Against His Nature

CHAPTER 13

‘Pansy, Crabbe, Goyle, Draco, Seamus, Dean, Longbottom, Granger, Weasel, Pavarti.” Snape paused and opened his eyes having walked the length of the classroom identifying each student by their scent as he passed by them. Snape knew where they were all sitting and had realized half a second late that someone’s scent was missing. He’d become good at this game, and prided himself on his accuracy yet today he’d noticed a mistake. Glaring down at the Gryffindor side of the room Snape mentally went over the scents again. ‘Seamus, Dean, Longbottom, Granger, Weasley and…Potter.’ Snape glared at the boy-who-lived hunched over his potion’s diary scribbling away furiously as he tried to get everything copied down before the lesson ended. Taking a detour around the Gryffindor side of the room Snape lingered behind Potter and took a deep breath in.

Nothing.

The boy was scentless. Snape hadn’t encountered a student yet that didn’t smell of something unique yet Potter’s aura was clean. It was strange that Snape hadn’t spotted it before now but then he supposed he hadn’t actually been looking for faults. Determined to see if the boy smelt of anything, Snape leaned over Harry’s shoulder on the pretense of glancing into the boy’s cauldron. The liquid inside the cauldron was a lavender colour. It should have been a deeper purple and Snape might have taken points if he hadn’t closed his eyes and took a deep breath in while hovering over Harry’s shoulder. This time Snape smelt the faint hint of soap on the boy’s skin and the dry scent of pine that was undoubtedly the boy’s shampoo. There was nothing unique about the scent though, nothing that identified the boy’s mood, his feelings or what he was thinking like the other scents in the room did.

Snape was stunned and didn’t realize he still had his eyes closed until Potter’s breath brushed over his cheek.

“Professor?” Harry’s voice was clearly nervous and Snape snapped open his eyes a little stunned to find himself face to face with the boy who was staring at him closely. Potter let out a sudden gasp as he stared into Snape’s gaze, and it was only then that Snape realized the glamour had slipped revealing the sapphire blue eyes to the boy who was so damn close to him.

“Ten points Mr. Potter for not adding the ‘ground muscle’ quick enough. Class Dismissed!” Snape practically snapped himself in two as he stood up straight and strode hastily to the front of the classroom, conscious to keep his back to the students. Pretending to straighten his papers on his desk Snape watched as the classroom emptied in the reflection of the glass jars behind his desk. When the classroom was finally empty Snape slumped against his desk and hung his head between his arms. He should have felt the glamour slip, he should have had better control over his magic but Potter’s scent, or lack there of, had put him off had made him forget himself. Snape shook his head and reached for his wand casting glamour back over himself. He had to attend dinner today in the great hall and despite wanting nothing more than to take tea in his own quarters, Snape knew better than to defy Dumbledore’s strict orders. Whatever was going to happen at dinner was important and Snape reluctantly had to be there. Gathering his things Snape checked the classroom for cleanliness once more before striding from the room and up the corridors towards the great hall

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“Why do you suppose Fudge and his cronies were here?” Harry flopped down in the armchair of the Gryffindor’s prefect lounge, exhausted after a full day of classes and feeling satisfactorily full after another Hogwart’s feast. Ginny sat down beside him on the padded arm of the chair, her legs slung over Harry’s lap and her arm wrapped around his neck. Harry was uncomfortable sitting like this in front of his friends but didn’t need the embarrassment of kicking Ginny off in disgust. Hermione and Ron sat together on a love seat by the fire, while Dean, Seamus and the Patel twin’s sat around the card table by the window to play chess.

“Checking on everything no doubt.” Hermione muttered being curiously vague. So far only Hermione knew about Harry’s knowledge of the Ministry Law’s and so the pair of them were keeping up the charade of naivety on Harry’s part. Everyone knew why Fudge had come to Hogwart’s. The irritating little man was making sure that the purebloods were doing their duty, the evidence of which had been clear with the amount of couples that had been sitting together at the house tables. Ginny had made a point of sitting beside Harry tonight at the table, where she’d usually have proffered to sit with her friends. Harry proffered her to sit with her friends too but had graciously accepted her company despite the stifled and awkward conversation that had passed between them.

The trio sat in relative quiet discussing the day’s classes, the coming Hogsmeade weekend and the Christmas Holidays. It was late by the time Hermione and Ron got up to go to bed. Harry too deliberately excused himself to bed having hardly spoken to Ginny all evening. Having dropped Hermione and Ginny off at the stairs to the girl’s dormitory Harry and Ron stopped by the bathroom before heading up to their dormitory. Ron stood beside Harry at the basins as they cleaned their teeth.

“My sister was quiet tonight, you two have a fight?” Ron mumbled around a mouthful of toothpaste. Harry swilled his mouth with water before shaking his head.

“No. We’ve just got nothing much to say to one another.” Harry shrugged his shoulders as he washed his face and dried it on his own monogrammed hand towel that hung from the hook in the bathroom.

“Oh, I just thought something might be wrong that’s all.” Ron cautiously glanced at his friend’s reflection in the mirror as Harry headed for the urinals.

“We’re fine Ron, I’ll let you know if we’re not.” Harry didn’t mean to sound as sharp as he did and instantly regretted it as Ron nodded sadly. “Go on up to the dorm, I won’t be long.” Harry called over his shoulder as he pushed aside his pajama bottoms and stepped up to the ceramic bowls. Harry listened as Ron’s feet padded out of the bathroom leaving Harry to relax and slump against the wall as he emptied his bladder. Silence hung in the cool tiled room and Harry closed his eyes as he continued his nightly ritual. Hearing footsteps on the bathroom floor again Harry shook his head. “Ron, I said I wouldn’t be long…” Harry glanced over his shoulder to look irritably back at his best friend but was shocked to find his friends youngest sister standing in the doorway. “Shit, Ginny!” Harry snapped as he quickly tucked himself away and spun around to face the young witch. Ginny was leant against the doorframe her pale blue nighty just long enough to brush against her thighs. Her red hair had been brushed and lay in curly cascades down her shoulders.

“You know don’t you.” Ginny’s voice was icy cold, and wavered a little with what Harry could only describe as fear.

“Know what?” Harry played the dumb card as he walked over to the sinks to wash his hands. Ginny huffed in mock amusement and shook her head tightly.

“Don’t bullshit me Potter, you know about the law and your making me suffer because of my decision.” Harry stared at Ginny’s reflection in the mirror the young red headed witch twisting the lace of her nighty in her hands as she stared at the floor guiltily.

“You could have explained it to me, I wouldn’t have been mad. We could have worked something out.” Harry whispered biting his tongue as the anger that had been building since he’d first found out about the laws threatened to spill forth. Ginny huffed another contemptible laugh and shook her head.

“Worked something out? Like marriage you mean?” Ginny bit sarcastically as she folded her arms almost angrily across her chest. “I agreed to do this Harry as a friend helping out a friend who was going to be in deep shit if I didn’t help. Surprising, as this seems Harry I don’t like you in that way, you’re like another brother to me. I’m sorry but I’m not really attracted to you.” Harry snorted in shocked sarcasm and shook his head in disbelief.

“You say that like it’s supposed to break my heart Ginny well I’m sorry to disappoint you but it’s not. Do you think I’m that shallow and self centered that I think everyone’s in love with me?” Harry could no longer contain his anger, his voice raising several notches so that he was bordering on shouting.

“I didn’t mean it like that Harry I was just pointing out the fact that I’m doing you a favor by agreeing to this. Without me you’d have been swamped by offers from families to fuck their daughters, I though I was doing something good by allowing you to be with someone you knew.” Ginny was shouting now too, although tears were rolling down her eyes unlike Harry who was stoically cold faced.

“Don’t think you’ve done me any favors Ginny Weasley, deceiving me into thinking you like me just to get a root is pretty low even for you. And in all honesty I wouldn’t have considered touching you if I could have helped it. The ministry might rule your family life but I don’t give in to fuck wits like Fudge.” Harry strode towards the exit of the bathroom practically pushing Ginny out of his way as he went.

“Harry please, don’t end it like this. I’m sorry! The Ministry will force you…” Ginny called back but Harry was already striding down the corridor heading in the opposite direction to the Gryffindor dorms.

“Forget it bitch.” Harry muttered beneath his breath as he blindly took each deserted corridor he came to, not quite knowing where he was going but definitely not ready to go back to his dorm despite the lingering curfew.

TBC>>>>

A/N *dusts off hands* and there goes Ginny....and here comes....Sevvy!!!!

Cheers for all the reviews.
RIFFRAFF