, swear, that feeling Severus come made his own climax last just a bit longer than usual.

Fan-fucking-tastic, again.

Though, perhaps not quite so much as topping, Harry thought after a moment.

But then again, he didn't think he'd be complaining about bottoming again, either.

He lifted himself up off of Severus' softening cock and slid backwards to lie panting on the sheets, vaguely aware that he was smiling ear-to-ear and probably looked like an idiot. But what did that matter? Severus wasn't about to complain, that was for damned sure.

Summoning a flannel, Severus moistened it, and then began wiping at Harry's belly and thighs. Not as efficient as a cleaning charm, Harry thought, but it was better. More intimate.

"You're good," he heard himself say, the words slurred.

"Yes, I could tell," drawled Severus.

"Huh?"

"Probably best not to call me a god, though."

Harry didn't get it until he studied the smirk on Severus' face. "Next time I'll call you Merlin--" He laughed, the sensation sharp inside him.

He probably could have stayed in the same position all night, but not after that laugh. It made him realise that he had a bit of an ache in his bum. He moved to rub it, thinking that perhaps Severus was just a touch too big in the cock department, after all . . .

"Potion?" asked Severus, matter-of-factly. "I was rather unrestrained, there at the end."

"Wild," corrected Harry, giving him a mock-stern look. "Say it. I went wild."

A low laugh, enough to curl Harry's toes, came first, but then Severus did as he'd been asked. "I went wild, yes."

"I went wild and howled."

"Yes, you did, rather."

"You did!" accused Harry, sitting up despite the ache. "Say it!"

"I went wild and howled."

"Wow, you're really agreeable. Next time I want something, I'm going to wait until after I bottom for you and--"

"No," interrupted Severus, suddenly sounding dead serious. "If you want something you can't get for yourself, you know you've only to ask. Don't use sex to get things."

Harry had only been joking about, but he could see that Severus hadn't taken the comment that way. "I won't," he said, laying a hand across Severus' forearm. "I wouldn't. You're my lover."

Severus just kept staring down at him, those black eyes unreadable.

"I sleep with you because I want to, you know that," Harry went on, earnestly. "Because it's fabulous. Oh, come on, Severus. You know I didn't really mean--"

The corners of Severus' mouth twitched, then curled upwards in clear humour. "I thought not, but it was worthwhile to see how long you would continue with the compliments."

Harry threw a pillow at him, which Severus deftly caught and placed back on the bed. "You never did say if you'd like a potion."

"No, no, it's fine." Harry stretched and then pulled the covers up to his waist and he settled back against the pillows. "I can feel we did it, is all. And you know . . . that's all right. It really is. I'm surprised you haven't mentioned that I came. I mean, during, finally."

"Does it need mentioning?"

Harry laughed. "No. I guess that speaks for itself. Come on, lie down. I'm knackered and I want some sleep."

"I can't imagine why," murmured Severus as he pulled Harry up against him.

"'Cause sex with you is brilliant--" Harry yawned, snuggling his cheek against Severus' shoulder. "Mmm. G'night."

He thought Severus probably replied, but whatever the man said was lost in the haze of exhaustion sweeping over Harry. Good exhaustion. Like none he'd ever felt before, really. He was tired from head to toe, cock included, but it all felt right, somehow.

Harry smiled, no more thought in him as he let sleep waft him away.

Sunday, December 27, 1998 ---- 6:01 a.m.

Severus was abruptly jolted out of a sound sleep when the mattress beneath him shifted. Rolling over, he reached for Harry but encountered only empty air.

Snapping his eyes open, he sat upright and surveyed the room. When he saw Harry beside him, sitting up, Severus relaxed.

"Problem?"

Harry shook his head. "I don't know why I didn't think of this last night--knackered, most likely--but . . . er, I suppose our powers will be fully crossed now, . . . you think?"

The question cast Severus' mind back to the night before. Harry bottoming for him, at last. Truly bottoming . . . Severus barely counted those times when Harry had gone through the motions, trying to find some way to enjoy the experience.

No, as far as he was concerned, the previous night had been the true beginning to a full sexual relationship. The kind he'd wanted all along. Partners. Bond-mates, each of them pleasing the other. The thought alone had his cock swelling a bit.

But now probably wasn't the time.

"Are you sore?" Severus gestured with his hand to indicate Harry's lower body.

Harry gave him a glance that looked slightly annoyed. "Just a tad. I can deal with it, you know. It's not like . . . never mind."

"It's not like you're a girl?" Severus was sorry to hear they were back to that, but at least this time, Harry had stopped himself from actually voicing his thought. And really, perhaps it was time to put that idea to rest, once and for all. "I remember your climax last night, Harry. Showering us, almost. If anything is certain, it's that you're not like a girl. Not at all."

Harry gave him sort of a half-smile, only one side of his mouth curling up. "Yeah, I know. Really, I do, now. I'm not even sure why I started to say that."

"Old habits of mind."

"More like echoes or something." Harry's smile grew wider. "I figured something out last night. I mean, something more than just that I can like bottoming."

"Can?"

"Do. I do like it." Harry nodded vigorously, as if he was still convincing himself of the fact. Or perhaps it was more like he just still finding it surprising.

"And this other thing you figured out would be . . . ?"

Just the barest hint of colour stole across Harry's cheekbones. Not even enough to call it a blush, but Severus noticed it, all the same. He thought then that he was perhaps becoming too observant of small nuances in the other man's mood.

"Oh. It's just what you said, a while back. Um . . . two halves of a whole, you know that bit?"

Severus did know it. "Yes. Two men can form two halves of a whole as readily as a man and a woman can."

"Yeah, that." Harry laughed. "I mean, last night it struck me that . . . I don't know. It was like, top or bottom, it was all good. I mean, all just sex, you know."

Severus did know. He didn't know what to add, so he just nodded.

Harry slanted him a glance. "Though I still think you might have offered to let me top a lot sooner. How could you have thought I wouldn't want you?"

Severus stiffened. He could easily do without going into more discussion on that topic. He wasn't even sure, himself, why he'd waited so long. On the surface, it really did seem daft.

Particularly considering that he was, and would remain, Harry's only possible choice of sexual partners . . .

Realising how stiff he probably looked, Severus did his best to shrug off the tension in his neck and shoulders. "Perhaps I didn't like the idea that I would be letting you. I always did have a more mutual concept of making love than that."

"Yeah." Harry shrugged, too. "I should have said that I wanted to. Oh, well. Water under the bridge, now, I guess. Um . . . it's all good, like I said, but I probably should mention that I think I actually do like topping more."

There was definitely a thread of insecurity in that last comment, as if Harry wasn't sure that Severus would appreciate the sentiment.

For his part, Severus just shrugged again. How many times had he told Harry that what was, was? "Don't worry," he said, leaning over to drop a kiss on Harry's lips. "We'll make it work. I told you that."

"Great." Harry stretched a bit, his chest muscles ripping, then languidly got out of bed, only to stretch again, his arms flung back, his cock swaying as it hung free. Finally, though, he turned to face Severus. "You know, you never did answer my question. About if our powers have crossed all the way?"

Severus had thought the question rhetorical. To him, the matter was obvious. "I think they must have, yes."

Harry turned his face away and began to walk across the room. "All right. Let's grab something quick and head over to the Room of Requirement--"

"I suspect we've reached the Room's limits. It's trying not to allow damage to the castle, but it doesn't quite know what to do with the spells you've been casting."

Harry paused on his way to the connecting door, his arse cheeks looking even more inviting than usual, now that Severus knew first-hand just how delightful his arse could be. "Yeah, it does seem to have had some trouble accommodating us, lately. But it wouldn't be safe to test my powers anywhere else, would it?"

Hmm. Severus didn't like the idea of displaying Harry's formidable new powers in the wide open. Even with privacy spells to conceal them, that seemed foolhardy. He frowned, lapsing into thought for a moment. "There are some natural caverns underground to the east of the castle, just beyond the loch. We won't be disturbed there, and it's far enough away that nothing you do should be able to affect the castle."

Harry looked around the room. "Yeah, I wouldn't want to damage it. Ha, not even the dungeons, which believe me, is sort of a strange thought. For me, at least. You probably can't imagine the number of times I wanted to see the lake break through and flood them." Harry smiled a little, like the memories were fond ones, even if he'd outgrown them. "But couldn't I just fix anything I damaged, anyway?"

"I think you may find that even with increased powers, destruction is easier to accomplish than repair."

"Could be . . ."

"Particularly if the roof has fallen in on top of your head."

Harry blanched, but then seemed to steel himself. "Oh, I won't be as powerful as all that, will I?"

Severus dropped his voice to the low, smooth one Harry seemed to appreciate most. "You have no appreciation of just how pleased I was last night, do you?"

Harry licked his lips, like he was remembering. But then he shook his head, shaking himself out of it. "No, I just meant . . . the roof of the castle collapsing?"

Walking over to him, Severus grasped him by the forearms. "A power the Dark Lord knows not, Harry. You're going to be something the wizarding world has never seen before."

The muscles in Harry's throat convulsed. Once, and then twice, before he managed to say, his voice gruff, "I don't want to be something, Severus. All I've ever wanted was to be just . . . just me."

Severus pulled him close. He was a little surprised that Harry wasn't more excited at the prospect of testing their powers again; until now, the other man had almost revelled in his increasing levels of magic. He was obviously finding the prospect of fully-crossed powers rather unnerving, though. And perhaps that made sense, considering the things that Severus had written in that précis. Things about Harry being regarded with extreme fear and suspicion. About him being regarded like another Dark Lord, himself. Or worse.

Severus moved his hands up and down over Harry's bare back, seeking to offer what reassurance he could. "I won't let you lose yourself, Harry, I promise. And if there's a wave of . . . panic, in the wizarding community, when they realise what sort of power you have at your disposal, well . . . we'll ride it out together."

Harry leaned against him. "Together, yeah. I guess . . . well, there's nothing else to do, is there? I can't do anything else."

I can't have anybody else, that was what Severus thought he meant. Part of Severus liked that idea; Merlin knew he had very little use for Harry's friends, whom he found alternately vapid and annoying. What Severus wanted, and what Harry needed, however, were very different things. Or perhaps not, since what Severus wanted most of all was for Harry to be happy with him. Or if not happy . . . at least content. "And you'll have your friends, standing by your side," he said bracingly, moving to embrace Harry a little more closely.

A puff of breath brushed his skin as Harry sharply exhaled. "Will I? You called them possible exceptions to the general hysteria."

"Yes, and as I told you more recently, you have much better friends than I realised at first. Those two? They'd stay with you through absolutely anything, no matter what anybody else has to say about it." And if by chance they don't, Severus mentally added, they'll answer to me.

"Ron and Hermione are great, all right," said Harry, relaxing a little. "Yeah. Well, the Prophet's staffed by nutters, anyway. They've had it in for me before, and I survived."

If they do you wrong this time, you can make their roof collapse. Or their entire building disappear. Not to mention them . . .

Severus didn't voice any such thoughts. Doubtless, they wouldn't help Harry feel any better.

"All right, I'll get dressed and come back down for breakfast."

"Why don't I get dressed and join you upstairs for breakfast?" asked Severus, thinking the suggestion a good one. Two halves of a whole, after all, could apply to a great many things besides sex. He'd told Harry once that their relationship wasn't destined to be one of equals, and while that was technically true, it didn't have to rule them.

It couldn't, not if Harry was going to find his way through the thicket ahead and end up content to live with Severus for the rest of his life.

Harry looked pleased by the suggestion. Extraordinarily pleased, in fact. "Yeah, great. I'll order us up something special. We should celebrate, really. I mean, even if it takes us a while longer to cross our powers, I know we can do it, now."

"Yes, something special," echoed Severus, though privately, he thought it quite unlikely that their crossed powers would need more time to mature. Always before, each new level of intimacy had produced a corresponding increase in the strength of Harry's spells.

And now, after the previous evening, after watching Harry come, after feeling Harry's arse clenching, milking Severus' cock . . . now that he knew what a passionate, enthusiastic partner bottom Harry was going to be for him . . .

Severus couldn't imagine being any more pleased.

Sunday, December 27, 1998 ---- 8:22 a.m.

"Wow," said Harry, blinking a little as he glanced around. "If I didn't know better, I'd think this was a natural formation. Though I guess the torches lighting up as we entered kind of nixes that idea."

Severus nodded, recalling that he'd had a similar reaction when he'd first seen one of these spacious underground caverns. "Yes. It must have taken impressive magic to construct these."

"How . . . who . . . ?"

"Legend has it that the Founders carved them out. For what purpose, no-one really knows."

Harry raised an eyebrow and gestured back toward the way they'd come. "That door doesn't look a thousand years old."

"You don't believe that the castle never needs any upkeep, do you?" Severus shrugged, and as a precaution, hopped up to seat himself on a waist-high ledge. "The entrance to the cavern has obviously been improved."

"Think there's a loo in here too, do you?" asked Harry. He looked a little sweaty. Severus knew what that meant; it wasn't a result of exertion, though the hike to get here had been fairly strenuous.

"I think you're putting off the inevitable," he said quietly, resting his hands against the folds in his robe. "There's no use pretending, Harry. If you can cast using twice-filled powers now, we might as well know it."

"Yeah," said Harry thickly. He drew his wand, the motion rather sluggish. "Er . . . what do you suggest, then? I mean, this isn't like the Room, where I could kind of rely on it to correct my . . . excesses."

Severus didn't like that last word, but he hardly wanted to quibble over it. Besides, Harry had just made an excellent point. No wonder he'd earned all those N.E.W.T.s.

"You're quite right to realise this isn't like the Room of Requirement. I would say that it's up to you, now, to accommodate your own powers. But that's as it should be, as you're the one who has to live with your increased access to magic--"

"You lost me," interrupted Harry. "Accommodate them how?"

"I'm sure you'll learn ways as you go, but to begin with, I'd suggest a shielding spell. Using all the power at your disposal, of course. Theoretically, you should be able to cast one strong enough to block your own subsequent spells."

"Theoretically," said Harry dryly.

"Unfortunately, yes." Severus raised his shoulders.

"Then why couldn't I have done that in the Room?"

"It might have misunderstood what you were doing. It might have thought me the threat you were shielding against. Actually, it might have thought any number of insane things, given its recent behaviour."

"Yeah, yeah. I knew that."

Severus almost asked him why he'd brought it up, in that case. But then, he knew why. Harry was still putting off the inevitable.

"You're going to be stronger than every legend of Merlin combined," he said, leaning forward. "And it's going to be all right, Harry. Let's just see what you can do, now."

Nodding, Harry drew in a deep breath and brandished his wand. "Protego!" he incanted, and a shimmering dome expanded from his wand. A shimmering dome that looked no more substantial than a soap bubble.

"Harry . . ."

"I know. Wasn't really trying," said Harry, grimacing. "I have to get more into the spirit of the thing. All right, enough goofing about--"

Procrastinating, Severus thought, but there was way he could have said the word out loud, because Harry had cast Protego again by then, and this time, it looked as though a bubble of thick marble was pouring forth from his wand.

Harry's teeth were clenched, his arm flung fully out, his stance wide-legged as he moved his wand to and fro, until a thick coating of what looked like marble covered the entire ceiling. Even after Harry stilled his wand, the layer of white stone above them kept growing downward, thickening more each second. The ceiling was now completely obscured, although the walls remained as before, expanses of jagged rock.

Finally, Harry lowered his wand completely.

Instantly, enormous columns shot from ceiling to floor. Ten, in all. Perfectly round and smooth, the columns stood like monoliths, holding the stone structure up.

Severus jerked back in shock. Merlin's wand . . . But that was really the wrong exclamation to ring through his mind, of course. Merlin's wand had nothing on Harry's, these days.

Leaning back against the granite wall, Severus took in several deep breaths.

"Winded?" asked Harry, turning smoothly on the ball of one foot.

His eyes now looked . . . otherworldly, Severus thought. Glowing green like emeralds plucked from a fiery blaze . . . Not that the power had changed them, or any such claptrap. No, Severus was merely dazed from the drain of his power, and Harry had been staring about, obviously fascinated at the impromptu appearance of those columns.

Hmm. Perhaps construction would come to him as readily as destruction, at that.

But to vanquish the Dark Lord, destructive power was definitely in order.

"No, no, merely a bit stunned," said Severus, finally gaining his breath. He was still dizzy, but thought it probably didn't show on the outside. "Well. I think that lays your questions to rest, at least."

"To rest?" Harry gave a dry laugh. "Dead and buried, more like. I wish I couldn't imagine what the press is going to say. Or for how damned long they're going to keep harping on it."

"They might know better than to cross you, this time."

"Oh, that'll be the day--"

Severus truly did wish Harry would be less anxious about the matter, but he knew better than to tell him how to talk. That never had gone over very well. "Perhaps you should see what else you can do," he tried by way of distraction.

"Yeah. Temple-building probably isn't going to come in very useful." Harry glanced back at him. "You're all right, though? Tell me the truth. That didn't drain you worse than usual?"

Severus wasn't about to dwell on it. "I can't quantify it so precisely."

Harry shot him an irritated look, but then appeared to dismiss the matter. "Uh . . . Aguamenti!"

A blast of water suddenly shot from his wand, the stream surging all the way across the cavern and hitting the opposite wall with such force that it began tunnelling through solid granite. Harry himself should have been thrown backwards with equal force, but like a champion duellist, he remained with feet planted, moving the wand as easily as though he were casting a mere cheering charm.

And then, the water began snapping on and off, vanishing and reappearing as Harry continued to wave his wand about.

Severus slumped, his head spinning as he felt his powers abruptly draining from him, over and over, but thanks to the wall behind him, he managed to stay upright.

Or close to it.

Harry finally lowered his wand. "What do you think?"

That was when Severus saw what Harry had wrought in the wall. Not just holes, but holes that formed a vaguely recognisable shape. Something like a lion. Or perhaps a dragon?

Severus only realised he was squinting at it, trying to decide, when Harry's voice came again. "Yeah, well, you try drawing with watering spells, and see what you get. Besides the opportunity to stand about in a lake, that is."

Without being prompted, then, Harry swept his wand through the air in one smooth motion, casting a drying charm all about.

And just as he always said, it did make his hair stick up, even though in this case, it wasn't wet. In fact, it made his hair stick straight up as though someone was yanking on it, but it fell back down to its usual muss in a few seconds.

Meanwhile, the air became clogged with vapour from the rapidly drying water. Steam--though it was cool--billowed upward in great thick clouds all around them. Severus had never seen anything like it.

Harry, he thought with something approaching awe, could probably drain the loch itself if he had a mind to.

"All right, enough of that," sighed Harry when the rock floor showed no more trace of puddling water. "Time for combat spells, I suppose. Reducto!" He pointed his wand at the ceiling as he cast the spell.

Severus realised what was happening almost at once. A low roar began to echo through the chamber, but the noise quickly became deafening. It was the sound of a primal force being unleashed.

The sound of a thousand tonnes of rock--or more, perhaps--crashing down, all at once.

Ignoring the weak, trembling feeling coursing through his limbs, Severus jumped down off the ledge and staggered across the cavern to Harry. "We've got to get out of here! Come on!"

He didn't stop to hear what Harry had to say, but began pulling him across the room toward the door. Not that Harry was resisting. After that first tug on his robes, he began running alongside Severus.

The roar in Severus' ears seemed to get louder with every step they took.

Harry flung out his arm to open the door with a nonverbal spell, and it hurled itself off its own hinges to lay crosswise across the tunnel in front of them. Severus almost tripped in that instant in which he felt his powers drawn out for Harry's use, but Harry had him by then, by the arm, and hauled him back upright so they could keep running.

Through the open doorway, into the tunnel, clambering over the destroyed door and then running again, all the way to the far end of the passageway.

The roar had stopped by then, which perhaps explained why Harry opened the next door in the usual way.

They stepped out into the cold sunshine of a field nestled between two rolling hills, and as the door closed behind them, it vanished.

Harry blinked, looking all around them. "Huh. Seems like everything is still normal out here, really. The entrance hidden again . . . " He suddenly whirled to face Severus. "Any reason why we didn't just Apparate out, once it was clear that cavern was collapsing?"

"I wasn't certain I'd be able to."

"Oh, right. I'd just been siphoning off your power, right."

"Besides, your Protego was quite something. It might have prevented anyone but you from Apparating."

Harry gave a brief nod. "I guess I could have side-alonged you, then. Using . . . er, twice-filled Apparition, or something. Though that might be risky if we hadn't practiced it in advance."

Severus felt his lips curl in a wry smile. "Sometimes, the simplest thing to do is run."

Harry laughed. "Well, we sure did that. I was winded for a second, but I'm all right now. How about you? See, I'd like to climb to the top of that hill." He pointed. "And see if anything looks different from there."

Drawing his wand, Severus conjured a goblet and held it out. "Perhaps a spot of water, first." His nostrils flared. "A reasonable amount."

"Hey, I can control the force of my spells," said Harry, a little indignant. Resting the tip of his wand over the edge of the goblet, Harry murmured the spell. Water began to trickle out. "No problem."

Once Severus' thirst was quenched, he felt much better. He began to follow Harry up the hillside. Halfway up, Harry stopped to look at him. "We never have worked on improving my Apparition, like you mentioned once. But with twice-filled powers, do you think I could go all the way across Britain? Or overseas, even?"

"Probably." Severus knew what Harry was likely thinking, of course. Disneyland. Or world . . . whichever one was in Florida. "It's not advisable to Apparate to a place you've never been, before, however. Unless you're travelling with someone who has been there."

"Yeah, yeah, I remember the lessons we got on that." Harry started climbing again, not stopping until he reached the crest of the hill. A moment later, Severus joined him. Together, they surveyed the countryside all around.

Finally, Harry turned to him. "I can't tell where the cavern's located, really."

Severus pointed at a series of gently rolling hills below them to the left.

"They don't look disturbed, at all," said Harry, puzzlement making his voice lilt.

He hadn't yet realised, thought Severus. "Your shield is still holding strong."

"Holding up all that rock we heard falling on it?" Harry shook his head. "That can't be it. Nothing could stand up against . . ."

He didn't believe it because he didn't want to, Severus sensed. But there was no point in flinching from the truth. "Remove your Protego and see what happens," he advised, keeping his voice calm with effort. Despite his insistence that what was, was, Severus was a little apprehensive, himself, to see what Harry had wrought.

Swallowing, Harry fished out his wand and pointed it in the direction Severus had indicated. "Finite Incantatem!" he shouted against the wind that had suddenly kicked up.

Severus felt a wave of dizziness coursing over him, but as it was a feeling he was growing used to--no choice about that--he managed to stay on his feet. Closing his eyes seemed to help.

When the feeling passed, he opened them to see Harry standing as though struck dumb. Open-mouthed, even. The younger man didn't say a word. Instead, he weakly gestured.

Severus followed his line of sight and almost started. Where the moment before there had been gentle sloping hills, now there was a huge, sunken crater. Quite clearly, Harry's Reducto had utterly destroyed the cavern, and only his shielding spell had kept them from knowing about it sooner.

"I didn't mean to ruin the landscape," said Harry after a moment. "I . . . this is very strange, you know? I was really looking forward to being this powerful. I'msupposed to. It's what I get out of this deal, after all. But all I wanted was enough that nobody could mess with me again, you know? I wasn't expecting . . . this."

"You haven't ruined the landscape," said Severus.

"Oh, sure. Scotland's dotted with craters, after all--"

"No, look. Do you see?"

Harry leaned forward a bit, peering down into the crater. "What is that? Er . . . water?"

"It looks as though an underground river has been opened up." Severus shrugged. "A new lake is forming. Give it a few hours and the landscape will look entirely natural, again."

Harry didn't look mollified. "I still think people are going to notice a change like this."

"Eventually. The hills here aren't very well-known."

"Yeah, anti-Muggle charms and all," said Harry, clearly morose.

Severus sighed. "Why aren't you happier? You said it yourself, that this is your reward for agreeing to the bond. I know you're dreading the publicity that may result when all is known, but surely you can wait until it actually happens to make yourself miserable?"

Harry grimaced. "Maybe I'd be happier if you hadn't killed Bole and Talmadge for me. I mean, just before we invoked, I was thinking about them a lot. About what I was going to do to them, once our powers had crossed." His features, normally so handsome, took on an ugly cast as his lips twisted and his eyebrows drew tightly together. "I wouldn't feel the slightest bit bad about turning this power against them, believe me. I'd like to see a twice-filled Sectumsempra. I'd enjoy it. And you took that from me."

He didn't sound angry, exactly, but neither was he resigned. His gaze, when he turned it on Severus, was flashing with annoyance.

Severus took a step back so he could think. He'd never given much thought to the idea that Harry might have liked to kill Bole and Talmadge, himself. At the time, he'd seemed distraught that he'd to have killed Bellatrix, and that had clearly been done in self-defence. Cold-blooded murder was something else. Severus didn't shrink from it, when circumstances warranted drastic action, but Harry wasn't Severus.

Wasn't anything like Severus, in a great many ways.

"I bound myself to give you whatever you needed," he said quietly, crossing his arms in front of him. "At the time, it seemed to me that what you needed most was the knowledge that they had paid dearly for what they did to you, and that they could never threaten you again."

The breeze lifted Harry's fringe, making him appear a lot more carefree than he was. Than he'd ever been, Severus slowly realised. His whole life had been shadowed by the Dark Lord, one way or another.

"I . . . yeah, I know," said Harry, sighing. "I did appreciate it at the time, really. I liked knowing that they were dead, that they couldn't ever hurt anyone again."

"And too, I thought what you needed least was the pair of them spreading tales of what they'd done."

"Another one of my nightmares, yeah." Harry made an obvious effort to smile. "Don't mind me, Severus. I don't know why I'm not happier. I mean, things really are working themselves out. We've got the sex thing solved, and I've got more power than him, I bet, and well . . . all that remains, really, is to finish this. Finish him." Harry waved his wand as though considering the matter, but he didn't cast anything. "How do you think I do it, then? Probably it's time we discuss that, you think? And how do I find him?"

"If he runs true to form, he'll find you," said Severus dryly.

"That only happens around May or June each year. With the way he's still attacking Muggleborns every so often, I'd rather not wait."

"Why do you think he's launching so many attacks?"

"Dunno. He's gone mad? He's always been a sick, cowardly arsehole? Why do you think he's doing it?"

This was precisely the reason why Severus had wanted to continue spying. If he were in the Dark Lord's inner circle, still, he'd know what sort of strategy these attacks represented. Better yet, he'd know where the Dark Lord would attack next. He'd be able to position Harry to intercept him. He'd be best able to employ the strategy of surprise . . .

But all that was out of reach, and Severus was left with nothing more than guesses.

"He might be trying to draw you out." Severus nodded, the idea making sense to the more he thought on it. "Think of it from his point of view. You're an adult now, which would normally mean you're coming into your full powers in any case. And you've chosen to stay on at Hogwarts? Why? He must believe that it's in order to receive private tutelage from Albus Dumbledore, himself."

"Yeah, my job sort of makes it look that way, too. I mean, I didn't take some position that had become vacant. A new job was dreamed up just for me, right? It does sort of look like a cover story. Only he doesn't know that it's covering Cambiare Podentes."

"But he does know that your powers have been altered. He sensed that much early on, and summoned me to explain," added Severus.

"Which you didn't. Don't think I ever said thanks--"

"I held my tongue--and my thoughts in check--for my own sake as much as yours."

"Not one to blow your own horn, are you?"

Severus ignored that. Harry's tendency to see heroic motives in others wasn't likely to change. "We may never know for certain what has motivated the Dark Lord's actions in the past six months, but I would guess that after sensing the change in your magic, he withdrew to consider the matter. Prior to that, his minions had been allowed, or perhaps even instructed, to wreak havoc in Muggle areas, which would account for the Tower Bridge attack. For a time, however, the Dark Lord ceased all such activities and sought through other means to discover the cause of your 'great change.' No doubt he was hoping there would be a hex or curse that would negate it. When this quest ultimately proved unsuccessful, he began these attacks, thinking it best to draw you out before Albus had enough time to mold you into a wizard of his own great strengths."

Harry sat down on the hilltop and began to pull out tufts of grass as he spoke. "Well, that would explain why he seemed to do nothing at first and then so much lately. But you're right. I don't think we'll ever know it all. And what does it matter? All I want to know, really, is what I do now. Wait for him to draw me out? How would that work? Most of the time, we don't hear about his attacks until they're already over!"

Severus tried to let very little reaction to that show, but Harry knew him too well.

"Oh. Dear God . . . you don't mean . . ." Harry planted his palms on the ground, and leaned forward, though he waited to speak until Severus had sat down facing him. "The Order knows before it hits the Wizarding Wireless. Before the Aurors, even?"

"No, not before them, usually. We're getting our best information from Order Aurors, after all."

"But I haven't been told, not while any attacks are still going on!"

"Because there was nothing you could have done, except get yourself killed!"

"No wonder you didn't want me to join the Order!"

Severus gnashed his teeth. "You agreed with that decision."

"I agreed to it, you mean!" With that, Harry turned his face away.

"Harry." Severus waited until the other man looked at him again. "What would you have done, really? You're ready to face him, now. But you weren't, then."

"I'd . . . I'd've . . ."

"Relied on the same kind of sheer luck that's pulled you through before?" Severus shook his head. "You know I'm right."

"Yeah, yeah, I do know," said Harry, but he was scowling. "I guess what steams me most is the secrecy. You don't think I was mature enough to stay put? To wait until our powers had crossed and I stood a real chance?"

"That wasn't it." Severus lifted his shoulders. "I didn't see the point in tormenting you. It would have been nothing less than sheer cruelty to force you to agonize over each attack while it was in progress, while you were forced to sit idly by. All that would have accomplished would have been to push you into having sex before you were truly prepared to."

"A conversation we've had before," said Harry, very dryly. "Well, I still don't think you should have kept all that from me."

"I didn't. I wasn't informed, myself, of anything while it was ongoing."

"Because then, you couldn't tell me!"

"No. It was more because my own participation in the Order has been rather limited, lately. Or have you seen me rushing off to meetings, now and again?"

"Your job is helping me cross powers, not any of the other. Right."

"And only Albus knows it. Or rather, Albus and half the Weasleys," said Severus with a fair measure of disdain. Things were supposed to have remained a good deal more secret. "Everyone else believes, I suspect, that I've been sulking ever since Albus took me off spying duties."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "How did he explain doing that, though?"

Now it was Severus' turn to scowl. "When I asked him that, he said, Severus, my boy, you'd rather not know."

It wasn't funny, though Harry seemed to find it so. He chuckled. "I wonder what he said."

"There's no telling. Albus can be more devious than you realise."

Harry's lips turned down. "You think I don't know that? When I think of coming here as a first-year, so innocent . . . I'd never have believed that the headmaster would agree to see me enslaved to you. Or anyone. But that's a child's view of the world, I suppose. And I thought I'd stepped into a faerie tale, you know. Real life . . . it's a lot more complicated."

Severus didn't like the faerie tale allusion. He doubted that Harry saw himself as a helpless princess in a tower, but he probably did look at Severus as the frog the princess was forced to kiss. No matter that Severus had tried his best to make enslavement pleasant, or at the very least, palatable. It wasn't Harry's choice, and that meant that Severus would always remain a frog.

Well, at least he was a frog with a delectable arse, he thought. Harry did want him, on a sexual level if not any other. It would have to be enough.

"I'll ask Albus to alert us at once the next time the Dark Lord attacks."

"And that's it? I go to wherever he is, and kill him?" Harry rose to his feet. "Avada Kedavra, you think? Or should I try Reducio and make him the size of a dust mite, and then blast him with Reducto, or . . ."

"It would help if we knew why he appears to be immune to death." Severus stood up, too. "But we don't know. For the moment, I think the best thing we can do is improve your Apparition, as you mentioned. When the time is right, you need to be able to go wherever he is, without losing the advantage of surprise."

"Yeah, right. Good," said Harry. "Well, there's this big rock way out in the ocean . . . Dursleys dragged me out there when they were on the run from my Hogwarts' letters. I'll try to go out there, just to see if I can. But with twice-filled powers I bet it'll be no trouble at all."

"I expect you're right." Severus took Harry's arm. "But take your broom along, just in case. Unless you'd prefer to swim."

Harry smiled, then glanced down the hillside at the crater he'd created. It was now about a third filled with water. "I'm going to swim in that, someday. But for now, flying sounds better. Let's Apparate back to the castle grounds . . . oh, wait. You think I can Apparate right into the dungeons? Twice-filled powers are probably stronger than the wards!"

It was good to see Harry a little enthusiastic, finally. "I think you can, but you might damage the wards. Or the castle."

"Yeah, no more using crossed powers at full strength, not inside the castle. Apparating in would count. All right." Harry smiled. "But you should let me side-along you to the boundary. With crossed powers, to see how it works. And then I'll summon my broom out, and be on my way. Unless . . . you want to come along? To the rock, as well? Just in, you know, just in case?"

Harry hadn't yet realised the kind of power he had at his disposal. He knew, but that knowledge wasn't really a part of him, yet. "You're more than competent to defend yourself," said Severus, pressing his fingers into Harry's skin. "In fact, no one could possibly be more competent. You've achieved your goal."

"Not until he's dead." Harry's gaze snapped up. "You . . . er, you don't think distance matters at all? You think I can draw power off you, and use it, no matter where I am?"

Severus was certain of it. That was the point of Cambiare Podentes, after all. To provide the weaker wizard guaranteed power to defend himself, in any and all circumstances. Not that Harry was any sort of weaker wizard.

He never had been.

"I'll stay behind, so you can try a few spells to make certain, when you're at this rock," Severus advised. Harry had always responded better to practice than to theory. Well, except when it came to brewing. "And then you'll have no doubt that distance makes no difference."

"All right." Harry grinned. "Hang on--"

With no more warning that that, he Apparated them both to the edge of the castle's grounds. And he did it with crossed powers.

"Wow," said Harry, bouncing on his heels. "That was . . . wow. Almost better than sex, no offense. No more squishing through a tube . . . that was more like . . . er, a bullet shooting out of a gun? Amazing."

For Severus, the experience had resembled being shredded from the inside out, only without the pain one might expect. Thoroughly unpleasant, all the same. He didn't want to discourage Harry, though, so he said nothing.

Most likely, Harry could side-along anyone else without it being dreadful in the least. For Severus, though, who was losing power even as he was pulled from one location to another . . . well, he could endure it, but he'd certainly never choose to travel that way if he could avoid it.

"Accio Firebolt!" shouted Harry, sweeping his wand in a broad arc.

It came flying to him, but with no more velocity than during the Tournament. That was frankly a relief to Severus. Most men Harry's age would start indulging crossed powers a good deal more than they needed to, for the sheer novelty of it, if nothing else.

The thought must have shown on his face.

"I thought I'd better not," said Harry, shrugging. "Since you're looking a little green."

"I most certainly do not!"

"Yeah, you do." Harry clapped him on the shoulder as he tucked his broomstick inside his robe. "Maybe now you know how I feel about the Floo. You go have a lie-down--"

"I have student papers to mark, I'll have you know."

"Well, take it easy, either way. I'll see you later!"

"Wait--" Severus said, but it was too late. Harry had Apparated away. A brilliant burst of light flashed as he vanished with the force of a thunderclap. Severus gasped; that time, it had felt like his magic was being sucked out through the top of his skull. Rather disorienting, that.

But it only lasted a moment.

Severus shook his head. He'd wanted to caution Harry to go to this rock but nowhere else. It wouldn't do for him to be caught out alone. If he ran into Death Eaters, he'd probably reduce them to dust on the spot, and then the Dark Lord would hear of it, and--

But Harry hadn't waited for advice.

Severus started walking up to the castle. There was nothing else to do. He couldn't follow where Harry had gone.

He would just have to trust Harry to use good judgment.

And in the meantime, he would go to the headmaster's office and report on these developments.

His report, as it turned out, was somewhat redundant. Albus already knew about the new lake.