Hidden Gray

A/N: Hey!! Where did my reviewers go? *pout* I\'ll make a deal with you all, review and I\'ll post another chapter ubber soon, and belive me it\'s a good one followed by and even better one!! ^^ Chapters 6 isn\'t very long but Chapter 7 is turning out to be my longest chapter yet and we see more pairings as we go, not only that but some more familiar faces from the books as well!
Happy Reading!!

CH.5
~GraY

The conversation following Diegara’s decision to make Snape part of his family[1] had been an awkward one to say the least. Snape had, in the end agreed, a small hope forming in his chest that perhaps the situation would actually turn out for the better. Dumbledore had also, after an hour of persuasion and a few choice words from Diegara, agreed to put Severus’ safety in the Changeling’s capable hands. After the meeting Severus showed Diegara and Harry to his dungeon quarters, Harry and Severus being dismissed from classes for the rest of the day.

“Nice place. More homey than I thought it would be.” Diegara chirped happily poking around the main room. Snape’s gaze followed him cautiously.

“Is he always like this?” The older man asked Harry suddenly.

“Like what?” Harry seemed confused. Diegara was scanning one of the book shelves, his metallic blue eyes moving rapidly. A second later and he was suddenly on the other side of the room looking at something else in wonder. The boy was a hyper one at times, especially when there was learning to be done. Suddenly Harry understood, “Oh. Yeah well, at least he’s an anxious student. You’ve always wanted one of those right?” The boy-who-lived smirked.

“I suppose. I never imagined they would be quite like this though.” Severus sighed; spotting Diegara by his liquor cabinet he walked swiftly over, slamming the door shut, “You are not to touch anything in there, you hardly look old enough to anyway!”

“Severus, I’ve been old enough to drink for a very long time now. Heck, when I was born as long as you could see over the counter you could order anything you wanted! It’s ok.” Diegara patted his shoulder and walked toward what looked to be a kitchenette, “Besides, I’m not much of a drinker!” He grinned over his shoulder and attacked the cabinets.”

Harry chuckled and Severus looked toward the heavens, “Merlin, so help me!”

“Yo Sev, Harry, you guys like sushi?” Diegara asked looking back at them. Harry walked over and leaned on a counter next to the other boy.

“Never had it before. What’s in it?” Severus sighed as Diegara and Harry became submerged into a conversation about Japanese and other foreign food that Diegara had learned to cook over the years. He decided to use this time constructively and put together a room for the two.

It was simple and almost identical to the dorms with a connecting bathroom between their room and his. Rather than giving them a house theme Snape decorated them in neutral colors. It didn’t take him long and when he was done he went to his desk in the main room to grade papers. Harry and Diegara were still chatting away and messing about in the kitchen, Severus just hoped they would clean up said mess. A few moments after the noise died down the Changeling was at his side with a plate of those sushi rolls.

“So, Severus, wanna try one? If you don’t like seaweed I made some with just rice.” The boy nodded to some all white rolls next to the white and green ones.

“I suppose it couldn’t hurt.” Severus cautiously picked up one of the none seaweed rolls and took a bite. He nodded absently and finished of the roll, “I must say they aren’t revolting but I’d rather not have another.”

“Suit yerself, but they’re really good for you!” Diegara winked, “Specially those squid ones.”

Snape froze and looked up at Diegara with a flaming glare, “Excuse me?!” Diegara just giggled and walked away with a, “Oh nothing Sev!” Severus Snape was on the verge of murdering one of the rarest creatures currently on the face of the Earth. This was not a good day in his book.

Another Very Dark Place...


Siting with his lithe legs thrown over one arm of the solid stone throne he sat, the young current leader of the Black Ash clan, listening to his uncle chastize him repeatedly for his out burst at the meeting while his mother stood near by. He didn’t seemed to even be listening to the loud rant that echoed through the mountain-castle’s halls right down to the hellish dungeons near the volcano’s molten core. The only light in the room came from the torches that lined the walls and his uncle’s burning eyes. Rika-Jyn still didn’t see what was so wrong with his words. They might could have been said in a different tone but they were true after all, the Dragoon were the ultimate predator and had been since the dawn of the human existence, even before. The boy twirled a bit of his bangs around his middle finger looking around disinterestedly as his mother watched him closely and his uncle’s rant approached a close, finally!

“Well, boy, what have you to say for yourself?!” His uncle’s large, muscular human form roared. The man looked like that Arnold guy from that Terminator movie which Rika-Jyn had to admit was pretty good for something made by a human. He was tall and strong, but with shoulder length black hair instead of ultra short. The man was also clad in the dark armor and leathers of a warrior of the Black Ash Dark Tribe.

“Well, Uncle Dajeh, first off,” He flicked the older man off and smirked at the anger that arose from the action, “Second, the nasty human needed to be put in his place! He was crossing a well defined line made long before he was even a thought in God’s twisted mind!” The youth ranted back, leaning toward the adults. Dajeh sighed.

“I know what you were tying to do Rika, but it won’t work. That, thing isn’t just a human anymore. It is, maybe in a small way, a threat. I’ve told you this a thousand times!! A successful rule is a balanced one and Voldemort has no balance what so ever! He commands nothing but vengeance and fear. All else who follow him void of one of those emotions is not only playing him like a well tuned fiddle but are a fierce liability.” Rika-Jyn smiled sadly at the older man and left his seat to stand before him, reaching up and holding his face in his hands.

“I know Uncle Dajeh. I’ll be careful and if we’re lucky and I’ve measured my moves right, about the time that this ‘Dark Lord’ is staking his victory, his forces will be even less trusting in him than they already are. We will be able to brake him like cheap glass, tug victory right out from under his disgusting form!” Rika-Jyn grinned sadistically and clenched his fists as he drew away from his uncle.

“If you plan to keep up with this foolishness then you better be right! Now go see your father. He’s been asking after you all day, the poor fool, and keep Kalista on a short leash! The woman’s nearly drove a dozen good soldiers to the knife with her insanity!” With that Dajeh turned on his heel and stalked off leaving a pouting Rika-Jyn in his wake. After the older man left his mother came up behind him, draping her pale arms across his slim shoulders.

“Why so sad my lovely?” She whispered snakishly. Rika-Jyn smiled at his mother, the woman was insane, he knew this, everyone had since the accident, but sometimes she made the best company and most intelligent points.[2]

“You know why your lovely is sad mother. He wants the approval of his stubborn uncle.” The boy turned and smirked at his mother’s dark, glassy eyes and worried face.

She was a slim woman, about his height with long inky black hair. Her eyes were a bright emerald and a scarlet diamond was painted on her forehead. Her lips were glossed in a bloody crimson, same as her cheeks that shined with red blush sprinkled with crushed pearls. Her violet eyes were lined in liquid silver and brushed with a dark bronze. A rather simple but elegant black and silver gothic dress flowed about her, the sleeves slipping down to reveal the tops of her pale shoulders; constantly enticing many of the guards around the castle. In a special little way all her own she was especially beautiful in her insanity. It was a wonder that she was still alive to most but they didn’t know as much or as well as Rika-Jyn or his father did. She had an intelligence that was unique to only the insane and her seeing abilities hadn’t been dulled in the least by her breakdown. Over the years Rika-Jyn had come to love this version of his mother more than the old one, this one never with held emotion that she wanted to show him, be it love or hate. She had done that constantly before and it always frustrated Rika-Jyn to no end but now to him all was right in the world. If only his father would get better.

“So sad Fire Fly, why? He is so bright and so alive, you fear to love him, for he will die. Ashes flowing in the wind like butterflies with black and blood wings, sweat like honey on summer! Yummy! Can we have some with tea Fire Fly, when the Gray and the Loneliness visits?! Oh the Loneliness, the Loneliness!! It has a companion, oh how Scotch and Silver go with Loneliness, yummy, yummy, like Thunder and Clouds! I hope the sticky black Rain will go away, I don’t want it to put out my pretty Fire Fly!” She took hold of Rika-Jyn tenderly and held him against her pale chest rocking him gently.

“Don’t worry Mother, your Fire Fly isn’t going anywhere. Now lets go see father, Dajeh said he was asking for me.” The woman pulled back suddenly taking the boy’s hands and pulling him along, out of the throne room.

“Oh yes! Jy-Jy wishes to see his light, the Fire Fly has to keep him from getting covered in the ink that the Thunder has spilled in his foolishness, yes, yes! Don’t want our Clouds raining at night, a bad thing it tis!” Rika-Jyn chuckled at her rambles. The woman giggled and skipped off dragging her son with her.

A/N:
[1] Changelings(and Dragoons) who’s parents have died or those who have been banished, try to ‘reconstruct’ their own brand new families. Changelings are very social and family orientated creatures, they crave contact with others, specifically intimate contact but are very picky with who they allow themselves to get close to, Dragoons tend to be less picky and needy of the contact at first. So this new family becomes extremely important, especially in the case of banishment(Banishment is mostly the same for both races). Being banished is rare in Changeling society(a tad more frequent in Dragoon Society) and leaves the banished extremely depressed and sometimes even leads to a form of insanity. Some die of a Broken Heart before they can find a new family. Those who do find a new family become very attached to them and desperate to please and protect, they fear being banished again even more than their own death.
Those who’s family dies have a better chance of living and can settle with ‘close friends’ who aren’t quite family but make good substitutes(Many Dragoons who loose their families or Clans end up becoming solitary and dying early). If you are just a close friend then that means you are already a part of another family. In Diegara’s case Harry was the first person he let into his new family because Diegara intrusted him with his most precious secrete, his Changeling and Dragoon identity, and dedicated himself to protecting Harry as a brother.

[2] I was thinking about Dru from Buffy the Vampire Slayer when I came up with Rika’s mother’s character. I love Dru, she’s awesome!! Also, Dragoons aren’t normally female but I felt that Rika-Jyn should be special and have an actual ‘mother’. I may add one more female dragoon later on but I’m not sure.