Against His Nature

CHAPTER 21

“You’ll have to bend the truth Severus, the boy will run a mile if he knows what he’s in for.” Octavia reclined on the bed his arms behind his head as he watched his younger student slowly dress himself in front of the chest of draws.

“I can’t lie to him.” Severus glanced over his shoulder as he straightened his waistcoat; smoothing out invisible crinkles with a careful hand.

“I’m not suggesting lying to him, just omitting to tell him certain aspects of a very complex relationship.” Octavia grinned cheekily as he rolled over onto his side as Severus moved around to the side of the bed in order to sit and pull on his boots.

“If I fuck this up Octavia, I won’t get a second chance. I might as well start taking the potion again and just leave the Ministry to hook me up with some family whore.” Octavia chuckled at Severus’ pessimistic tone of voice. As a young student Severus had never had much faith in his own abilities. The boy was gifted both in magic and his family’s abilities but he’d lack the social skills needed for self-confidence. Severus hadn’t changed much in the years, although the Dark Lord’s presence in his life had wearied a Vampire that should never tire or grow old.

“You look nice.” Octavia changed the subject as Severus got up from the edge of the bed and pulled on his clean teaching robe.

“Do you think I’ll make him suspicious?” Severus stood in front of his mirrored wardrobe door and took in his appearance before glancing back at Octavia in the reflection behind him.

“I think he’ll be to nervous to even notice to be honest but I’m appreciating the view so that’s all that should matter…” Severus narrowed his gaze at Octavia in the reflection but before he could snap at the elder Vampire the wards to Snape’s chambers shivered right before two loud knocks echoed from the sitting room. “He’s early?” Octavia sat up quickly from the bed and was just heading for the fireplace and the floo network when Severus grabbed his arm and stopped him.

“It’s Draco.” Severus sighed and wandered into his living room, where with a flick of his wand he opened the door to stare at his Slytherin student. “What do you want?” Snape stood between Draco and the living room successfully keep Draco’s wandering gaze away from Octavia who was listening to the conversation from over by the fireplace.

“I came to tell you thanks. It worked.” Draco dug around in his pocket for a moment before passing the vial back to Snape who quickly squirreled it away in his own cloak pocket with a scowl of irritation.

“Seeing as though it was my potion that brought this about can I have the displeasure of knowing to whom it was given?” Draco blushed a little and lowered his gaze to the floor.

“Hermione Granger.” Draco whispered, only glancing up once to catch the slight shock on Snape’s face before the usual stern mask of disregard fell back into place.

“Well your father will be pleased won’t he? You know how to piss of Lucius don’t you Draco?” Snape muttered in the most sarcastic tone he could muster. If it was not bad enough that Draco had defied his father’s wishes in courting Snape, the boy had gone and fallen in love with a mud blood. Draco nodded guiltily and Snape sighed heavily at the boy’s own inability to stand up to his father. “Fine I will sort everything out once I have found my own mate, now get lost before I remove points for interrupting my evening.” With a nod Draco scuttled away leaving Snape to close the door and make his way back over to join Octavia who’d sat himself down in the armchairs in Severus’ front living room.

“Lucius Malfoy won’t take this lying down, he’s determined to have an immortal heir. I heard whispers in the pub that he’s asking around about our kind.” Snape flicked his wand in the direction of his liquor cabinet and poured both himself and Octavia a glass of whisky with careful control of his wand.

“Lucius Malfoy is an irritation, that would Voldemort not notice his loss I would eradicate with a single curse.” Snape sipped his whisky enjoying the calming burn that slid down his throat. Octavia smiled at his student and shook his head.

“You Severus Snape are a demanding son of bitch. I would not wish to be in Potter’s shoes if he should agree to be your donor. The boy doesn’t stand a chance.” The joke was met with a mild smile of acknowledgement from Snape before again the wards shivered as someone approached Snape’s door outside. “That will be him, so I shall take my leave.” Both Octavia and Snape stood up from their chairs, Octavia downing the whisky in one go before stepping towards the fireplace. “Be gentle Severus, the boy has spirit you would no wish to break it too soon.” With a wink Octavia had left in a green eruption of flames from the fireplace leaving Severus to glance over his appearance once more before answering the door.

The boy stood nervously back from the door into Snape’s office as it swung open to reveal the potion’s professor in his usual immaculate dress. Harry was out of breath having run the distance from the Quidditch field to the dungeons with no stops. He’d been at Gryfindor’s Quidditch practice but it had run late and one thing Harry knew Snape hated was tardiness.

“Sorry, we lost a bludger over the forest.” Harry rushed out hastily his gaze firmly planted on the floor as he fiddled with the hems on his muddy Gryfindor shirt. Snape arched a smooth eyebrow as he glanced over Harry’s bedraggled, wet and muddy appearance.

“You better come on through, mind you take off your boots though.” Snape turned and led the way through his office to the door at the back of the room. Harry had always wondered what was through the door in Snape’s office but had never had the courage to neither look nor ask. Opening the door Snape stepped into his private living room and paused briefly to watch Harry ogle at the room in surprise. “I like my luxuries.” Snape muttered feeling the sudden need to explain his cluttered but luxurious chambers. “The boots!” Snape snapped as Harry went to take a step into the room. The boy blushed and hastily bent over to pull off his riding boots. Snape’s gaze lingered on the boy’s backside in the tight riding leathers a little too long and instantly chastised himself for the slip. The boy was intoxicating and Snape thanked Merlin for small mercies, that the boy’s scent was masked by rain, dirt and stale sweat.

With the boots gone Harry padded silently into the warm quiet room and took in his surroundings. Snape had disappeared into an adjacent room and so Harry was free to peruse the potion professor’s tastes in décor and his impressive collection of books and wizarding artifacts.

“You can sit on the towel and I’ve ordered coco from the house elves.” Snape returned to the living room to drape a purple colored towel across the second mostly unused armchair beside the fire. Harry gingerly sat down on it conscious of the fact he was dripping wet and covered in mud. Snape sat himself down in his own armchair facing the boy, who was now fidgeting nervously. The pair sat in silence for a long time before the pop and crackle of magic signaled the arrival of the house elf with two mugs of coco and a plate of shortbread. Harry thankfully cupped the warm mug in his hand as he stared at Snape above the rim of his mug.

“Well you can start Potter, I do believe you asked for this meeting after all.” Snape reclined back in his armchair; successfully hiding the swell of nervousness that rose in his throat as he wondered what Harry was going to ask first. Harry nodded in silence and took a deep sip of his coco before placing it on the side table and reaching into the pocket of his shirt. Snape watched both in amusement and surprise as Harry pulled out a small folded piece of parchment and smoothed it out so that he could read it properly. “Miss Granger’s influence no doubt.” Snape motioned to the piece of parchment in Harry’s hand. The boy blushed and nodded almost guiltily. “You do realize my condition is meant to be a private matter Mr. Potter?”

“She worked it out herself.” Harry whispered quickly by way of explanation. Snape didn’t swallow the lie but nodded for Harry to continue.

“First off, I want to know what a ‘donor’ does exactly.” Snape’s lip curled in irritation of the question, having expected something far more complicated for his first question.

“Exactly what it means Mr. Potter, you willingly allow me to harvest your blood.” Harry ignored the biting sarcasm determined more than ever to see he got answers to the questions Hermione had instructed him to.

“Okay, how do you do that?” Harry pressed already feeling sweat breaking out on his forehead in nervousness. Snape chewed his bottom lip unconsciously with his right incisor as he thought through his next reply. Octavia had told him not to scare the boy but how could he not scare him when ultimately the answer would be through a bite.

“A single bite to a pulse point usually the neck but not confined. A donor may choose where the blood is harvested from.” Harry nodded and Snape breathed a small sigh of relief that he hadn’t run screaming from the room. Snape shouldn’t have expected anything but Gryfindor courage from the boy though, determined even in the face of fear itself.

“Alright, now how often?” Harry unconsciously reached up and wiped the sweat from his brow and loosened the collar on his tunic, hardly believing how hot he was becoming under Snape’s penetrating stare. Snape catalogued every flinch of the boy’s face and every movement he made, slowly gaining a better incite into the boy’s thoughts. Not that it wouldn’t have been just as easy to penetrate the boy’s mind via occlumency but he needed to build trust and there was no trust in force.

“Twice a week should be sufficient for a Vampire of my age and health, although should I require you may be asked to donate more often.” Again Harry nodded the heat of being in Snape’s rooms now becoming overwhelming. Harry found himself physically panting as he tugged at his tunic and undid the buttons with a fumbling mess of shaky hands. Harry didn’t know what had come over him so suddenly; he’d been fine outside, almost cold in the wet windy night air. Snape watched the scene playing out before his eyes with rapture. The boy body was responding to him, his magic reaching out to Snape’s making the boy feel like he was in a furnace. Snape had witnessed the first connections of magic in a Vampire’s mating several times as a young man. He’d been witness to Octavia’s first mate and the poor woman’s gasps for air as her body had reacted with the Vampire’s. Harry was experiencing a similar reaction to Snape’s strong unconscious magic, and the sight was very pleasant in Snape’s opinion.

“Is it hot in here or is it just me?” Harry stood up abruptly and dragged his tunic over his head leaving him in a white singlet that clung to his slender but toned upper body with sweat. Snape managed to keep his expression the same despite the urge to smile smugly at the power he now held over Harry. Harry’s reaction was a good sign; it meant he was receptive to Snape’s magic, to his attentions and ultimately to his mating. The boy didn’t know it yet but he’d already been marked by his potion’s master.

“I’ll cool the room a little if you like.” Feeling somewhat sorry for the boy Snape flicked his wand and lowered the temperature in the room a good five-degree’s for Harry’s sake. If the boy overheated and passed out the night would be ruined. Harry relaxed in the cooler air as he slumped back down onto the towel and breathed a ragged sigh of relief.

“Okay back to the questions,” Harry glanced back at his parchment already halfway through the short list. Better able to focus now without the head, Harry read the next question allowed. “Will anything happen to me by agreeing to do this?” Snape frowned a little and so Harry clarified. “Magically I mean, will it affect my school work.” Snape worried his bottom lip again with the same pointy incisor plotting a reply that would neither be lying nor be the truth. In truth Harry’s magic would play havoc until some sort of equilibrium between them was established through the shared transfer of blood but that wasn’t what Harry needed to hear if the boy was going to agree to being the donor in the first place.

“The collection process might tire you when we first begin, which in turn will affect your magic a little but in time you’ll grow used to it.” Snape was good at lying; he’d had nearly twenty years of experience at doing so under Voldemort careful gaze. Harry accepted the explanation after careful inspect of Snape’s expression, no doubt trying to find the aspect of falsehood in the professors face.

“One more.” Harry whispered as he folded the parchment back up and put it in his pocket again. “Will you share me with your other Vampire friend?” The question was surprising but Snape’s answer came automatically out, accompanied by a small growl in the back of his throat.

“No, I don’t share what’s mine.” Harry’s eyes widened a little in fear as Snape’s gaze turned the sea blue and the man bared his teeth.

“Sorry I asked.” Harry muttered as he stood up abruptly from the armchair and shuffled over to where his boots were still beside the door. Snape got up to cursing his inability to control certain aspects of his nature. He’d scared the boy, just like Octavia had told him not to.

“Potter I…” Snape went to apologies but Harry cut him off.

“I agree to be your donor, with your attitude like that I figure I might as well be under the protection a Vampire than turn you down and risk being lunch anyway.” Snape was floored, and totally speechless as he watched Harry hurriedly pull on his boots again. “Thank-you for the coco sir, I have no doubt you’ll come and find me when you want something.” With a shrug of his shoulders Harry had left leaving Snape panting heavily as he inhaled deeply on the scent around him, and the lingering taste of Harry in the air. With a shudder of excitement Snape warded his rooms again and strode over to the chair Harry had previously occupied. Snape tore the towel from the armchair and held it up to his nose and inhaled deeply. Under the dirt, the rain and the sweat there was the hint of fragrance that only Harry Potter could produce. Shaking his head clear of the scent Snape took the towel with him as he disappeared into his bedroom for the night. The boy had agreed to be his donor but that was far from the end of it….

TBC>>>>

A/N

Alright hands up who got soooo smashed on new years that not only did they send dirty text messages to strangers but they wrote some rather disturbing but amusing fan fiction??????

Okay now hands up, who got some loving, for being very talented at writing fiction???

If you stuck your hand up to both of these questions, fuck off you lucky bastards! I alas only got one of these things, I'll let you decide which .....*hint the title of chapter 20......*

Anyway Happy New Year, and I thought I'd kick the new year off with a nice round update, that promises so much more in the next chapter...

Cheers for all the reviews, and headache tablets all round for those of us still nursing hangovers from the week long party that is New Year.

RIFFRAFF