Bickering

A/N: Big, big thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review. It means a lot to me! I'm sorry that this update took so long, but I've been busy and writing has been slow. I'll try to get to work on the next chapter soon.

My fantabulous beta, Vaughn, remains the cream in my coffee. Hell, she's the coffee in my coffee! She is definitely the comma in my run on sentence! :D Thanks, Vaughn! You rock!

Disclaimer: They are not mine; I only take them out to play.

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The sight of Ron snuggling in bed and holding the hand of one Severus Snape, former terror of the Hogwarts dungeons, was so shocking to Harry and Hermione that it took them a good few minutes of gaping silence before they were at last able to find their tongues. Once awkward and stumbling greetings had been exchanged, Hermione uttered the first coherent sentence of the visit.

"Ron, we were just speaking to one of the Healers. Healer Rayon thinks that you're strong enough to go with us to get a cup of tea or something. There's a shop on the next level up...that is...if you'd like to go."

"What? Leave this grand and exciting room I've been shut up in for ages? Of course I want to go!" Ron said with a happy grin. His grin faded as he remembered Severus. Turning to the man whose hand he still held tightly, Ron said, "Listen, love, do you want to come? I'm sure we could round up one of those chair things with the wheels on."

"Don't talk rubbish," Severus grumbled, his tone of voice much softer than his words. "If I had wanted to make a spectacle of myself in one of those ridiculous chairs, I'd have mentioned it long before now. Go with your friends, brat. I'll still be here when you return, I daresay."

"You'd better be, sunshine."

"Impossible brat," Severus murmured. With a grin that could only be called wicked, Severus hooked a hand around the nape of Ron's neck and tugged him into a kiss that left no doubt as to what was going on between the two men.

Reluctantly pulling away from Severus in order to fetch his slippers and dressing gown, Ron snuck a glance at Harry and Hermione as he hastily got dressed. While Hermione looked slightly surprised, she didn't look displeased in the least. Harry, however, looked like he'd swallowed one of Fred and George's more nasty Skiving Snackboxes. Shifting uneasily from foot to foot, Harry refused to meet Ron's eye. Once Ron was dressed, the three friends walked in silence to the small shop on the fourth floor which sold tea, coffee, and baked goods.

Harry ordered for all of them and paid for the lot while turning a deaf ear to Hermione and Ron's protests. Once they had been served, silence again fell between the friends.

"Go on," Ron began, "I'm sure you both have plenty to say...might as well get it over with."

Hermione stepped bravely into the breach. "Well, Ron, I can't say it isn't a bit of a shock...I mean...you've always hated him so much. But if things have changed, I think the two of you could be good for each other."

"Good for each other?" Harry snapped. "How can you possibly say that, Hermione? What could possibly be good about Ron shagging that great bastard?" Standing up so fast that he knocked his chair over, Harry stormed away from the table.

Ron assumed that his angry friend would leave, but Harry didn't leave the shop. Storming over to a window, Harry stood there, quietly fuming. "Maybe you should go talk to him, Hermione."

"No, Ron. We should let him be for a bit. He'll calm down. You know he's been touchy since the whole Ginny thing and we went to see Remus today as well. He was bound to go off at some point, with or without seeing you and Snape snogging."

When Harry, Ron, and Hermione had left school after their sixth year, Harry and Ginny had declared their feelings for one another. Harry had then told Ginny that they would have to put their feelings on hold until Voldemort was defeated. It had seemed so noble at the time. Harry was worried about Ginny's safety and he had his hands full with the war effort. They'd still believed that Voldemort would be defeated within a year. It had never occurred to anyone that the war would drag out for five long years...five years where Ginny had gotten progressively more worried, more lonely, and more impatient. Ginny hadn't cared about the danger; if anything, knowing that they might not have much time left had made Ginny even more adamant about not putting their love on hold until the end of the war. Knowing very well that the war could end either of their lives at any time, Ginny grew increasingly insistent that she'd like to have some sort of life worth losing, beyond school and fighting.

Both Hermione and Ron had tried to talk some sense into Harry, but he had been stubborn to the end. It was obvious to everyone that Ginny was desperate for love, companionship, and comfort, yet Harry refused to see any opinion other than his own. Three years after the friends had left school to dedicate their lives to the cause, Ginny had married a man eight years her senior. Joseph Wood, Oliver's older brother, had been a Hufflepuff while in school. He was loyal, kind, and fierce as a rabid badger in combat. Both he and Ginny had survived the war and they were now expecting their second child. Joseph treated Ginny like a princess, and anyone who saw the two together could see that she doted on her husband as well. The war finally over, Ginny was a happy woman who was raising a family with a man she both loved and respected.

And Harry? Harry was bitter. He eventually acknowledged that his "noble" act of pushing Ginny away had been the self-centered justification of a young man too busy to truly consider the honest needs of the woman he loved. However, he still could not get over the dream of what might have been if he had noticed how desperate Ginny had become before it was all too late. Never dating anyone, Harry spent most of his free time with Hermione. Ron often thought that his two friends needed to look a bit more closely at each other. Though they practically lived in each other's pockets, neither had ever seemed to realize that there might be more to their friendship that they suspected. Ron supposed that Harry was still too hurt about losing Ginny. Hermione might have some insights, Ron admitted, but she was a patient and perceptive young woman. Even if Hermione knew that she felt more than simple friendship for Harry, she would wait until his heart had healed. Stubborn as Harry was, she may be waiting quite a long while.

Ron's musings were interrupted by Hermione saying cheekily, "We may as well take advantage of Harry's sulking and have some girl talk. So tell me, Ron, exactly how long have you and...er...Severus been an item?"

Rolling his eyes in an unconsciously good impression of his sarcastic boyfriend, Ron muttered, "About a week, I guess."

"And when, may I ask, were you going to get around to telling me? Hmmm?"

"Hermione, it's only been a week! Give a bloke a chance! You know, when you two walked in, Harry looked on the brink of having a complete eppy. You, on the other hand, looked only mildly surprised."

"Well, we did catch you combing his hair before. And Severus' reaction to me mentioning your swishiness was rather telling, to say the least. I had no idea that the two of you would get together so fast though. You're both so mule-headed sometimes! I did go so far as to mention the possibility to Harry, to try to prepare him for it somewhat. Not that it did any good. Now, I'm not quite sure whether he's sulking because his best mate is shagging the "evil Potions master" or because he's mad that I was right about it."

"Probably a little of both," Ron said with a slight grin. Then his grin disappeared and he blushed lightly as he muttered, "Though we haven't exactly gotten that far yet...er...shagging, I mean."

"Why ever not?" Hermione said in honest surprise. Hermione took her position as Ron's female confidant very seriously. They had, in the past, spoken very frankly about sex, relationships, and dating. When the war had allowed, they had even nipped off to pubs on rare occasions to chat up men together. Hermione knew more about Ron's love life and sexual hang ups than anyone else in his life. "Don't tell me that arse, Kingsley, is managing to muck up your sex life from the grave. I've tried to tell you--"

"Stop! Just stop!" Ron interrupted. Leaning closer to his friend, he continued in the conspiratorial manner favored by girlfriends discussing sex the world over. "Look, you'll be thrilled to know that Severus agrees with you on the matter. In fact, he went so far as to mention that he'd like to raise Kingsley from the dead just to kill him again."

"Did he really?" Hermione whispered with a glowing smile. "How wonderful! But Ron, if you're starting to see the light, so to speak, then why haven't you--"

"We've only been together a week, Hermione!" he hissed. "We just had that bloody discussion this morning...give a bloke a chance! Besides, there are other things to be dealt with as well--"

This time, Hermione interrupted Ron. "Don't you dare try to give me any of your lame excuses--"

"Hush! It's not lame! We're in a hospital, for Merlin's sake. Don't get me wrong, we've had quite a bit of fun, but it's off putting, to say the least, knowing that at any moment one of the Healers can come bouncing in the door. Most of the time we try to stick to the bath, so we at least have another closed door between us and the staff, but we can't even use our wands for locking charms or anything." Ron stopped speaking in astonishment when Hermione dissolved into a fit of giggles.

"Oh, Ron!" she said when she had calmed down enough. "Don't you ever read the books I bring you? I know I brought you St. Mungo's: A History."

"Now hold on, love. I've read most of what you brought me, but that dry old tome puts me to sleep faster than a draught."

"Well, if you'd bothered to read the more interesting bits, you would know that your recovery room has both monitoring and privacy wards up. Your door won't let visitors in at all if you are...er...indisposed in any way and no Healer would walk in without checking it first. They consider a patient's privacy a very serious thing here."

"You mean that they know what Severus and I have been getting up to?" Ron said, his voice going a bit shrill.

"Of course they do, Ron, it's part of their job. But don't make a fuss; they'd never embarrass you by mentioning it. Not unless they thought it was detrimental to your recovery, and if that was the case, they would have said something by now. Don't worry about that, just be happy knowing that no one will be walking in on you if you and your new boyfriend decide to shag like rabbits," she concluded with another giggle.

It took Ron a moment to recover from his mortification, but soon, even his embarrassment paled in comparison to the excitement of knowing that he and Severus didn't have to be so careful all of the time. Eventually, Ron leaned very close to Hermione and whispered, "There is another problem I need to sort out. Perhaps you could help. You know very well that shagging between boys is a bit different than what you're used to. I don't have my wand, and I'm not about to ask the Healers or the house-elves for a jar of lube."

Giggling again, Hermione was quick to volunteer her help. "Not to worry. I'll take care of it as soon as Harry and I leave. I'll send it with Dobby; he can be trusted to keep his mouth shut, and if I send an owl, the Healers will check the package before they give it to you."

His head thumping onto the table, Ron growled, "Oh, I can just imagine that! Healer Cotton coming in and announcing in her terminally chipper voice 'Why Mister Weasley, that nice Hermione Granger has sent you a lovely pot of Master Biggerstaff's Better Boffing Ointment.' I think I'd rather never shag again!"

The girl talk was interrupted by Harry coming back to the table. Ron and Hermione immediately grew more serious as they waited for their friend to speak his mind. Neither of them expected Harry to start by apologizing rather than shouting.

"Look, I'm sorry. I've been behaving like a prat and I know it, but I just can't seem to stop myself sometimes."

"Harry, it's all right!" Ron said. "I'm your best mate. We've been through worse than this and come out all right. There's nothing you can do that's going to stop me from being your mate, you know."

"And there's nothing you do, or anyone you chose to do it with, that's going to stop me being yours. I hope you know that," Harry said quite seriously.

"Well, I wasn't sure," Ron said softly, "but it's good to know, though I am a bit puzzled by your sudden turnaround."

"I'm sorry I stormed away. I needed some time to think. All my life I've been in the habit of acting without thinking and I'm determined to put a stop to that. You know what I was thinking about? I was thinking about Remus."

"Remus?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Yeah. We went to visit him today. He's been a mess since Tonks--" Harry's voice trailed off.

"I can imagine," Ron said softly. "He loved her very much...he must miss her terribly."

"That he does," Harry said with a heavy sigh. "You know, I always expected Remus to go on about how they never should have gotten together, what with the war and all. I expected him to say that it would have been a lot easier to lose Tonks if he didn't really know what he was missing, but that's not what he says at all. Instead he beats himself up about how he pushed her away for years because he was a werewolf. He keeps telling me that he was a fool for wasting so much time. I did that, Ron, I wasted time. I ignored the happiness of the one woman I honestly loved and I wasn't smart enough to even realize that Ginny was a grown woman, capable of making her own decisions about her life. I was far more a fool than Remus ever was. If...Severus...makes you happy, then you should grab onto him with both hands and never let him go, do you hear me? Don't do what I did. Don't end up like me."

"You talk like it's all over for you, Harry," Ron said earnestly. "I know how much you loved my sister, and nothing could have made me happier than having you for a brother, but sometimes things just don't work out the way we expect. Ginny loved you, but she is happy with Joseph, she truly is. I'm not like Lavender and Parvati, who go around spouting all that rubbish about how there is only one 'soulmate' out there for each of us and if you cock it up, you're fucked for the rest of your life. I'm living proof that sometimes love comes up and bites you on the arse when you least expect it. And where you least expect it. And with whom you least expect it," he finished with an embarrassed grin.

An amazing thing happened then: Harry laughed. He laughed loud and long as he had not laughed since they had been school children. His laugh was infectious, and soon the three friends were laughing together, tears in their eyes.

"Is that what he did, Ron?" Harry managed between giggles. "Did he bite you on the arse? No, on second thought, please spare me the details. You and Hermione can keep those discussions between yourselves."

"Oh my!" Hermione said, still shrieking with mirth. "Now that's an image even I didn't need!"

"Well," Ron said with a wicked grin, "if you must know--"

"NO!" Harry cut him off. "Absolutely not! I'll be nice to the great bastard, I'll support you in your choice, I'll even come to your blasted wedding, but I am not, under any circumstances, going to listen to what Snape gets up to in the bedroom! Have I made myself perfectly clear?"

"Crystal," Ron said, the grin still on his face despite the fact that he had found what Harry said very distracting indeed.

The rest of the visit was very pleasant as the three friends left off serious subjects and reminisced over their school days. Eventually, Harry and Hermione left and Ron walked back to room 309 with a smuggled cup of coffee for his boyfriend. The Healers wouldn't yet allow Severus any coffee, a thing that Severus complained bitterly about daily, but Ron reckoned that one smuggled cup wouldn't do the man any harm. The delighted expression on his boyfriend's face when Ron delivered the ill-gotten booty to him was well worth the effort.

While Severus smugly drank his coffee, Ron chatted about his visit with Harry and Hermione while carefully steering clear of everything that had been said about their new relationship. He had just finished explaining about the privacy ward on the door to their room when Dobby appeared with a sharp crack.

With little fuss, the small package from Hermione was delivered. Dobby was thanked and sent on his way.

"What have you got there, Ron?" Severus asked curiously from where he sat near the small table in their room.

Sitting down next to Severus, Ron said in a very nonchalant manner, "Oh, just a little something that Hermione picked up for me. Want to see?"

Removing the jar from the box in which Hermione had packed it, Ron set it into Severus' hands with no explanation. Severus gave the jar only a token glance before his eyes snapped to Ron's, their black depths filled with sudden fire.

"Do you want to try it out then?" Ron asked softly.

Standing, Severus tossed the jar unceremoniously onto his bed. He then grabbed one of Ron's hands and tugged him out of his chair so sharply that Ron landed heavily against Severus' chest with enough force to make them both stumble slightly.

"Yes," Severus growled demandingly. "Now."

All Ron's insecurities were swept away by the hungry mouth that descended onto his own.