In Need

CHAPTER 23

NOTES:

Helloooo my dear readers!

First of all, I'm sorry it's taken two weeks for this to come out. And thank you so much for being so patient with me and this story.

Lately, life has been crazy, and most importantly, I wasn't happy with the chapter. As you will see, it features a lot of dialogue and I'm not a natural at it, so it took me a while to complete the chapter. Also, I had to sit down and plan the rest of the story (we're nearing the end!) and I needed to make sure I was satisfied with the direction it was taking.

So, without further delay, here's chapter 23!

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After dinner, Severus went back to his office to finish grading papers while Harry had a bit of an after-dinner conversation with Hagrid and Minerva. Harry had said he'd rather wait until curfew, so he had a bit of time to spare before that. And he was also mentally preparing for what he was about to face.

He was a bit apprehensive at the thought of going back to the Shrieking Shack, but he knew he had to. He'd spent his life hiding his feelings, locking them in a place where nobody, especially not Albus or the Dark Lord, would get in. There were memories and fears that had been hidden away for decades, giving him the illusion that he had them under control.

But of course, he'd learnt something through his hard life and the last months he'd been sharing with Harry. And that was that running away from the fears and memories didn't make them disappear. Quite the opposite, he didn't have his feelings under control, and in fact, they exploded in the worst possible circumstances. Rosie's words resonated with truth, not only for Harry but for Severus himself, if he ever wanted to move on.

A soft knock called his attention. A bearded face with green, emerald eyes and long, wild hair peeked inside.

Severus's lips curled into a smile almost without him realizing it, and his eyes ran through the man that appeared through his opened door. Harry's hair had grown quite a bit over the last few months, it was already neck-length. Due to the way it grew, it didn't cascade around his face like Severus's, but fell in uneven waves, and looked rather messy.

But suddenly, Severus felt his throat dry and had to break the eye contact. He felt heat in his face and a prickling along the back of his neck as he swallowed.

He had realized before, of course – he was observant by nature. But for a reason he couldn't quite put his finger on, it was as if he was seeing Harry for the first time. And Merlin, he was handsome! The spectacles hid the green emerald eyes, but they gave him an air of intellectualism that was tremendously attractive. The beard made him appear older, and Severus admired the absolute beauty he exuded, as he walked across his office towards him.

"Hey," he said as he walked to his desk, "have you finished?"

Severus cleared his throat and dropped his eyes to the parchment in front of him. His years as a spy gave him an edge to pretend, to hide his true feelings, when in fact he felt a knot inside him. The heat in his cheeks intensified and he cleared his throat.

When he looked down at the parchment, he saw he'd stained it with ink on one side. His eyes had been so focused on Harry that he hadn't seen he had been hovering the quill full of red ink over the parchment. He murmured a quiet Tergeo to get rid of the stain, his voice sounding a bit strangled.

"Two minutes," he said before he tried to refocus his attention on the words of the parchment.

But even when he wasn't looking, he was aware of Harry's eyes on him. He stood next to the fireplace and pretended to be interested in the jars full of specimens and disgusting ingredients, but he could feel his gaze. He repressed the urge to shake his head as he added the last comments to the paper. Then, he put the quill back to its place and the parchment on the top of the pile on the desk.