Comfort

The pressure caused by his choker against his Adam's apple would be quite uncomfortable if he had not been used to it. Indeed, the choker had become a permanent fixture in his life as well as the imposing presence of his lover and Master, Severus Snape. He had always known that Severus was not someone to be trifled with, but he made for a very caring Master, if he obeyed.

But he rarely disobeyed, he liked the relationship he led with Severus, he did not want to jeopardize that and the contract they had both signed had been what they both wanted, so why should he disobey? And disobeying the contract and the terms they had set together would send the unwanted message that he was unhappy in his relationship which was as far off from the truth as him being happy in his marriage to Ginny.

He had been married to her for three very unhappy years. She wanted him to be the Hero at all times. He could not express his grief at the various funerals they attended. He always had to be strong, always be on top, in every aspect of his life. Their sexual relations more vanilla than vanilla extracts. His profession as an Auror held no joy for him, as he had been pushed into it by Ginny and the pressure the Wizarding World put on him to be A Hero.

Now, the only pressure he felt daily was the choker around his neck. Pleasing Severus never put any pressure on him because this is where he wanted to be and so he never felt pressured to do so. It felt like second nature to please Severus. Not because of the contract, never because of the contract. The contract was merely a list of guidelines and things they both wanted from this relationship, in no way forcing them to do things they didn't want.

He didn't lack for anything in his relationship, in fact he had gained more than he had ever imagined. Of course, he had wanted an equal relationship. A relationship where he didn't always have to be the strong one that he could share things with. After a while, he felt that he couldn't share anything with Ginny anymore. She had become a nag, always at his throat for perceived imperfections, whilst he just wanted to be himself.

While things were not always perfect with Severus, the base of their couple was strong. The type of relationship they were in demanded respect and trust. Severus trusted him to take care of himself and to think of himself and he trusted in Severus to be there when needed and to comfort or punish him. Their roles were defined as such and it made everything easier. Nothing else was expected out of him and that was liberating in itself.

"Harry, you do realise that kneeling there and staring out the window is not going to convince me of your sanity right?"

"I know, Severus. I was thinking about what brought me into your arms."

"Cease this drivel, Potter. No wonder your brain is a pile of mush most of the time if you entertain such hopeless romantic notions in your free time."

''Didn't you say you liked me for my brains then?''

"I'd really like to know how you got exposed to potion fumes while kneeling in our closed off bedroom?''

"Master, you must know that this is my normal state, whatever that is, after all we have been enjoying mutual gratification for almost two years now!"

"Mutual gratification hmmm, is this is how you would label our relationship then?"

"Not at all, Master. Just didn't want you to quip about my intelligence or lack thereof according to you."

"Nothing you could say could make me stop quipping about you Harry. You may rise and join me in my lap."

Harry did so, snuggling comfortably against Severus' chest, the ease with how he did so bespoke of the affection shared between them. Now they were just Severus and Harry snuggling in the covers. If the snarky Potion's Master were ever to be accused of the act known as 'snuggling' he would simply say that he was indulging his Pet.

But Severus and Harry knew the truth. No matter what other people said, when they were together like this, in the comfort of their lifestyle and relationship, they could honestly say they did not care, as they had each other.

AN: Please forgive me all! I posted this without updating HR, you must all hate me, but truth is I think real life killed that plot bunny, or at least injured it pretty badly so I don't know when it will revive :( I have been working under the scenes with enchanted nightingale to translate a few sentences in French for her and her new story A Summer Escape. It is A Rabastan Harry shipper and before wrinkling your nose at the new, unconventional pairing, please go check it out! It has great potential! And if you have never read her, I suggest you do so, NOW! She is really good! I have also started discussing with lilyyuri and hopefully, together we will be able to revive the HR plot bunny. Wish me luck :)

Julianne aka HarrySnape1989