Change the World

"Why not?"

"The world simply wouldn't accept it, Potter."

"What do they have do with us?"

"Everything. Do you not want to be able to go places without being glared at? They would never accept us being together!"

"I don't care! I want to be with you!"

"They won't let you."

"They don't have any say in how I live my life. Haven't I done enough for them? If I have to I'll go live in the Muggle world."

"You're their hero. You can't leave."

"Then don't make me."

"I don't see how this can work. Not in this world."

"Then I'll change the world. I'm their hero aren't I?"

"Not even you can do that, Potter."

"Just watch me."

And he did. To the everlasting shock of one Severus Snape, Harry James Potter actually changed the wizarding world. Homosexual relationships had always been accepted if not actively encouraged but for their wonderful hero to come out of the closet had taken a lot of careful planning. But he had done it. It had taken even longer for them to be amenable to a relationship between The Man Who Lived to Defeat You Know Who and an ex-Death Eater, even if he had been a spy.

Telling his friends had been the hardest part. He hadn't even told them he was gay. Hermione took it well, smugly informing him that she had suspected it for a while now. Ron, on the other hand, had been livid. His face turned every shade of red before he hit Harry. It broke his nose. Ron had thought that he would marry Ginny and live happily ever after with all their kids. Apparently Ginny had believed that too despite Harry never having spoken about it to her. She had burst into tears and had refused to be in the same room as him for a month. Remus, the last remaining Marauder, once Pettigrew had been given the Kiss, hadn't passed judgement at all; he merely told him that if that was what made him happy then he was happy for him. Harry knew that Remus was gay; he and Sirius had been together for years. Werewolves mate for life so Remus was all alone now, Harry made sure that he spoke to his surrogate godfather at least once a week.

When Harry had returned to the dungeons after telling his friends Severus had fixed his nose for him, lest he "end up with a hook like mine". Once he could talk normally again he had told his lover how it went. Although from his state Severus had guessed that the Weasley male at least hadn't taken the news too well.

When he had finished Severus had quipped, "I guess I'm off the Weasley Christmas card list then."

It was just what Harry had needed. He laughed and agreed with the statement before kissing his lover.

Next came telling his colleagues. To say they were shocked would be like saying that Voldemort was a bad man or that Ron Weasley had a faint inclination for Quidditch. Even the omnipotent Albus Dumbledore hadn't seen this little bombshell coming. Luckily Harry didn't have to deal with them alone, Severus came with him. After all, they were Severus' colleagues too. The Wizarding population had been disappointed when, after defeating Voldemort, Harry Potter became the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, breaking the curse by coming back for a second and even a third year. Severus had decided that it would be best if they told everyone about their relationship at the end of the staff meeting because it was one of the few times they were all together, "Better get it over with all at once." Had been his reasoning. Something with Harry had firmly agreed with.

Minerva McGonagall had jumped up from her seat opposite them in anger, "Severus Snape, juts what have you done to Harry?" She had demanded of her old friend.

For once in his life Severus had allowed the hurt he felt at the witch's insinuation to show on his face, "I have done nothing, Minerva. You can not choose who you fall in love with." His voice was cool and collected but everyone saw the usually bland face contorted in hurt.

Harry, who had become angry at his old head of house's question, looked up at his lover in shock. Quietly, so only Severus could hear, he whispered, "You love me?"

The Potions Master blanched when he realised what he had just admitted. Slowly turning to his green-eyed lover he nodded.

The huge smile that covered The Man Who Lived to Defeat You Know Who's face convinced everyone present that he did indeed care for the other man despite their turbulent past. Albus had decided then and there to help his boys. They deserved to be happy.

Telling the world was a completely different matter. The Daily Prophet had been writing stories about witches giving birth to his love child since his fifth year. Everyone expected him to settle down with a nice witch and have lots of children, be the perfect family. Harry had never even been on a date with a girl since he left Hogwarts. After the disaster with Cho and the awkwardness with Ginny on the one date they had gone on Harry had begun to think that perhaps he didn't like girls that way. The usual porn magazines that were eagerly passed around the boys dorms didn't interest him at all. After he had become hard listening to Potions professor speaking to the class the following year he had considered it a definite. He was gay. But even then he never had any relationships with the homosexuals in his year; they just wanted The Boy Who Lived, not Harry. Once Harry had left Hogwarts he had joined the Order and partnered with Snape. It had been a test in adolescent self-control for him. After a few months the two wizards had ceased to put any real meaning into their insults, they did it out of habit more than anything.

It had taken Harry two years to convince Severus Snape to consider a relationship with him. It had only taken one year to finally defeat Voldemort! Harry left to study Defence at university and when he came back he began working on Snape. He had spent his time away from the man considering his feelings for him. He was more attracted to him than anyone he had ever met. He wasn't handsome by any stretch of the imagination but his features had character and he was a good man. Not a nice one but an honourable one. He had a wicked sense of humour and was incredibly powerful. No one he met at the Wizarding Oxford could hold a match to the Potions Master.

For his part, Severus had missed the young man. He had grown accustomed to arguing with him, talking with him and just being in his presence. No one else spent so much time with him, Dumbledore was too busy. To his surprise Severus found that he was lonely. When the boy had returned as a man, Severus could not longer deny that he was a man; he had behaved differently towards him. He still spoke to him, argued with him, they even had drinks in Severus' quarters some weekends but there was something fundamentally different about the way Potter acted. If Severus didn't know better he would have thought that Harry was interested in him. But that was impossible, wasn't it?

Harry's second year of teaching he had been forced, as usual, to chaperone the Winter Ball. Thankfully one of the students had spiked the pumpkin juice. Harry and Severus, the other chaperone, had both watched him do it but had done nothing. It was just harmless fun. The children deserved it, besides the younger students had already gone to bed. To try and stop the boredom Harry had had quite a few drinks from the spiked bowl.

In a drunken state Harry had floundered about before Severus had taken pity on him and took him back to his quarters. Harry had refused to let the man leave, kissing him passionately if a little sloppily due to the level of alcohol he had ingested.

Severus had pulled away once he realised what was happening. Harry was blind drunk. He would have kissed anyone who was there. As much as he wanted to make the beautiful young man his he would not risk the friendship they had built up. "Harry, you don't know what you're doing." He had insisted.

Harry was drunk but not so drunk that he didn't know what was happening. Also, not so drunk that he couldn't feel the hard length pressing into his stomach. "Yes, I do. I want you Severus. I have wanted you for years and I think you want me too." With that he kissed him again, not giving the man a chance to correct him.

They had made love for the first time that night and became a couple the next day, once Harry had assured Severus that this was actually what he wanted.

When Harry had told him that he wanted to be more open in public and tell people that they were together Severus had started that infamous argument where Harry vowed to change the world.

Harry asked for an interview with the Daily Prophet. They sent over Rita Skeeter. Harry refused to let her use the Quick-quotes quill she was infamous for. Instead he told her everything he wanted to appear in the article and then let her go. The next day the headlines screamed, The Man Who Lived To Defeat Voldemort gay and involved with ex-spy!

Harry had taken one look at the headline, sighed and commented to his lover, "Well at least she didn't put Death Eater. I guess my threats worked."

They had received howlers for the next three months straight. Harry received less than Severus but since he was there when they went off he heard the people yelling that he was sick and had hexed Harry Potter. After the first day they had started burning the red envelopes before they began to scream. The staff table always had a nice little bonfire behind it.

But eventually the howlers grew less and less and then there were only the few determined witches and wizards. That was when Harry had decided that a public date might be on the cards. He had discussed it with Severus and they had gone to a play. Of course, reporters had found out and were waiting when the came out but the couple had ignored them steadfastly and apparated away.

The howlers had come again the following morning however they just joined the bonfire. After going out in public every weekend and some weekdays for a whole six months it stopped being reported on. People began to accept it. It took Harry being injured in Defence class by a sixth year student and Severus staying with him in the infirmary for Ron to accept his relationship with the Potions Master.

It should have been a simple banishing spell but one of his sixth year Hufflepuffs, Alisa Brown, was to Defence what Neville Longbottom was to Potions. She somehow managed to change the spell into an almost illegal curse and as luck would have it aim it straight at the professor.

Harry Potter hit the floor with a thud to the shock of his students. Poor Alisa was terrified. If Professor Potter didn't have her expelled then Professor Snape surely would. It was well known that the two were in a relation ship and were very protective of each other.

One of the Gryffindor students managed to gain control of the class and sent one of the Hufflepuffs to fetch Professor Snape. The man came running in barely two minutes later and took his lover up to the Hospital Wing. Poppy informed him that Harry would be fine as long as he woke up. So Severus settled down for the wait. Within an hour Ron, Hermione and the whole Weasley band arrived. However unsettled Severus was by their presence he was not about to abandon his lover to them so he remained seated beside Harry.

After a few hours all but Ron and Hermione left. Then even the infamous other members of the Golden Trio left, leaving Severus alone with his lover. Well for a few minutes anyway. He had just begun talking to Harry, holding his hand lovingly, when the door opened again and Ron came back in. He stopped and took in the scene before him.

"You really do care for him, don't you? Even when you were surrounded by Gryffindors you never left his side or even insulted us. I never noticed that before." Ron's tone was light. "Do you love him?"

"I see no reason to tell you if I do or not, Mr Weasley. My feelings for Harry are between him and I alone." Severus snarked back. He was tired and just wanted the obnoxious man to leave.

The youngest Weasley son had the audacity to smile at that. He had his answer. Snape did love him. And Harry loved Snape. And that, he reasoned, was all he needed to know. "Good night, Snape." He said, almost friendly Severus noticed the tone.

Apparently the boy had accepted the relationship. Took him long enough.

Even Ginny had accepted it before then, even if she was still angry, the life she thought she was going to have had been ripped out from under her. Her dream of marrying Harry was gone. It would take her awhile to recover but Ginny knew that eventually she would.

After a year of dating Harry proposed to the older man, in private, at Christmas. They were married three months after that and had been forced to place extensive wards around Hogwarts to keep the media and other uninvited people out while the ceremony was conducted.

For their second anniversary Harry Potter took his husband out to the most expensive restaurant in Wizarding London. The maîtredigreeted them cordially, "Mr and Mr Potter-Snape, if you would follow me please?"

Barely anyone turned to look at them and if they did it was only because Harry Potter-Snape was possibly the most famous wizard in England.

Harry turned to his husband and whispered heatedly in his ear, "I told you I'd change the world."