Serving Penance • Snarry •

Chapter 6

Twenty-two days until the full moon

Harry discovered that he truly enjoyed learning when there were no essays, exams, or classmates. Severus helped him with his combat stance, demonstrated when best to dodge and when to counterattack, and he made some headway in non-verbal spells. He practised transfiguration in the afternoons after their lessons, as he remembered that Voldemort and Dumbledore used transfiguration during their duel at the ministry, and it gave the element of surprise. He'd learnt that Severus engraved an illegal rune into his wand to help him wield dark magic. So far, he'd flatly refused to teach him anything too dark, and they tried out the counter-curses on a dummy in one of the spare bedrooms.

Severus let him actually help in the potions laboratory. This progressed from drying magical wallpaper, to sharpening knives and grinding ingredients into dust under his watchful eye. In time, he brewed potions, mainly by himself, that would be useful for the house he'd bought—a solution to repel dirt on windows, and Genuine-Permanent-Weed-Killer.

Severus took it upon himself to brew useful household potions. It started with Doxycide that showed up in the cupboard under the sink next to the bleach and dishcloths. Then, Harry spotted a general supply in the bathroom cabinet that included hangover relief, tooth cavity protectant, Pepper-Up, painkilling potion, shaving foam, cough quencher, sandalwood aftershave, and more Sleekeazy's Hair Potion, along with a muscle relaxant, nutrition potions, anti-sickness potion, and teething and anti-fever potions that he labelled safe for babies. He must have brewed them for Teddy. He perched on the side of the bathtub and fingered the spidery handwriting on the labels of the last two. The familiar handwriting of his old friend, the Half-Blood Prince. It was at this moment he realised that he had fallen in love with Severus Snape.

It wasn't a tremendous revelation when he noticed that Severus was the most caring, brave, and intelligent man he'd ever met. He did not treat him as the boy who lived, but just Harry. Severus had come a long way from treating him as a famous child who needed to be taken down a peg and bullied because of the resemblance to his dad. He was a shit schoolteacher and did not sugarcoat the truth. Beyond that, he was utterly dependable. He never lied to Harry, coddled him, and so far was good at whatever Harry needed him to be. Harry considered himself lucky he got to see Severus nearly every day.

He was in trouble. Severus deserved to be loved by someone whole. An equal.

Harry's self-loathing had never been higher when he realised that no one would ever love him, least of all Severus Snape.

He wiped his face with his sleeve and made a list.

Pros: tall and sexy. Reliable, loyal, dependable. No longer treats me like shit. Good at Potions. Can look after himself. Does not read the Prophet. Has never asked for autograph. Not a gold digger. Can brew Wolfsbane. Fantastic legs.

Cons: Straight? In love with Mum? Would never see him again if he doesn't like me back. Can be impatient. Probably not very forgiving. Hates Dad, Sirius, Remus. Wanted me expelled from Hogwarts. Very private—could be bad at sharing feelings/problems. Arsehole moods in the morning. Wrong height for shower sex.

He groaned, buried his face in his hands, and tried to not picture Severus wet, lathered and naked.

Harry couldn't pinpoint precisely when he became off-limits wank material, but it really had to stop. He'd probably been alone too long, but he really craved Severus's presence. After a few days of Severus brewing into the afternoon, Harry made evening dinner to serve at six o'clock. At first, he told himself someone needed to take care of Snape, who still looked too thin. Then, because this actually got his arse in gear to cook himself tea, rather than rely on Kreacher or have a slice of toast and a Butterbeer.