Seven

Disclaimer: Standard stuff. Jo owns, I don't. Don't sue. Not worth it.

A/N: Thanks to my kick-arse beta team of JaneAverage, charmed310 and snapeophile for helping the boys along their way, with a special wink to Jane for a bit of this chapter. Enjoy

Chapter 7

Remus felt as though he was unable to let go of Severus. He had been almost out of his mind with worry that he might lose the man who he now held to his chest so tightly, and his stomach roiled and his heart hurt at the thought of Severus' limp body lying on the rocks. What if I hadn't been able to save him? What if...

Remus didn't want to think "what if." He knew that they had both hurt each other, but he realized that the canyon's magic wanted them together as a whole, a single entity. He inhaled Severus' unique scent and closed his eyes as he surrendered to the knowledge that he completely and utterly loved the man in his arms. The canyon had tried to show him, had tried to tell him, that first night when he saw Severus on the canyon's rim, the day at Mooney Falls, just last night... but he had been fighting against himself, against his pride, against all the negatives of their history. It was a losing battle.

The Hopi magic bathed him in its benevolence, almost as though he was being christened anew and welcomed into the world of the living. He felt Severus shift in his arms and released him slightly as he leaned backwards and looked around.

'What have you done?' Severus' voice was unsteady as their eyes met for a moment.

Remus' body erupted in goose bumps at Severus' words, and he gently lowered the injured man back onto the rocks. 'Saved your life, you foolish man,' he murmured as he bundled Severus' trousers into a rough pillow and placed it under his head. Remus realized that Severus had slipped back into unconsciousness but was still bleeding from his wounds. He was definitely in no condition to be moved, and Remus searched his mind feverishly for a solution to their problem. They were thirty miles from his home, Severus was very weak and his own magic was barely enough to do basic spells. He had to do something to heal Severus, and quickly.

His potions!

He remembered that he had finished making the wound-washing solution just that morning, and it seemed like years ago with all that had transpired since. Remus withdrew his wand as he fixed the image of the three bottles clearly in his mind; he saw them with crystal clarity, the pale yellow liquid gleaming in the sunlight through the window. Taking a deep breath, he concentrated and delved deep into himself, searching for and harnessing his magical power, then he exhaled and pointed his wand in the direction of home.

'Accio bottles!'

He felt the magic pour out of him, almost like a funnel, from his stomach through his chest and out his arm into his wand, helped along by the spirits of the Hopi Indians. He hoped that it would be enough.

Shortly afterwards he felt rather than saw the bottles whizzing towards him, and he caught them reflexively with shaky hands. He quickly tore the remnants of Severus' shirt into strips and conjured a shallow bowl into which he gathered some water from the river's edge. He opened one of the bottles and poured it into the bowl, then cast a Warming Charm on the liquid before he dipped the cloth into it.

Remus started with Severus' hands. Slowly, gently he ran the cloth over the battered and split fingernails, then along the thin, delicate fingers and pale wrists. He wet the cloth again and washed Severus' forearms, moving gently across the wounds there before continuing up his arms to his shoulders. Severus murmured, and Remus knew that the healing properties of the willow bark were doing their job. Somehow, the warm, gentling presence of the Hopi spirits helped, and Remus suspected that their magic combined with his in order to heal the injured flesh.

He continued washing Severus' skin, tracing the sharp angles of his face and the lines of every scar, both fresh and old, re-learning the man's body. Severus shifted slightly in his sleep and sighed as Remus ran the warm cloth along his collarbones and across his chest, then along his breastbone and down his stomach. Remus caressed Severus' body with his gaze as his hands soothed the wounds, and the fluid flowed like a river over the inert body and across the large rock, slowly washing away the blood and the dirt until all that remained was pale, shining skin.

Remus continued his ministrations along Severus' lower body, gently parting his legs and running the cloth down the insides of his thighs. He noticed that Severus' cock was slightly erect; no doubt a physiological response to the attention to his groin area. Even mostly flaccid, Severus' penis was still impressive, and Remus licked his lips at the memories of the past. He tried to control his body's interest and continued along Severus' strong, thin legs, remembering how they had felt when they wrapped around his own body in passion. He knelt at Severus' feet and washed first one, then the other, slowly and lovingly. Finally satisfied, he cast first a Drying Spell on Severus and then another Warming Charm before he replenished the water in the bowl and hastily washed their blood from his own body.

~~~

Severus knew that he was dreaming because the delightful feeling of warm water and gentle cloth on his body could only come from dreams. He floated, awash in the healing sensations of hands and water combined with the gentle scent of honey and lavender. Slowly the pain began to fade, and his aches became inconsequential, yet the gentle roughness of the cloth on his skin and the individual paths that the water took as it flowed over his body sent shivers of delight in their wake. The warmth of the water continued, first on his chest, then down his body. He was dimly aware of a stirring in his loins as the warmth spread down his legs and to his feet, and images of Lupin's hands on his body danced through his consciousness. He heard a murmured charm and he was once more dry and warm, but then the hands were gone.

Severus opened his eyes and squinted into the sunlight as he tried to find his bearings. The towering canyon walls offered him no information, and he looked around just in time to see Lupin remove his jeans. His eyes narrowed as he concentrated on the interplay of muscles along the scarred back and legs. Lupin had never looked so... good! Perhaps it was Severus' most recent brush with death, or perhaps it was the influence of the bloody canyon's magic, but he noticed with appreciation that even though Lupin's manhood was only half-erect, Severus was mesmerised by the way it bobbed up and down as the man moved. He couldn't prevent the shiver of desire that ran up his spine as he ogled Lupin washing himself clean, and watched as the water flowed red, then pink, and finally clear as it ran across their rock and into the river.

He jumped a little in surprise when Lupin turned and fixed golden-brown eyes on him and bathed him with that familiar wolfish grin. Severus attempted to sit up, but Lupin was beside him in a flash, his face creased with concern, and Severus' skin tingled wherever the warm hands touched him. He felt decidedly off-balance, both physically and emotionally, and moderately concerned that his naked body betrayed his interest.

'Welcome back, Severus.' The concern in Lupin's voice belied his jovial words.

'Where are we? How did I get here?'

'That's a long story, one which I'm certain you'll enjoy once I get us home.'

"Us" and "home." The words caused Severus' heart to clench so tightly that he feared he might not survive.

'Not yet. I'm not ready yet,' he rasped, licking his dry lips.

'We must get back, Severus. The sun will be setting soon and the temperatures will drop very quickly.'

'Please, a few more minutes.'

'Are you certain that you're all right?' Lupin moved closer to Severus, his eyebrows creased in worry as he sat beside him and conjured a cup with water. Severus drank slowly, and the cooling liquid helped to settle him somewhat. Murmuring his thanks, he leaned against the strong, warm body and let his head fall back, placing his forehead against the underside of Lupin's jaw. Lupin started to move, but Severus didn't want to break their contact. It had been too long since they were together this way, unguarded, and he turned, burying his face in Lupin's neck and inhaling the warm scent of his skin. As Severus breathed in the very essence of him, he felt an inexplicable need, that indefinable pull that always occurred with Lupin and nobody else. He ran his fingers along the sharp angles of Lupin's collarbone and revelled in the feel of his skin and the way the man's body reacted. Severus followed the path again with his tongue, relishing the taste of Lupin's skin. A shuddering intake of breath told Severus all he needed to know.

Lupin wanted him too.

~~~

Remus felt as though he had been lost forever, and to hold Severus against him, skin touching skin, and to feel their hearts beat in unison was something of his dreams. To feel Severus' tongue on his neck and on his lips, sucking and licking as he asked for entrance was pure bliss. He heard Severus' moan as their tongues met and entwined, sending a shiver and a burning need throughout his body. He cradled Severus' face in his hands and kissed him again, longer this time, pouring all his longing and want and need into it, hoping that Severus would understand.

Severus answered with all the passion of their early days as lovers. He thrust his tongue into Remus' mouth again, tasting, sucking, wanting, yearning, and a shiver caressed Remus' body. The sheer force of everything that was Severus felt as though it was brought to bear in his kiss, and Remus moaned as Severus chased wet, hot kisses down his neck and chest while his hands roamed over his body. Remus couldn't help but picture those slim fingers, strong yet somehow almost delicate as they chopped ingredients or when they smoothed along his own skin, bringing pleasure in their wake.

Thankful for the cushioning charm that still held, Remus twisted his body and, without breaking their kiss, laid Severus back down on the rock. He had made a request of the Hopi spirits and they had seen it fit to allow Severus his life, and Remus felt the urge – no, the compulsion – to reaffirm their relationship and explore every inch of the man. He ran his hands along the skin of Severus' torso, carefully tracing over the still-fresh scars and smiling softly as Severus shuddered and breathed out in what could almost be a moan. Somehow, loud noises seemed out of place here, but worship seemed to be a necessity, so Remus would worship Severus' body.

Remus stretched out beside the man and ran his fingers along the many sharp planes of his body, kissing any bits of skin he could find near his lips. He ran his fingertips down the mid line of Severus' chest and stomach, before making a circuit of the base of his cock which stood out of the mass of curls. He didn't touch the erect penis but instead pulled gently on the hairs he found there.

~~~

Severus' stomach muscles quivered as Lupin drew maddening lines and circles on his flesh. Gods, he was so impossibly hard, almost as though his body needed to assure itself that he was still alive. Every pore seemed to be open, every nerve-ending seemed alive with pleasure and magic and life! He tensed expectantly as Lupin's fingers took a path past his navel and down towards his cock, and then hissed softly in frustration or anticipation when the werewolf merely traced around his straining length and pulled on the hairs instead. Oddly, the almost-pain sensation only heightened Severus' arousal, and he could feel himself vibrating, perhaps spurred on by the magic, perhaps only by his own need for the man and pleasure, but whatever it was, Lupin responded with only a low chuckle.

'Patience, Severus. This feast isn't something to be rushed.'

Severus flung one arm over his face, ostensibly to hide his face from the sun but really to try to keep his hands off of Lupin as he continued his exploration past Severus' groin and down his left thigh. He felt the little pin-pricks of pulled hairs as Lupin continued to tease, but finally he couldn't stand it any longer – he had to touch something! He reached out and slid his hand up Lupin's back, content for the moment with the sun-warmed skin he found there.

~~~

Remus smiled to himself as he finally allowed his mouth to follow the path of his fingertips as they wound their way down Severus' thigh and calf. The soft breeze that blew around them cooled the line of moisture. He slowly made his way up the right calf and thigh before brushing his face softly against the tip of Severus' erect and very hard penis, smearing a line of slick fluid along his cheek. He lowered his face alongside Severus' and positioned his mouth next to the man's ear.

'Lick it off,' he whispered, turning his head to the side and offering his cheek.

~~~

Severus shuddered with a kind of pleasure and moaned as the sound of Lupin's husky voice next to his ear, the soft puff of breath and the meaning of those words went straight to his cock. He parted his lips and ran the flat of his tongue slowly along the flesh from the corner of Lupin's mouth towards his ear, following the glistening line of his own precome and tasting himself against the backdrop of Lupin's skin. He nuzzled softly against Lupin's ear for a moment until Lupin turned his head and met Severus' lips in an open-mouthed kiss, wet and messy with pure desire. The kiss only lasted a few seconds before Lupin's mouth was on him again, his neck, his chest, a kiss above his navel and then... a warm moist heat enveloped his cock and Severus cried out with the pure agony of the pleasure. He spread his legs instinctively, not even knowing who he was anymore as Lupin's hands were everywhere, along his chest and abdomen, spreading out flat and running his palms along Severus' groin before sliding along his inner thigh and hooking one leg over his shoulder.

Severus opened himself up to Lupin, as much as he physically could, but he gave over complete control to whatever the man wanted to do with him. He was awash with sensations he couldn't even name let alone acknowledge, but everything was good, powerful, right.

~~~

Remus chuckled softly at Severus' reaction and eased himself down further between his legs, enjoying the weight of Severus' leg over his shoulder. He felt the pressure as Severus' heel dug into his back, urging him closer, forward, more... and he slid one hand under him and shifted his body a bit closer, lifting Severus' leg and gently parting his cheeks, allowing himself a bit more room as he sucked on Severus' cock. Remus aligned one of his fingers along the length of Severus' cock and sucked on them both for a few moments. After slicking his digit copiously with saliva, he continued the attention to Severus' rigid member while he pressed his finger against the man's puckered opening. The throaty groans echoed through the canyon and spurred his own desire and need on to greater heights, and he increased the suction while gently pressing further until his finger slipped through the tight ring of muscle.

'Lupin. Gods. Just...'

~~~

Severus thought he would come just from the suction on his cock and the feel of Lupin's body between his legs and the skin beneath his hand, but when Lupin's finger slid inside him he thought he would literally explode. The swirling sensations inside his body intensified and he began to writhe, wanting to grind himself down onto that finger and thrust himself up into that mouth, and as the suction increased and the finger began to slide in and out of him, he began to shudder, gripping Lupin more firmly with his leg over the man's shoulder and wanting, needing it more, faster, more, oh, gods but it was so, so good, everything, every single thing funnelled down into this one moment as the barrage of sensation carried him closer to the brink, and then Lupin twisted the finger inside Severus, crooking it and rubbing against what could only be his prostate, and Severus exploded.

He felt a rush of energy or sensation or something from deep within his core as it coalesced and burst out from him. His orgasm seemed to go on forever, and pulse after pulse wracked his body as Lupin continued to suck him, swallow him down even as he fucked him with his finger and pressed against the gland, and Severus thought he might die.

~~~

Remus loved the feel of Severus as he approached climax – the way his legs trembled and the taste of him was different, but when he felt Severus begin to tense he knew he was close. He crooked his finger just so and rubbed against his prostate as he increased the suction, feeling the magical forces wash against them both and knowing that this was right, that it was perfectly and absolutely right, and then Severus came, his exhalation a long moan of pleasure, and Remus swallowed, taking every drop of the man's come, sucking him even as he continued to writhe and moan. He was awash with benevolence and light, and he felt the oft-comforting presence of the canyon's magic as he kissed his way back up Severus' body to gaze into his heavily hooded eyes.

'Fuck, Lupin,' Severus said shakily, and Remus smiled at the way Severus was still spread out on display for him, thoroughly sated and utterly debauched. His cock throbbed at just the thought of what else he could do to Severus right here, right now, but the light was beginning to fade and Remus would rather continue their tryst in his own home.

'Yes, definitely, but now it's time to get you back home.'

Severus swallowed and gestured towards him. 'What about you?'

Remus followed Severus' gaze to his own cock, still hard and almost painful, and he smiled.

'What would you suggest, Severus?' he asked, even as the magic and his own body exulted in the possibilities. Severus' eyes narrowed, and he flushed even more with desire as he opened his legs wider.

'I want to see you bring yourself off.'

Remus' cock couldn't have become any harder, could it? But he was so aroused that he felt as though he was almost bursting. He grasped his cock and closed his eyes as he moaned with pleasure, sinking down slowly to his knees between Severus' ankles. He spread his legs slightly as he ran the palm of his hand over the tip of his cock, gathering the fluid there and using it as lubrication. He heard Severus' breath hissing through his clenched teeth as the man raised himself up on his elbows to watch, and Remus felt as though he couldn't get much higher. He was already so close that it didn't take long for him to reach his trembling climax, and as he came, spurting over his hand, Severus' legs and the rock upon which they lay, he locked eyes with Severus, the magic swirled around them, and he understood. The look in Severus' eyes suggested that he understood too. The Hopi magic had accepted them here in this most sacred of places and had given them its blessing.

Shakily Remus moved forward on his hands and knees as he crawled up Severus' body to kiss him thoroughly and deeply. After many minutes Remus gently pulled away and laid his forehead on Severus' shoulder.

'Home?' Severus asked, his voice rough with renewed desire.

'Home.'

Finally, Remus rose to his feet and performed Cleaning Charms over them both. He gathered the few items around them, including their wands, and he felt the weight of Severus' gaze upon him until he wrapped the man in his arms and Apparated them home.

TBC