Disclaimer: Nothing you recognize is mine. It mainly belongs to the goddess JKR or an awfully long list of people... (the MOSSes -Ministry Officers of State Security- are mine). If you like it, review and feed my soul. And since we don't need to hurt each other, if you don't like it, don't tell me ! Flamers will be adopted by my family (if you don't believe it's a threat... too bad for you !)

Miranda edited that chapter... May she be praised! (I know I'll ask Severus to deliver her Christmas present to thank her!)

"Remind me why we're doing this ?" Harry asks for the umpteenth time that day.

"Because they're *our* *friends* ?" Severus suggests once more.

Jules is quietly laughing on the sofa in the drawing room. The priest has taken a week off to prepare the ceremony and to have fun while Harry and Severus would fight off the silly, weird and strange suggestions of their respective best men and of all their friends.

Jules had already apparated in Oxford when the happy guests-to-be had started coming in with *ideas*. Even if he had some thorough and serious planning to do, Jules thought he'd never had more fun in his entire life!

Today is *the* day before the Blessing... which means that Albus, Remus, Hermione, the Malfoys and the Weasley children have planned two bachelor parties.

"Muggle Studies should be banned from the Hogwarts curriculum!" Harry whines.

"There would still be students from Muggle families who would know and share *that* knowledge," Severus exposes.

Harry only grumbles, while Jules holds his ribcage and does his best to laugh silently.

       

True, Harry and Severus have had some great time since their arrival in Oxford.

It turned out that both men were more than grateful for the extra calories the Piemontese lunch had brought into their systems, because once they had started making love, they barely stopped. When the evening started to get chilly, they decided to go back inside, but walking would take too long, so they apparated... in the kitchen - they were starting to get hungry. They discovered that Câly had left potatoes and a juicy guinea fowl filled with thyme in the oven. They also found two dressing gowns hanging on the peg behind the door.

"Did you do that a lot after buying the house or is she awfully gifted ?" Harry asked.

Severus stole a tender kiss and said, "You're the first wizard to come here."

That statement made Harry's heart melt, for many reasons: he was obviously special enough for Severus to be allowed in this house. That privilege was to be only his own; they had bound their destinies together, and the previous loneliness of his love and lover matched his own very much.

Severus got plates out and Harry fished for knives and forks in a drawer.

They seriously considered gulping their food down as fast as they could and then go back to making love, maybe in the bathroom, or in their bed... But... Hehe... Some guinea fowl juice ran on Harry's chin when he enthusiastically bit into a grilled drumstick. And he never had the opportunity to wipe it away with a napkin, because Severus's tongue lapped it. They looked at each other, pupils dilated with desire again. Severus put a Relocating Charm on the cutlery, glasses, plates and bottle of white Graves: they would still need their meal... afterwards... and he kept on licking Harry while divesting him and himself, letting their gowns drop on the floor.

Severus was still looking around the kitchen for some suitable lubricant when Harry surprised him and summoned the olive oil.

Harry snaked an arm around Severus's neck and he dragged him down with him. They had a smooth landing on the gowns; their tongues dueling and their hands caressing as much as they could. It even got better when Harry registered that he could put the bottle down, therefore freeing another hand! Yes!

"It feels like I'll never get enough of you!" Harry exclaimed, and he felt Severus chuckling against his throat.

"You didn't know love is a drug, did you ?" Severus announced, and Harry could feel in his voice that he was serious.

"What do you mean ?" Harry panted out between kisses and strokes.

"We're producing chemicals which urge us to keep on doing what we're doing... and..."

"And... What, Severus ?" Harry whispered in his lover's ear, sending shivers down his spine.

"You have everything to discover and I..."

"Severus ?"

"It's been so long since I last held anyone... And there were no feelings involved at the time. It was only physical release... It's as if I could melt in you. I... It sounds pitiful, but it's so powerful. I never suspected it could even be like that..." Severus said in a low voice.

That confession earned him a shower of light and passionate kisses everywhere Harry's lips could reach. Harry lied down on his back and invited his lover to invade him, which he did. Quite smoothly thanks to a proper dose of oil... and to their previous activities.

Harry just didn't know what he preferred in making love; it was just so different each time. He hoped it would still feel the same in a hundred years... or more. Gods and Goddesses, it finally was a blessing to be a wizard!

Severus was pumping in and out of his love and was about to stroke Harry's erection when the young wizard tried something new by encircling the Potions master's hips with his legs, providing a better angle: for Harry's prostate and for Severus who could thus dive deeper and who had Harry's shaft brushing against his stomach.

Harry felt like fainting.

Severus had never experienced so much intensity.

Then, something truly magic happened.

Severus was caressing Harry's chest and the green-eyed man decided to stroke that hand and maybe intertwine their fingers...

Their wedding-bands touched and, then, it beat all the spells in the world, or even all the combinations of all the spells in the world: nothing existed but them and their love. There they are one and safe and happy and everything is fine... It engendered a cosmic orgasm through pure love.

For one second, both swooned.

Harry's head hit the floor and Severus felt it was wrong to collapse on Harry so they were awake almost instantly, still connected, still shaking. Severus stroke Harry's head where it collided onto the tiles even before he thought of slipping out of his lover's body, but he couldn't have at the time, for Harry's legs were locked in a deadly grip.

All coherent language was almost gone from them, even if Harry managed some neologic onomatopoeias when Severus gently disconnected their bodies and settled beside him.

Severus didn't want to move, even if they were on the kitchen floor. He summoned their plates and they ate again, badly needing it.

When they had finally cleaned the carcass of the poor fowl Harry's brain cells were back on line.

"What happened, Severus ? Was it one of your spells ?"

"It was *not* a spell. I think it was... us... Us and our bond and those rings," Severus declared.

Harry grinned like any good Cheshire-Cat...

They worked on repeating the experience and finally managed to understand exactly what they had to do to reproduce the feeling.

They understood that it was *not* a good thing to do in the bathtub, since it badly overflowed and Severus nearly drowned under Harry when they were once again overwhelmed with their love during orgasm... Not that Harry or even Severus objected to Muggle CPR, mind you...

*Under* the eiderdown was fine, but *on* it had not been such a good idea since it exploded and Severus's concern no longer was not to eat his hair, but to avoid spitting feathers.

The next day, they managed, gods know how, to get dressed and go out and phone Jules. Their friend laughed, telling them he already knew... Even before he had read the news in the Daily Prophet that very morning, since Câly had delivered the announcement, following Severus's orders.

Jules had already given some thought to the blessing ceremony, and he had recommended it to take place on August 15th. He would even take some time off to plan all the details with them.

Then Albus arrived at tea-time and it was hell for Harry and Severus to keep their hands off each other. Yet, he had very good news and first explained what occurred after Severus and Harry had left the Leaky Cauldron...

       

When Albus and Minerva got out of their room they ran into a crying Percy; he was on his way out, but he took time to tell them what had happened. While Minerva worked on cheering him up, Albus woke up Arthur who was still snoring in his pillow; he charmed him out of hangover and exposed the situation. Arthur knew his wife was not perfect, and he simply didn't know what to do in the situation. Especially since *he* remembered signing the document Draco had produced the night before and he knew *that* would piss Molly even more. Finally, Albus got Arthur's blessing to *deal* with her.

As if on cue, Molly entered the room and Albus stunned her and went out to see what was going on. His Minerva was chatting with Percy in the room they had occupied and he went downstairs, only to find Sirius barely back on his feet. Albus was pretty angry, which is never a good sign in people who are basically gentle: he stunned Sirius as well and got the rest of the story from Tom.

Of course, Albus ordered his breakfast, and he called Minerva and Arthur down. Mr. Weasley was making Percy promise he'd send an owl to give his new address, but Albus stopped the young man from going, hinting he might have a solution. But his *solution* requested the assistance of his brothers, sister and friends to help him carry out his evil master plan. Percy loved his life and this prospect of radical change didn't enchant him, so he stayed...

When the others came back their breakfast was just over, and Albus exposed his idea. They all agreed to join in...

       

"So ? What happened ? What did you do ?" Harry asked eagerly.

Severus took the left hand of his love and said, "Don't you know by now that he's the king of teasing ?"

Harry grumpfed (it's not a verb, but it suits the sound Harry made) and Albus chuckled...

       

A particular Memory Spell was put on Molly so she would never be able to understand what "gay" or "lesbian" could possibly mean, therefore she would not judge. Albus made her forget what occurred at breakfast and even added a word for Draco, who shortly thereafter was welcomed into the family.

Sirius was another story...

They were trying to figure out how to deal with him and Hermione was rather harsh, when Hagrid and Remus came into the pub back from their far away mission. They were told what Sirius had said and done; Hagrid growled dangerously, but it was a mere trifle compared with Remus's reaction. He *ordered* Albus to free Sirius, and then he took his old friend by his collar to the backyard. The inside of the pub was silent, every witness trying to hear something, anything... After some time, Remus and Sirius came back in. Remus still looked furious, which brought his wolf-side out, and Sirius was whiter than a clean napkin. Albus didn't know what Remus told "Padfoot", but it *was* efficient.

Sirius left the pub without a word and Hagrid and Remus meant to do some catch-up when Hermione came with a plan, which as she said, could be a first gift for Severus and Harry. It was totally illegal, but everybody agreed...

       

Albus took a small bundle of parchments out of his sleeve and placed it on the floor before giving it back its original size. In that unholy hour after the last battle, they had raided the Archives at the Ministry and had stolen each and every document on Severus. They had met no one and they had tampered with the wards that would have given them away. Fighting against Death Eaters had had one positive effect: they could always recycle in crime! With the Dark Mark gone from his arm, and all his former companions in their graves, all Severus had to do was destroy the parchments and his slate would be clean. Albus insisted on the fact that their favourite Auror had pointed out that it was merely a first gift.

Albus saw that the couple was deeply embarrassed and he changed the subject to Harry's next appointment.

When Albus disapparated grinning because he was to be Severus's "best man", Harry slipped into his love's arms and, both looking at the heap of parchments, they thought that if all their prior years of suffering had brought them together and if they had such good and extraordinary friends, those years were worth it. Definitely.

"When do you want to destroy those parchments ?" Harry finally asked, still in his lover's arms.

"Do you want to read them first ?" Severus offered.

Harry looked deep into the dark eyes of the man he loved, took his wand out of his sleeve and shook his head declaring, "No. There's nothing I'm interested in in those files."

Severus took his wand as well and they annihilated the dossiers.

Then they decided it was time to send Hedwig to the one who, they hoped, would be Harry's best man...

Some owls found their way to the Snape-Potter household. Some with letters of thanks, some with cards of congratulations, and a few with Howlers as well. Clearly being famous and the saviour of the world was not enough for some people to forget or forgive the "*and* attached to a man" part.

One of those infamous pieces of parchments came in when Fred and George were visiting. They were having tea in the garden when it was dropped at Severus's feet. Harry had learnt to master his reactions, especially with witnesses around, but he was deeply annoyed by the limits of some wizards and witches. Harry was about to burn the thing when the twins grinned a truly evil grin.

"Oh, oh..." Severus and Harry said.

"Can we give you an extra gift ?" the twins asked.

The couple nodded.

"Hedwig!" one of the twins called. Harry's owl flew into the garden.

The twins put a spell on the Howler, articulating it distinctly so that Harry and Severus could put it on in their turn, were more Howlers to come. It would allow Hedwig to locate the person who had sent it, it was now looking like a normal letter and when the sender would open it, the effects of the Howler would be multiplied. The twins were confident that the news of the returning Howlers would spread fast enough and no one would pester Severus and Harry about it since it would not be much welcome to admit having sent a Howler to them.

Severus complimented them on their strategy and the twins made him remark that with the mother they had, they had to be cunning, even by Gryffindor standards.

"How is your mother these days ?" Harry wondered.

"Transformed..." one of the twins said, while the other was laughing.

"Did Albus... ?" Severus didn't know how he could end his sentence, 'did Albus altered her beyond recognition' sounded utterly awkward.

Yet, the twin that wasn't laughing yet got the general idea of Severus's question and said, "She's *just* not acknowledging any homosexual reference... And we've tried! I even bet you could do it in front of her and she wouldn't notice."

"We're not looking for an audience," Harry said, making Severus chuckle in his cup.

"You don't know what you're missing!" the speaking twin declared.

"We'll let you know when we're interested." Severus announced, brushing his ankle against Harry's to let him know that, yes, he was only teasing the Weasley twins.

The twins were speechless. And hopeful... with Snape, they never knew...

On their way out, they asked if the Malfoys and the Weasley-Granger sandwich could visit on the following day. The invitation was happily issued, but Severus and Harry could not guess that their friends had become so interested in Muggle customs and that they would suggest bachelor parties on August 14th.

The twins, Ron, and Albus were particularly enthusiastic.

They made teams and started planning everything.

The twins were shared: Fred was won by Albus's team who already had Hagrid, Hermione and, of course, Ron and Charlie. George went with Ginny, Draco, Bill and Minerva who were in Remus's team, since the werewolf had accepted to be Harry's best man. To add some spice, Albus had offered to trade grooms. Severus would go out with Remus and Harry with Albus...

       

"Sure you don't want to come with us, Jules ?" Harry offers again.

Fighting to master his laughter spasms, Jules shakes his head and says, "I have to check my blessing once more and you don't need a priest around telling you to behave..."

"I can so picture you doing that!" Harry exclaims.

The three men laugh.

The doorbell rings: Albus and Remus must be here and Harry and Severus don't know where they're going. Or what they'll do...

"Showtime!" Jules declares.

Severus goes downstairs, followed by Harry, who turns around and whispers, "Thank you," to Jules.

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