I'm way too proud of this scene.
Apr. 10th, 2009 02:37 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
So you get to see it, even without a good proofing.
“This sounds like it’s going to turn into a double-triple-agent sort of thing.”
Harry chuckles. “You’ve heard these stories before.”
“I read a lot of spy novels,” Dresden says. “Just don’t tell me you were the damsel.”
“I was the hero,” Harry says with a smile. “A quick-tempered, headfirst into the shallow end kind of hero, but a hero. Severus was, like you guessed, the double-triple crosser.”
“All right,” Dresden says, taking another drink of his beer. “How’d you go from hero and supposed-villain to…whatever you define your relationship as now?”
“Whiskey, and the state of the relationship is why I was trying to find him.”
“Because he vanished.”
“A day after I told him I loved him,” Harry confirms. “Severus doesn’t take emotions well.”
“Unless it’s anger.”
“Or disdain,” Harry agrees. “And he does well with annoyance.”
“Yeah, I noticed that one.” Dresden leans his arms on the table. “You really think he left because you dropped the L-bomb?”
“No.” Harry pushes up his sleeve and shows Dresden the scar on his arm. “He left because I jumped in front of him and got this. And he thinks it’s his fault.”
“Why’d you jump in front of him?” Dresden grins when Harry goes quiet. “Love makes you stupid.”
“A little. Although Severus would point out I was stupid to begin with.” Harry sips his beer and looks at his arm. “He was finishing a potion. We thought we were in the clear, and there was an ambush. There were other people there, but I was the closest. The spell would have hit Severus straight on, and it would have ruined the potion.”
“You jumped.”
“Yes,” Harry admits. “And then my arm tried to rot off.”
“Gross,” Dresden says cheerfully.
“And Severus decided it was his fault. Because he’s apparently supposed to have eyes in the back of his head and not rely on the six people who were there to be the eyes in the back of his head.”
“So he’s here running a book store, and you’ve been tracking him for…?”
“Three years,” Harry supplies. “I thought he’d come back on his own. And then I remembered that I was thinking about Severus.”
“Wait a minute,” Dresden thinks for a second, running some quick mental math. “How old are you?”
“Twenty-nine.”
“War’s been over twelve years, right?”
“Yes.”
“Which means you were—”
“Seventeen,” Harry supplies. He raises his eyebrows when Dresden takes a long pull of his beer. “Well?”
“Nothing,” Dresden says and stares into his beer bottle.
“Uh-huh,” Harry grins. “I know that look. That’s the ‘wow, seventeen is young and wasn’t he still the guy’s student’ look.”
“No, it’s not that look. It’s the close cousin to that look.” Dresden grimaces when Harry raises his eyebrows. “It’s more a, ‘wow did he have to be named ‘Harry’ too’ look.”
“This sounds like it’s going to turn into a double-triple-agent sort of thing.”
Harry chuckles. “You’ve heard these stories before.”
“I read a lot of spy novels,” Dresden says. “Just don’t tell me you were the damsel.”
“I was the hero,” Harry says with a smile. “A quick-tempered, headfirst into the shallow end kind of hero, but a hero. Severus was, like you guessed, the double-triple crosser.”
“All right,” Dresden says, taking another drink of his beer. “How’d you go from hero and supposed-villain to…whatever you define your relationship as now?”
“Whiskey, and the state of the relationship is why I was trying to find him.”
“Because he vanished.”
“A day after I told him I loved him,” Harry confirms. “Severus doesn’t take emotions well.”
“Unless it’s anger.”
“Or disdain,” Harry agrees. “And he does well with annoyance.”
“Yeah, I noticed that one.” Dresden leans his arms on the table. “You really think he left because you dropped the L-bomb?”
“No.” Harry pushes up his sleeve and shows Dresden the scar on his arm. “He left because I jumped in front of him and got this. And he thinks it’s his fault.”
“Why’d you jump in front of him?” Dresden grins when Harry goes quiet. “Love makes you stupid.”
“A little. Although Severus would point out I was stupid to begin with.” Harry sips his beer and looks at his arm. “He was finishing a potion. We thought we were in the clear, and there was an ambush. There were other people there, but I was the closest. The spell would have hit Severus straight on, and it would have ruined the potion.”
“You jumped.”
“Yes,” Harry admits. “And then my arm tried to rot off.”
“Gross,” Dresden says cheerfully.
“And Severus decided it was his fault. Because he’s apparently supposed to have eyes in the back of his head and not rely on the six people who were there to be the eyes in the back of his head.”
“So he’s here running a book store, and you’ve been tracking him for…?”
“Three years,” Harry supplies. “I thought he’d come back on his own. And then I remembered that I was thinking about Severus.”
“Wait a minute,” Dresden thinks for a second, running some quick mental math. “How old are you?”
“Twenty-nine.”
“War’s been over twelve years, right?”
“Yes.”
“Which means you were—”
“Seventeen,” Harry supplies. He raises his eyebrows when Dresden takes a long pull of his beer. “Well?”
“Nothing,” Dresden says and stares into his beer bottle.
“Uh-huh,” Harry grins. “I know that look. That’s the ‘wow, seventeen is young and wasn’t he still the guy’s student’ look.”
“No, it’s not that look. It’s the close cousin to that look.” Dresden grimaces when Harry raises his eyebrows. “It’s more a, ‘wow did he have to be named ‘Harry’ too’ look.”