Severus' eyelids flutter lightly at Remus' lips against his skin, the warm weight of his lover's body, but they don't open. His hands slide up over Remus' back, holding him close.

He will have to stay more in the Dark Lord's company from now on, should Potter against odds succeed in finding him.

But for now, neither have a place in his mind. For too long has he thought of nothing else and he needs a break from it, admitting to a strong need inside him. For Remus, for comfort, for love, all things that have seemed lost, until now.

"I love you," Severus murmurs as he tilts his face down and turns towards Remus to kiss him, slowly, lingeringly, lovingly. It is almost an incantation, a ward surrounding them and a core of Severus' being, a safety against the raging madness around them.