Into The Corner.
Dec. 6th, 2012 06:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pekelekeTitle: Into The Corner.
Fandom: Harry potter (Snarry)
Characters: Harry Potter, Severus Snape.
Author: pekeleke.
Rating: G
Word count: 947.
Disclaimer: Don't own these characters. No money is being made out of this work.
A/N: Unbetaed. Written for the adventdrabbles 2012 Prompt 6: Frost.
This is the sixth part in my Seeking home series.
Summary: Severus' actions have backed him into a corner. Harry is determined to keep him there.
Into the corner.
Severus settled the last cauldron atop its rack and stood back. His classroom was now ready to endure another long day of student-perpetrated abuse and he wondered what new heights of thoughtless stupidity awaited him. There were only five school days left before the beginning of the Christmas vacation and he'd learned the hard way that this particular week usually attracted disaster. The children were unruly with excitement about their holiday plans. They ate candy non-stop and laughed too loudly in class, ignoring every safety rule he'd ever taught them.
Sighing, he walked towards the only window in the room and peered outside. The location of this particular window showed him a dreary picture of snow-covered ground and very little else, but the act of concentrating on the eerie whiteness of the still untrodden snow managed to soothe his unusually maudlin mood.
His fingertip traced the delicate patterns that the morning frost had drawn on the other side of the glass and a small, short-lived smile curved his lips. He felt as fragile as these swirls of frost. He was dreading the idea of facing Potter at the breakfast table after that... date... of theirs. He couldn't understand his own behaviour, couldn't fathom why he'd risked opening up to the gryffindor like that. From the moment he stole that small gingerbread door his life had become a disorienting roller-coaster ride that kept him unbalanced. He'd been exposed to more hope and uncertainty than he'd felt in the last decade, and he was woefully unprepared to deal with it. He wanted to try, though. He wanted to reach out, see if it was true that he could finally have... someone... of his own.
Their date hadn't gone as planned. Harry hadn't followed his cues and he'd felt cornered. He wanted to walk this path, but his mind urged him to be cautious. He wasn't good at social interactions, wasn't used to companionship, and had difficulty coping with the gryffindor's bold candour. Harry spoke so freely of loving him that he couldn't help but shiver with dread. He wouldn't be able to avoid whispering those terrifying words back. Harry would grow tired of his silence on the matter and demand a clear label to his feelings... He harboured a deep well of adoration towards the gryffindor within his heart, but he'd been cruelly pranked by men who claimed to love him before. He'd been rebuffed too many times to cast away his irrational fear of rejection. He was determined to fight it in this instance, but hadn't managed yet to gather enough strength to surrender himself completely...
A sudden rap on the door startled him and he turned towards it with a slight frown. It was too early to be a student and he couldn't imagine who might need him at this hour.
“Enter!”
Harry entered the room, carrying a thin box, and his throat closed with trepidation as he wondered what had prompted this visit. Had their date been worse than he'd thought? Had the gryffindor spent all night turning in his bed too, wondering what on Earth they were doing?...
“Good morning, Severus. Wow... I'm jealous. It's barely five thirty and you've already finished setting up. You are faster than I am. Tidier too. But you've always been ruthlessly organized.”
That rushed babbling unsettled him further. He looked around the room, trying to see it through his visitor's eyes, but couldn't find anything particularly remarkable about it. It was just his classroom. It always looked like this before the little miscreants messed it up.
“Organization is essential in potions. It's the crucial habit that every successful brewer must develop.”
Harry smiled at him fondly.
“You must be really nervous if you're lecturing me about potions.”
“Harry...”
The gryffindor's free hand lifted towards him. A calloused fingertip brushed a stray lock of hair out of his face, looping it behind his ear with delicate gentleness. His breath caught and his eyes widened. His heart froze with awkward acceptance and he didn't know what to say. He felt utterly exposed as that emerald gaze scanned his face with unmistakable affection.
“Did you spend all night worrying about us? There are giant circles under your eyes, Severus”
He was startled by the direct question. He didn't like discussing his fears with anyone and couldn't bring himself to acknowledge them out loud. Not yet.
“Why are you here?”
Harry's bold fingers rubbed the top of his ear with disarming gentleness.
“I was afraid you'll find some excuse to miss breakfast and spend all day over-thinking everything. I'm not stupid enough to ignore the stubbornness of your self-protective nature. I wanted you to remember what you feel when we're together”
“So you have no faith in me...”
“Oh! I have plenty of faith in you, Severus. I also have a healthy respect for your instinctive defences. I decided to start plying you with the flowers and chocolates I promised you. Here: I think I've got it right this time..”
Harry pulled away, thrusting the box he'd been carrying towards him. He picked it up, opened the lid and stared, wide-eyed, at the beautifully rendered gingerbread rose that rested within. It had been crafted out of crimson coloured layers and a fine smattering of powdered sugar edged the carefully molded petals, giving it the appearance of a real frost-kissed flower.
“Harry, this is... It's perfect.” He whispered with raw-toned intensity, unable to express how deeply this truly delicate gift had touched him. “I... thank you”
Harry smiled brightly, patted his hand gently and whispered into the silence:
“You are welcome...
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Date: 2012-12-07 04:23 am (UTC)Beautiful!
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Date: 2012-12-10 01:17 am (UTC)Thank you for this funny review. It made me giggle like mad.