Impetus Amortentia

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything else affiliated with it that is copyrighted material. If I did, then HP would be anything but a children's book. -insert evil laugh-

Author's Note: This is just a short one-shot my mind had been dancing around for a while. I decided to finally write it after randomly Googling 'writing challenge' and got something about a store and a trash can at the end. Hope you guys like it, this is my first story for this fandom. :D

Story Note: Alternate Universe-ish, Harry did not study in Hogwarts, though almost everything about Severus is pretty much the same. No Voldemort, light slash. :)

Now, on with the show!

Nobody was in the Apothecary at the moment, and he allowed himself to rest his chin on his elbow, leaning on the counter. Absentmindedly, he eyed the small crystal vial in his hand. "Impetus Amortentia" the shop owner whispered, more to the intoxicating haze hanging in the shop's air space than to himself. The clerk's Avada Kedavra-green eyes trailed over the coldly sharp yet smooth contours of the vial, then to the ruby red liquid velvet swimming around inside.

It was more of an accident, really, that he created this potion. This potion that was decidedly more potent than your normal Amortentia. It's far too dangerous, I shouldn't even contemplate using it… reasoned a small part of Harry's – the clerk of the apothecary – consciousness. But what choice do I have? He won't even look at me otherwise.

Stronger than Amortentia, yet more cunning, more silent, more deadly. It wasn't like that crude 'love potion' (mind the air quotes) that had you losing all sense of dignity and former self, heavens no! The Impetus Amor made you slowly realize your feelings. They silently creep up on you, making you believe those feelings were your own, until it turned into an all-consuming burning passion.

Yes, but is that what you really want?

Harry damned that always rational Ravenclaw portion of his brain. It always seemed to sneak out at the worst of times, and almost always conspiring with his bloody Gryffindor side too!

Honor be damned! This is love, a battlefield where the winner was the one who rigged the gun in Russian Roulette!

The bell on the entrance door tinkled though, announcing a customer and shoving away Harry's musings. He slid the potion into the folds of his robes with a practiced grace; mostly acquired through potions brewing, but also from hiding said potion from customers. Ridiculous, really. Why would he feel the need to hide such an amazing invention?

Well, the young potions would rather die than be caught contemplating actually using a love potion. Especially if the person that caught him would happen to be a certain tall, pale, elegant and sexy…

"Mr Potter."

Holy mother of a Wrackspurt!

"P-Professor Snape! W-what brings you here on a weekday?" no, he absolutely, positively did not stutter. Twice.

Snape seemed to ignore his fumble. "I need some fluxweed, it seems my inventory has been lacking some ingredients lately, and Archer & Atwood's Apothecary is the only shop I trust to supply me with these kinds of ingredients," Snape said in that low, soothing and yet sharp voice of his. The sound traversed Harry's spine and left him shivering. If Harry didn't know better, he would've said that Snape caught the motion, but he waved it off. He wouldn't be that attentive of me. Why would he?

"Ah, we just procured some last Saturday, Professor! Just wait a moment and I'll go get some. A galleon's worth I presume?" asked the clerk as he made to enter the apothecary storage room.

"Make it two," replied Snape.

"Alright."

Severus could not help but let his eyes trail over the lithe body of the clerk as he left. How many months had the boy been working here? Six, seven maybe? Archer & Atwood had only been open for a year and a half by the time the boy was employed, and the store quickly garnered a reputation of being a very trusted dealer in all potions needs. Even those that, ah… fell beyond the imposed line of law.

Severus noticed him from the very first time he came and saw not old Atwood or Archer behind the counter, but a young boy that looked around seventeen. Severus had been cordial enough and learned that Harry studied in Durmstrang until his fourth year, but had to drop out and be home schooled due to his parents' work's demanding constraints.

The boy didn't elaborate past this detail, and Severus let it go. It appeared that both business partners and Potions masters Atwood and Archer had taken Harry under their wings and made him an apprentice. Now, Severus had heard much of those two in the potions world and was adequately surprised to find such a young man in their tutelage. His doubts were settled though, when he found out that most of the potions he had been ordering, potions he had not time to brew – and these potions were not to be taken lightly – were brewed by Harry himself. Such a feat at seventeen!

Though, the boy's skill had not been what had caught Severus' eye at the beginning. It was his features. Severus was not a shallow man, nor could he ever be with his face; but the boy! The boy was simply divine! Harry had an angelically fair complexion, – Severus guessed it was from brewing potions all day underground – creamy white, his shaggy hair stuck up everywhere, and fell to about his jaw, the bangs drawing the onlooker to his shockingly green eyes. Partner them with a cute nose and luscious pink lips, and Harry made quite a sight for sore eyes. Severus had half a mind to thank any deity out there that gave Harry the presence of mind to shield his hair from the toxic fumes of some potions, seeing as it was still soft and lustrous, unlike his own greasy matted hair.

"Sorry I took so long, they have to be put under a strong stasis and protection charm, and I had a bit of trouble getting to them! I guess I cast it a little too well," Harry chuckled, placing a silver drawstring pouch onto the counter. Severus only made a noncommittal sound in the back of his throat. Harry was about to break from logging the purchase in the inventory to question the man's strange behavior when he realized that Snape was staring at him. Staring. Snape. Him!

Harry tried hard to control the blush that nearly exploded onto his cheeks, but he still could not help stuttering. "P-Professor, is t-there something wrong? Did you need something else?" Harry was relieved to hear that the last half of that sentence sounded like he was at least remotely in control of his turbulent hormones. As the Professor continued to stare at him, Harry could not pull away from staring at the soft hair that fell to Snape's shoulders, the poised shoulders he wished to caress, his slim torso, shapely arms he so wanted to hold tightly onto as Snape hovered above him, panting in his ear and –

"Would you like to have lunch with me sometime, Potter?"

Harry jerked awake from the completely inappropriate fantasy he was having. Ah, if only he had made a list of what Snape could possibly answer to 'Did you need something else?' then one could see how far away from number one that answer would be.

But in the time it took for that sentence to lazily make its way through Harry's frazzled mind, Harry's body had already made its decision for it. Not before making his face explode in a charming shade of crimson though. His head, dizzy with all the blood flowing into it, shakily nodded yes.

Harry still thought he was dreaming when a corner of Snape's delectable lips quirked up in what appeared to be a pleased grin. His eyes too! The eyelids drooped ever so slightly in satisfaction, apparently at Harry's answer. Oh lord, have mercy!

"I seem to recall Mr Atwood saying you had Wednesdays off. Would you mind coming with me then?" Severus asked the boy. He inwardly mused if he had ever seen anyone turn that red in his life. Harry could only give another muted nod in return.

Severus could not help but actually quirk both corners of his lips this time.

"Splendid," the potions master said, not before deigning, as Harry had immediately turned even more impossibly red when he smiled, that no, he hadn't seen anyone turn as red as Harry was right now in his life. Severus placed his two galleons onto the counter, collected his purchase, and left with that sexy gait of his, black robes billowing and all.

Harry let out a shaky breath as his eyes unfocused when the Professor left the shop. His strikingly green eyes became glazed; head slightly leant back on his shoulders, lips parted open to suck in a calming breath. Calming breath? Well, not so much a calming breath as it was a breath to make sure he was alive and all that wasn't a dream or a divine vision bestowed onto him as he left this realm. He wasn't dead, right? Right?

Almost habitually, Harry pulled out the vial of Impetus Amor from his robes. He couldn't help but press his lips together to suppress the amazingly idiotic smile that threatened to break his face. His expression was of a HA!-I-didn't-need-to-use-such-an-idiotic-potion-after-all kind.

Severus was already nearly out of Knockturn Alley when he remembered that he needed some Egyptian Scarab Beetles. He hurriedly turned on his heel to return to Atwood & Archer. Severus was only a few steps away from opening the door when the sight in the window made him stop and stare. Again. Really, if it were anybody else in his shoes, he would have chastised them severely for their atrocious manners! But alas, this was quite the exception.

For when Severus Snape happened to glance at the store window – and he was thankful he did before he entered – there was one Harry Potter and one broomstick in a very intimate waltz. As soon as Severus made sure that he would not be seen, he peered closer and found an expression of absolute wonder and giddiness on the boy. Severus found this extremely endearing – as if he weren't drawn to the boy enough already! Severus allowed himself to conclude that the only reason Harry was like this was because Severus asked him out. That was a pleasant thought indeed.

When Severus had had enough – correction – he would never have enough of Harry. Knockturn just suddenly had an influx of customers and he was afraid to get caught staring at the young apprentice with such a charmed expression on his face as well. He would never admit to the last part of that sentence though. Ever.

So, when Severus could not risk his ego any longer, he reluctantly bolted from the store front, completely forgetting the beetles. Sometime after this, Harry also had enough of waltzing with his imaginary Snape and decided he must return to properly manning the store before the sudden influx of Knockturn customers came in for the afternoon rush (well, it wasn't really a rush, more like the slow trickle of customers turned into a steady flow). Thus Harry resumed his spot behind the counter and as per habit, took out the vial of Impetus Amor he put away when the broomstick oh-so-kindly asked him to a dance. Harry merely rolled his eyes at the thought of ever slipping Severus Snape a drop of this. The sexy man would surely notice!

So with a determined yet adorably foolish air, Harry turned to the trash bin in the corner of his counter and dumped in the vial with a relish. The world had no need for such a love potion!

And Harry definitely didn't need it either.