Waiting Up, Waiting Forever

[m4moony]

Date: Saturday, 18 August, 2001
Time: Late evening, however late it is when Severus deigns to come home
Location: Spinner's end
Rating: NC-17 for sex and R for language
Characters: Remus Lupin and Severus Snape

Comments

[subtle_simmer]

Severus had turned 'work' into something completely synonymous with 'avoidance' - until he turned it into something completely synonymous with rage.

The only good thing about yesterday had been that it was the day before the new moon. Which meant that he, Severus, had absolutely nothing which had to be tended at Hogwarts.

From the moment Remus and the others had left the house - no, from the moment he realised they were leaving, and nothing he could say would stop them, and that Remus had called Weasley first, before informing him, Severus had been in a fury the likes of which he had never, ever known.

He'd broken everything remotely breakable in the sitting room of an empty Spinner's End, and many things that were not supposed to be breakable. He'd sent Rollins away to the Twins' shop just to have the house to himself

[m4moony]

Remus watched with barely concealed apprehension as Severus seemed to debate whether he was coming into the room or not. He could remember shortly after the Easter holidays when they'd used any excuse to find themselves in the same room together in any state of undress. After Mandy...well, distance ad silence had taken the place of touches and whispers. How had they let themselves get this far?

Wincing at the sound of the heavy door being yanked to, followed by the similar thump of the wardrobe door, Remus closed his book and set it aside on the bedside table.

Severus was angry with him. Fine. Good. At least anger was better than the eerie calm of the last few weeks. Remus could guess at what had his lover in a snit, what was worth it. He could pretend innocence, feign non-understanding. But, it was very tempting to let Severus rave and let it out.

Please don't touch me. Understand, I'm scared I need to go away.Touch. Distance. Fear

[subtle_simmer]

"NO!" he almost shrieked, slamming the wardrobe door shut again, spinning on his heel in shirtsleeves and trousers to rant.

How dare Remus be so disgustingly calm when Severus wanted to wring his neck!

"NO! It is NEVER worth it!

"Talk?" he shouted, the word a snide bark of laughter. "NOW you want to 'talk'? When yesterday you would hear nothing I said?"

How dare Remus calmly set his book aside as though there was room for rational thought fifty miles of them just now. Almost literally roaring with inarticulate rage, Severus crossed the sort distance, scooped up the book and threw it against the wall where it fell, pages fluttering askew like scattered feathers of a broken bird.

"You accomplished nothing! It did not 'have' to be done by you or anyone else! NOTHING! Injuries! More scars painted across your pack in testament to Greyback's ability to wound and escape and nothing else to show for it!

"YOU are bound by law and collars and Ministry. . . idiocy and he is bound by NOTHING

[m4moony]

"No, now I want to talk when I've held my peace for far too many weeks