Title: Alive
Author: sdk
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing/Characters: Pre-Severus/Harry, background Draco/Hermione
Rating: PG
Length/Word Count: Ficlet, 543
Warnings/Content: Hazardous situation/Lab fire
Summary: Auror Potter has an unlikely saviour.
Notes: The third of ten "drabbles" written for alisanne as part of FandomAid. She asked for Snarry, "Run", and background Draco/Hermione. I had a much bigger idea in mind, but boiled it down to this snippet so I wouldn't stretch the definition of a drabble even further. :P Thanks to torino10154 for the read-through!
Disclaimer: The following is based on fictional characters I don't own doing fictional things in a fictional world I did not create. No copyright infringement intended.


Alive

Harry's eyes water. Hazy smoke growing thicker by the second squeezes around him as he tries to make his way through the lab. The scent of potions on fire burn his nose and his mouth. He tries to breathe and can only sputter weak coughs.

He's stumbling, one foot in front of the other away from the heat and the lick of the flames, but he can't see past the tip of his nose and he has no idea if he's heading toward an exit or further inside the doomed lab.

One way to avoid arrest. Burn the evidence and the Auror that's come after you. Harry wants to snort, but it it hurts too much when he tries.

This is why you wait for your partner, Potter. It's Malfoy's voice in Harry's head, mocking him. He can even see Malfoy's satisfied smirk, and Hermione behind him with a hand on his shoulder, looking on in disapproval.

It doesn't seem like the right time to contemplate how that relationship ever came to be, not when he's about to die and everything, but what else has he got to do but to try to keep putting one foot in front of the other, and hope that sodding wanker treats Hermione well or Harry swears he'll haunt him from the afterlife.

Run. This voice is faint, and Harry thinks maybe coming from outside his own mind, but it's blurred and unclear, as if he's underwater and listening to the mermaids sing.

A hand clasps his, a bubble of clean pure air forms around his head, and through the cloud of the spell, Harry sees a glimpse of long black hair and the hook of a nose peeking out.

"Run."

Harry tries and instead starts to fall, but a burst of magic sweeps him off his feet.

And he can breathe. He knows he's safe. As everything starts to grow dim, he hears a voice, strong and unmistakable.

"Must I spend my entire existence saving your sorry hide, Potter?"

"You're alive?" The words are slow in coming, and Harry's not sure he's actually managed to make his vocal cords work or if he's still just talking to himself as he struggles to remain conscious.

Until Severus Snape replies, just as surly as he's ever been.

"Well-spotted."

Harry must be mental because the sarcasm is...comforting.

"Top of my class in training," he manages to eek out.

He gets only a snort in response, but suddenly there is light and fresh air. The charm around his head fades and Harry inhales deeply. He's still floating under Snape's magic when the world twists sideways and a pop of Apparition lands him on a soft, lumpy couch.

"Rest," Snape says. "You aren't too badly damaged, but will need a potion for your lungs when you wake."

It takes all of his remaining strength, but Harry reaches out and grabs Snape's wrist before he can retreat.

"You're alive," Harry says. He probably should find words more profound, but they are all he can manage.

Snape carefully withdraws from Harry's grip and sets Harry's hand down on his stomach. His touch lingers for a moment.

"And so are you."

Harry closes his eyes and falls asleep with a smile on his face.



-Fin-







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