alisanne

Title: Late Nights
Author: alisanne
Pairing/Characters: Severus Snape/Harry Potter, Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger.
Word Count: 100 x 7
Rating: PG
Challenge: Written for snarry100/snarry100/snarry100's prompt# 628: Late Night.
Summary: People aren't speaking to Harry.
Part Fifty-Eight of the Wisdom Series (LJ/IJ/DW).
Beta(s): sevfan and emynn.
Disclaimer: The characters contained herein are not mine. No money is being made from this fiction, which is presented for entertainment purposes only.


~

Late Nights

~

“I’m not speaking to you,” yawned Ginny the following morning when Harry reported to MACUSA.

Harry sighed. “Spoke to your mum, did you?”

“More like she spoke to me. All night long. It was a late night, and not in the good way.”

“Sorry,” said Harry. “But everything was just getting too mad. Between the Malfoys and your mum and all the competing—”

“I understand.” Ginny hugged him. “But Penny wasn’t happy about her girlfriend having spent all night calming down her mum by Floo.”

“No, I wasn’t,” said Penelope.

Harry winced. “Sorry?”

Penelope smirked wickedly. “Oh, you will be.”

~

Groaning, Harry limped in, almost tripping over Azizi. “Bloody hell!” he wheezed as she scampered past him. “Stop!”

“It’s fine,” said Severus, walking in. “If we let her tire herself out now, she won’t keep us up all night tonight.”

Harry nodded. “Okay.”

Severus stared at him. “Are you all right?”

“Tired.” Harry limped towards him. “Penelope put me through my paces today. It’s apparently hex Harry day.”

“Oh?” Severus raised an eyebrow.

Harry sighed. “Molly gave Ginny a late night, which upset Penelope, so—”

“So she punished you?”

Collapsing into a chair, Harry said, “She called it training.”

“Indeed.”

~

“It wasn’t vindictive,” Harry insisted over dinner.

Severus snorted. “You look like Erumpents ran over you.”

“It was good practice.”

“For?”

Harry coughed. “Um…going undercover someday?”

“As what? An Erumpent trainer?”

Harry laughed. “No. And she was right, actually. I’ve gone soft. I could barely keep up with the other Aurors. I really need to get back in shape.”

“Soft?” Severus gave Harry a once-over. “I may be somewhat biased, but I don’t see a soft spot anywhere. Although,” he smirked, “I’m willing to make it a late night checking you over.”

Harry yawned. “Maybe after a nap?”

~

Sitting up, Harry stretched. He was alone, it was dark, and after checking the time and discovering it was late night, he moved toward the edge of the bed.

A mewl made him pause. “Azizi?”

Purring, she crawled into his lap.

Harry petted her. “You always make me feel better,” he whispered.
“Even when you’re temperamental. Why’s that?”

To his surprise, Azizi shifted, placing her paws on his chest, and staring into his eyes. ::Love::

Harry smiled. “I love you, too.”

Butting her head against his chest, Azizi curled back up in his lap.

And that’s how Severus found him.

~

“At least Azizi’s getting some love.”

Looking up, Harry smiled. “Sorry I fell asleep on you.”

Severus walked in carrying a phial. “I’ll forgive you since I’d planned a late night in my laboratory.”

“Oh?” Harry eyed the phial. “Doing some experimenting?”

“Just perfecting something.” Severus uncapped the phial and downed it, placing it on the bureau. His expression intent, he stalked towards Harry.

Azizi lifted her head, looked at Severus, and scrambled off Harry’s lap just in time for Severus to pounce on Harry, pressing him into the mattress.

“It’s like our Kneazle’s psychic,” laughed Harry.

Severus snorted. “Quite.”

~

Despite a late night with Severus, in which he showed Harry the latest improvements he’d made in his Impotence Potion, Harry was bouncy the next day. Even Ginny commented on it. “You must have got some. You’re positively cheerful! I thought you’d be sore.”

Harry smirked. “That’s what comes from living with a Potions master. There’s a potion for almost everything.”

“Does that mean I should have you battle the recruits again today?” teased Penelope.

Harry raised an eyebrow. “A potion for everything,” he repeated. “If you never want to safely eat or drink again, then—”

Penelope blanched. “Point taken.”

~

Late that night, Harry tried contacting Hermione. When Ron came to the Floo instead, he sighed. “Too soon?”

Glancing over his shoulder, Ron coughed. “No.”

Harry raised an eyebrow. “You sure?”

“Well—”

“Who is it, Ron?”

Ron looked panicked. “Er—” A moment later an unsmiling Hermione appeared. “Hello.”

Harry smiled. “Hey.”

They eyed each other until Hermione burst out, “Did I make you feel you had to elope?”

“Not at all! That was Molly and Narcissa.” Harry exhaled. “Then we decided it’d be romantic.” He shrugged. “We didn’t mean to exclude you.”

“Okay.” She smiled. “But prepare for Molly’s revenge.”

~

Continued in Privacy (LJ/IJ/DW).