Unforgivable Promises (Snarry story)

Chapter 30

Harry drifted up from sleep slowly. As his senses took over from his dreams he was first aware of Severus's slow breathing not far from him. The feeling of contentment he had been enjoying slipped quickly into excitement as his memories of last night returned. The last thing he remembered of the evening was falling asleep with an arm draped across Severus's bare chest. At some point during the night, both of them must have shifted—Harry to one side of the bed, Severus to the other. Grabbing his wand and glasses from the table beside him, he pulled the covers up over his head and cast lumos to check the time on his watch. He wanted nothing more than to curl up next to Severus, but prudence won out.

Sitting up slowly to avoid waking up the other man, Harry slipped out of bed, grabbing his pile of clothes along the way, and stepped quietly through the doorway into the living area. After dressing in the dark, he cast another light spell in order to leave a short note.

"Woke up at half-four," he wrote. "Thought it best to get back before everyone was up. See you later, and tonight I hope." He struggled with how to sign in. "Love, Harry" didn't feel right. He'd never said it to the man; it felt wrong signing it on such a simple note. And did he love Severus? Just "Harry" seemed silly. Who else would have written it? In the end, he left it unsigned. It would not be much of a mystery anyway.

Checking the map he had retrieved from Severus, Harry noted that the castle had not yet stirred for the morning, and he took his time getting back to Gryffindor Tower. The question of love flitted through his mind. Despite the time he had spent thinking about what Severus meant to him, Harry had not really thought about it in terms of love. He worried he had too little to compare it to. This was not how he felt about Ron or Hermione, or even Sirius, but that was hardly a surprise. He had certainly never thought of doing with Ron or Sirius what he had just done with Severus. That thought made his mind turn to the memories of the past evening.

He was surprised, and pleased, at how quickly he had gotten past his own uncertainty and hesitation. Severus had been gentle and caring, but that was no surprise to Harry. But he had been worried that everything would be awkward the first time. It had been at first. Trusting Severus completely, though, Harry had felt bold enough to take some initiative and knew that as great as it had been, it would only get better.

Back in the tower, Harry slipped quietly into bed. He had become an expert on sneaking back into his own room. His roommates would know he had been out late, but he doubted any of them would realize just how late at night, or early in the morning, it was when he returned.

Sleep escaped him, though. His night with Severus was not the only thing on his mind, and the situation with Dean still troubled him. Once Harry had been able to shed some light on the nature of the magic on Dean, Dumbledore had succeeded on dispelling it. At least it was removed as far as anyone could tell. But it was clear that Voldemort would try again. Harry knew Dumbledore and the teachers were worried about the possibility that, outside of the Headmaster's office, the spell would work. Hestia Jones had suggested a complete ban on anyone leaving or entering Hogwarts in order to prevent Voldemort from getting the spell on someone else. But that was a temporary solution at best. They could not reasonably keep up the restriction past the end of the term. Either Voldemort would quietly abduct another student, or some misguided would-be Death Eater would volunteer. In fact, Harry suspected that those followers of Voldemort's with children in Hogwarts were vying for the chance to offer their son or daughter up as a sacrifice.

What little time he had was running out. He did not even have a clear plan on what he would do if Voldemort managed to force a confrontation. A piece was still missing. His thoughts chased each other until finally the sun stepped over the window sill and his roommates began to stir.

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"You're back, then?" Seamus called to Harry as he got out of bed, giving him a knowing look. "Spent the night under Orion's Belt in the Astronomy Tower?"