A Change of Feeling

Family Matters, part I

A finger slid from his jawline, down his neck to his collarbone. Very gently another finger was added and soon a whole hand was gently stroking the alignments of Harry's tattoo. Fingers stroked the hard lines of the tattoo with devotion, following every sign or symbol.

Harry felt a shiver run down his spine. This was not a thrill of fear, but rather a thrill of passion and anticipation. It was a tension of what is yet to come, a prediction of passion and desire. Harry's skin seemed to be on fire, the warmth of the rough fingers lingered with every touch. His body reacted treacherously to the touch and seemed to crave the attention given by those wondrous fingers.

There was a soft groan, the sound waking Harry from his daze. His head shot up and he looked straight into the obsidian black eyes. Harry saw a small silver circle around the irises, which gave the eyes a mysterious look. Harry looked away and blushed when he realized the groan was coming from his mouth.

Rabastan chuckled softly and bowed his head to the trembling raven-haired boy's face. "Shhh, hush little raven. I won't hurt you." He gently cupped his cheeks.

Harry felt the warm breath pass from his lips, like a sensual promise. His breath caught and he looked startled into Rabastan's dark eyes. Rabastan's lips floated above Harry's.

"I want to thank you for your present Harry. Your blanket-" He defiantly licked his upper lip with his tongue. "Your blanket had a surprisingly positive effect on me."

Rabastan's lips slid as lightly as a feather from the corner of Harry's mouth to his cheeks. There the lips remained. Rabastan gave Harry a soft kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you, little raven."

Rabastan stepped back and released Harry from his intimidating presence. Harry let out a stuttering breath, he didn't know he'd been holding. He blinked and looked down. He realized with a shock that he was still undressed, so he quickly walked over to the chair over which his shirt was draped. He quickly put on his white shirt and blushed at the thought that Rabastan had seen him without a shirt.

In the meantime, Corvus had taken charge of the situation and had called several house-elves. Corvus had asked Bibi to take care of Rabastan. Harry could understand that very well, Bibi had lovingly taken care of Harry for the past week, he had no doubt that the elf would enjoy taking care of Rabastan.

"Harry?"

Harry looked up from his musings and looked at Corvus questioningly.

"Would you like to escort Rabastan to his room? He will return to his old rooms. These are next to yours."

Harry swallowed but nodded his head in agreement. He took a closer look at the man in question. Rabastan looked tired, all previous bravado had disappeared. The man seemed to stagger on his feet but seemed too proud to ask for help. Harry straightened his back and walked over to Rabastan. He offered his arm in silence and looked at Rabastan.

A nod of his head was all that indicated Rabastan accepted his support. Harry thought Rabastan was going to grab his arm, and was surprised when he was pressed against the man's side. Harry could feel all of Rabastan's bones, from the protruding ribs to the angular shapes of his hip. He looked at the man in alarm, because of the previous interaction he had not expected Rabastan's physical condition to be so troubling.

"Nothing to worry about, Harry." came the smoky voice of Rabastan. The man reinforced his words by squeezing Harry's shoulder, with the hand he had now placed around the smaller boy.

The pair walked together towards Rabastan's apartments, with Rabastan relying heavily on Harry. Harry adjusted his steps to Rabastan's, who walked slower than the younger man. Before the stairs, Harry paused for a moment. "Are you still okay?" he asked worriedly.