Severus' taste flooded his mouth. Harry remembered it from last night. Not sour and nasty as he would have thought if he'd speculated about such things at all. Severus' mouth had a remarkably clean and fresh taste to it, like perfectly ripe grapes.
As that flavour rocked his system, he was once again hit with the strangeness of what he was doing. He was kissing Severus Snape. Even in a life as unusual as his, this was a fairly weird development.
Severus approached the kiss in an oddly gentle manner, his face soft with something that looked like tentative wonder. Last night, Severus had just covered his mouth and kissed with all his might, taking him by storm. It was different tonight, shyer. The hands that settled on his back were light. They didn't insist on his participation, but rather asked for it.
Shy wasn't a quality Harry associated with Severus Snape. If pressed, he would have said his former teacher was reserved, not shy. But, then, he never would have imagined Severus having the sensitivity to be the kind of indulgent lover he'd shown himself to be last night. He couldn't remember the last time a partner had been so intent on pleasing him.
He wanted to return that favour tonight. He wanted to get to know more about the man Severus kept hidden behind his tight control. He wanted to take that man to the heights of pleasure and show Severus how desirable a lover he was, so that he would never again think that the only reason someone would sleep with him was power or money.
Unlocking his fingers, Harry buried them in the long black hair he'd been staring at since he entered the room. The freshly washed strands slid between his fingers like raw silk, lush and totally touchable. The herbal scent of the shampoo Severus had used was heavy in the close air.
This was the first time Harry had been given the opportunity to sample Severus' actual scent. Last night the man had smelt of potions, as he had all the years he'd known him. The smell had been specific last night – Cold Ease, which had a strong aroma of eucalyptus. Sometimes the smell was recognizable like that and not off-putting, but other times Severus could smell quite unpleasant, depending upon the odours trapped in his hair and clothes.
Harry breathed in the warm, living fragrance – soap, shampoo, all things clean and fresh, with an underlying trace of that arousing musk he'd encountered last night when he'd buried his face in Severus' crotch. It was a smell he could get used to. Just like he could get used to this kiss. Hell, forget about getting used to it. He could get addicted to this, might already be, for all he knew.
The instant his tongue poked out to explore, Severus sucked it in. As their lips kneaded at each other, Harry pressed his tongue against the soft velvet of Severus', loving the taste and the dark heat of the other man's mouth. He remembered that mouth going down on him, and went hard at the imagery.
Harry only pulled back when his senses began to swim from lack of oxygen.
It was then that that awkward moment arrived, the one that occurred whenever two men who were still strangers to each other made love. Harry looked up at Severus, wondering how he wanted to play this. Last night, he'd allowed Severus to call the shots after their first kiss, as much from shock as from anything else, but tonight he wanted to assert himself a little more. He didn't know how Severus would feel about that. The one thing that all the years he'd known this man had taught him was that Snape had control issues.
Harry considered broaching the topic with words, but they seemed to work better without them. Since his companion was not a silent sufferer, he reckoned he'd hear right away if he did anything of which Severus didn't approve.
Running his hands over the rough green wool of Severus' dressing gown, Harry skimmed them down the slender chest to where the dressing gown was belted closed. Feeling those dark eyes watching his every move, Harry slowly undid the belt and then eased the garment off Severus' shoulders. Severus didn't even blink in protest as it dropped to the floor at their feet.
Harry made short work of the buttons of Severus' shirt and then slid it off him to join the robe on the floor. He smiled at the revelation of a crisp white undershirt. The man's clothing was as layered as his personality, he realized as he vanished the undershirt with a thought.
Severus started at that. "Where . . . ?"
Harry sobered as he realized how impatient he was being. To his intense relief, Severus hadn't bolted at the instantaneous magic. He was lucky Severus was such a strong wizard in his own right. Raw power didn't seem to frighten him. Many times a little slip like the one he'd just made had been enough to totally ruin the mood and send his would-be lover running for the door.
Feeling very self-conscious, Harry answered Severus' question, "My bathroom hamper, probably. That's where everything usually ends up. I'll return it tomorrow."
Severus nodded and ran his knuckles over Harry's cheek in an oddly endearing manner.
Harry shivered in response. His face felt hot as Severus' rough skin passed over his cheek, almost as if the blood below the surface were warming to Severus' touch.
This was the man he and his peers had considered repulsive their entire lives? Harry couldn't recall the last time he'd had so tender a touch.
His hungry gaze moved down to the flesh he'd just revealed. Severus was so much taller than him that his chest was slightly below Harry's eye level. Under other circumstances he might have been intimidated by their height difference, but he was enjoying this too much to worry about trivialities.
Looking at his companion's chest, Harry felt the same surprise that he had last night. For some reason, he'd expected Severus to be smooth, maybe because of how pale the flesh he was accustomed to seeing was. But the slender chest revealed by the undershirt's disappearance had a healthy dusting of dark hair, thickest in the centre, tapering artfully out over Severus' nipples and trailing down his middle in a faint, inverted arrow that disappeared below the waistband of his trousers.
As his gaze followed that tantalizing trail down, Harry saw the front of Severus' trousers expand.
"Mmmm, nice," Harry approved, referring as much to what was happening below the trousers as to the naked chest. He leant forward to rub his cheek against the tempting skin on display. His glasses got in the way, of course, so he pulled them off and levitated them over to the nearest end table. As soon as they were safely stored, he returned to his earlier pursuit.
Gods, but he loved how Severus' chest felt against his face. The black hairs were soft as kitten fur beneath his cheek. He felt the right nipple go hard as he passed over the nub, so he turned his face into it and sucked.
Severus' hands clutched his shoulders tight. He wobbled as if his knees had just gone weak.
Damn, but the man was responsive. Harry could tell how hard Severus was struggling to keep his dignity, but his body seemed to be working against him. As Harry increased his sucking, Severus released a breathy gasp.
From their encounter last night, he knew that Severus tried to stay silent during sex. He didn't know what that was about. Where he came from, noise was a sign of enjoyment, but Severus acted as though he expected the slightest revelation of his pleasure or any other indication of his humanity to be used against him. For all he knew, it might have been in the past. The closer he got to Severus, the more he realized that the man was carrying a crippling amount of emotional pain. His friend might be a born survivor, but Severus hadn't emerged from his ordeals unscathed.
A few months ago, Harry wouldn't have cared about Severus' misery. He would have reckoned it was the nasty bastard's due for being such an absolute horror to everyone, but now . . . now he wanted to make things better for him, the same way he'd want to ease Ron or Hermione's burden if they had a problem. He was realist enough to know that Severus' pride would never allow Harry to openly help him, but maybe he could make things a little better by simply letting Severus know that he wasn't so alone, that there was someone who did care about him.
Harry could hear the sneer Severus would give at that idea echoing through his mind. But since his companion would have had exactly the same reaction two days ago to what they were doing now, he chose to ignore his common sense and keep trying. The last six weeks had brought them places they'd never imagined. Merlin knew where they'd end up if they kept on going like this.
They ended up on their knees with their fronts pressed tight together as they practiced that tongue tango at which they were getting so good. One second, he'd been sucking Severus' nipple and the next both their knees seemed to simultaneously liquidize and they slid to the rug, ending up locked in this amazing kiss.
Severus' hands scrambled at Harry's waist, trying to remove his black jumper.
Harry belatedly realized how scratchy the wool must be against Severus' bare chest. Without breaking the kiss or coming up for air, he charmed his jumper and the tee shirt beneath it to slither off his shoulders. They landed on the floor to their left, next to Severus' green robe.
It was a testament to how caught up Severus was in what they were doing that he didn't comment on the wordless clothing removal spell.
After a lovely interlude, Severus withdrew from the kiss to re-familiarize himself with Harry's chest.
Harry shivered as those long fingers stroked over his ribs. Apparently, his body was just as excited by Severus' as Severus' was by his. That gentle touch shook right through him.
Recognizing how close they were to meltdown, Harry took quick stock of their surroundings. They were safely out of the hearth's range, but that rug was going to be hell on their skin when they couldn't stay vertical any longer.
He'd had enough rug burns to last him a lifetime. Not particularly desiring any more if he could avoid them, Harry silently summoned the green velvet seat cushions and silver throw pillows off the nearby sofa.
His hope that Severus would be too involved again to notice proved futile. The man never missed a thing. Severus' mouth left Harry's chest. His dark eyes followed the cushions and pillows' descent.
Harry held his breath, waiting. He couldn't read the expression on that flushed, angular face. But he'd done enough spell-less magic tonight to freak out even the staunchest of wizards.
"Impressive," Severus said after a pause that left Harry's stomach tied in knots. "Do you need words or wand at all?"
The palm that stroked down his chest felt reassuring. Put on the spot, Harry stared into those bottomless black eyes, wishing he could read them. He considered a lie, then an evasion, but ended up giving Severus the truth. "No." When that hand kept petting him and those eyes didn't retreat in fear, he asked, "Doesn't it bother you?"
"Would it bother you if it didn't?" Severus questioned in turn, with a meaningful arch of his left eyebrow that felt like a challenge.
At first, Harry didn't get it, but then he saw how fast Severus was breathing and understanding hit. "You mean that you . . . ?"
His own breathing sped up at the suggestion.
"A man doesn't dabble in the Dark Arts or sell his soul to a dark lord if he fears power, Potter," Severus said, and then continued in a subdued, gruff tone, "What else can you do?"
Harry froze, not quite believing what he was hearing. Severus seemed excited by what he'd done. Without exception, every man he'd been with had sooner or later run in fear at these casual revelations of his capabilities, and Severus was asking for more?
A tremor shuddered through his insides at this unexpected turn. Swallowing around his dry mouth, Harry enquired as evenly as he could, "Are you asking for a demonstration?"
All Harry could hear in the silence was the pounding of his own heart.
"If you're willing to give one," Severus replied with equal care, holding his gaze, letting him read his arousal.
"All right, then," Harry agreed. He thought for a moment, concentrated, and manifested his will.
The six wall sconces all simultaneously gutted, leaving only the hearth flame lighting the now dim room. With the next breath, dozens of floating candles popped into existence, filling the sitting room with a soft, flickering glow.
He never uttered a word or took his hands off Severus.
Severus eyed the candles.
Harry could sense that the other man was impressed, but Severus gave a haughty sniff, and said, "Showy. Have you nothing more personal or imaginative in your bag of tricks?"
What the . . . ? By Merlin's staff, Severus really wasn't afraid!
"Precisely what are you asking for?" Harry whispered, beginning to shake. But not in fear. He was so accustomed to having to hide these abilities that being asked to demonstrate them felt almost . . . erotic. Well, the situation was erotic, of course, but the fact that someone would ask him to expose his abilities instead of hide them was liberating in a way he'd never dreamed. It was like that time in sixth year when Justin had said 'I'll show you mine, if you show me yours' and turned his entire world upside down.
"Use your imagination, Potter. Show me a good time. Let me feel your power," Severus all but ordered.
What little brain Harry had left seemed to melt. Severus wanted a 'personal and imaginative' exhibition of his freaky powers in a sexual encounter? Severus wanted to feel his power?
Harry had dreamed about finding someone who wouldn't be frightened of his talents. In some of his wilder fantasies, he'd imagined a partner who would allow him this kind of freedom, only . . . that was fantasy. You didn't get that in the real world, and even if you did . . . this was only their second time together. He could hardly call either of their experiences a typical date. He barely knew Severus socially, let alone as a lover. He had no idea what the man would want or what would repulse him.
Looking up into those glimmering black eyes, Harry saw only pure, Slytherin dare. Severus had next to no fear. Calming in the face of that superior, arrogant challenge, he took a step back from his own panic.
If things weren't to his liking, Severus would say so. And even if he didn't, Harry couldn't really picture Severus running to the Headmistress to complain that he'd bitten off more than he could chew in a sexual encounter. Whatever happened, he could trust Severus to keep it between them.
