What If

Sorry its been so long! I have decided to upload all other chapters at once because they are done and I keep forgetting to update…..and you guys deserve the rest of the story for being patient with me!!



Thank you for the awesome reviews! and Enjoy!





OOO



Chapter 7: Not All News is Good News



OOO



Ron groaned as he looked at the clock on the wall.



Two more hours.



He just had to wait two more hours and then he could go home and get ready for his date.



His date.



The redhead flushed as he looked at the clock again. He knew that must have looked like a student counting down the seconds until the bell finally tolled but he couldn’t help it.



Draco had demanded they go somewhere after Halloween since most places would be too busy during the holiday celebration. Ron had agreed and tried to keep things on a ‘just friends’ term while in the apartment but the blonde seemed to be spending most of his time trying to steal kisses from Ron.



Steal kisses and gropes.



It was at that moment that a paper airplane had decided to land on the desk in front of him. He closed his eyes and prayed to God that it wasn’t an emergency and that it was just some little reminder that they all had to go to the conference on Tuesday next week. He poked the envelope at first in aggravation because if it was something bad he knew he would have to go but if it wasn’t anything bad then he could just walk out of this place and go on the date he had been looking forward to all weekend.



But Ron forgot about how much God hated him.



He read it once before crumpling it to the ground and grabbing his stuff. Other Aurors were now rising from their seats too and Ron counted that six of them were heading to Blackpool because there had been an attack on a wizarding suburb.



“I knew we would be together on this one.” Ron turned to see Harry running over to catch up with him, “Any more details.”



“I got the same note you did mate.” Ron stated as they passed a desk before he suddenly stopped and turned to the older witch that had been typing. “Can you send a note to Hogwarts for me?”



The witch eyed him letting him know that she did not want to have to go out of her way just before her shift ended just so he could send a message but upon seeing that he was an Auror sighed and handed him a piece of paper.



Ron scribbled fast knowing that Harry was right behind him and that they would really have to get to Blackpool as he threw the paper back at her and turned to catch up with the other Aurors who were now lining up to apparate.



“Who did you need to let know you had a mission?” Harry asked him before they both apparated.



They landed on a dock and looked around the cold looking city. Ron looked back at Harry who was continuing the conversation despite the scenery change. “I thought you lived alone.”



Ron hadn’t told Harry about Draco’s forced move and the redhead decided he would only say something if Harry asked about it. They would still hang out after work and Ron did try to get teamed up with Harry more often than not but Harry liked to take the most dangerous and the longest of missions.



Quite frankly Ron was tired of running around all the time. He had done enough of that in his time at Hogwarts.



“Just letting my dad know, I think he was expecting me for dinner.” Ron lied, he never ate dinner at the school unless he had actual business to be there.



“But you addressed it to the dungeons…” Harry stated but before was cut off by their superiors yelling at them. They made quick work of obliviating the muggles that had witness the terrible fight in this normal looking neighborhood, instead now all the news would say is that there was a gas leak in one of the houses.



Ron went over to the house that was no longer there and surveyed the lawn before looking at something that was smoking in the bushes. “What happened here?”



“They’re saying the woman who lived here was attacked by…..” Harry paled as he read down the paper while Ron bent down and picked up the hot metal sign. “Ron…”



Ron turned the sign and read the name on it.



“Travers was the Death Eater that disappeared during the battle wasn’t he?” Harry caught Ron’s attention as the redhead turned to Harry holding up the sign.



Neither spoke as they looked at the sign with dread. There were only so many pureblood families left in the wizarding world and even then they were a dying breed. Ron dropped the sign before he turned and walked into the wreckage while Harry ran off to go find out what happened to the witch that lived here.



The sign that lay in the grass was anything but forgotten as it shown the letters L-O-N-G-B-O-T-T-O-M in a purple print that reminded them both of the time they had tried to turn Trevor purple.



OOO



“If you are just going to pout all day then I suggest you do it elsewhere.” Snape barked at Malfoy who had just sighed for the tenth time.



Draco just pouted at him as he threw in some of the ingredients in his cauldron and stirred it silently. He had just gotten the letter from Ron and it was frankly very scarce on the details. He looked at again as if more information would suddenly pop up but nothing came and he continued to stir.



Hogwarts dungeons-



Something came up. Can’t make it tonight.



Sorry,

Ron



If the redhead was just having second thoughts about the whole thing Draco didn’t mind. Draco actually didn’t care much for dating, he had done enough of it with Pansy during school here and he felt that if he never had to go on a date again then life would be good. But he didn’t think Ron was the type to skip the whole dating scenario, the redhead had proved to be rather shy at the thought of a relationship.



Maybe it was a relationship with Draco?



Draco stirred a little faster than was meant to at this. If Ron didn’t want a relationship with him then why was the git letting him stay at his apartment? Share his bed? Though Draco had to admit he was only allowed in the bed if he was fully clothed and didn’t try anything.



He still tried something every now and then.



It was more than obvious the blond hadn’t even bothered to try and look for another place to stay because Draco was still there. The Malfoy named might have been tarnished but their gold wasn’t.



Malfoy name.



Draco snorted as he stopped stirring and watched the potion spin silently. His father was going to be out of prison next year thanks to his mom helping Harry defeat the Dark Lord. His mom still hadn’t recovered all the way after she realized she was the last of her sisters, and Draco prayed that his father would be able to pull her together.



Hermione had written a good chapter dedicated to his family, Draco thought idly as he wondered about the book. Nothing biased against them though Draco wondered how many times the Granger girl had to bite her tongue after all the horrible things he called her during the school year. She had interviewed him almost a year ago about what happened and they had been on friendlier terms ever since.



Friendlier meaning they didn’t speak much.



But now he was just distracting himself from the problem at hand. Ron wasn’t coming to their first date and now Malfoy had dinner reservations in London that he wasn’t going to use.



He turned to Snape who was now proceeding to inspect every plant Neville had given him that day as if there had to be something wrong with them and it was only really tiny so that you had to squint your eyes to see it. He quickly shook the idea about taking Snape to dinner out of his head as he was sure the dark haired wizard would probably hex him for even asking.



Lupin had just gotten back from a full moon this morning so that was a no. The light haired man had only been sore from what the transformation did to his body but other than that it had been a success.



Apparently Lupin and Arthur were now an item but Draco didn’t know what to think about that. He thought Lupin was a good catch and Arthur wasn’t bad looking so they went together.



Draco picked up a root and stared at it for a second. Maybe he could take Neville with him? They had gotten closer since he had started training here for the past weeks and Draco idly wondered what they would talk about before looking at Snape.



Yes they would probably have to talk about the potion slave driver some time during the night.



“Are you needing something or is staring just something you have acquired from your lack of manners that you have developed recently.” Snape glared at Draco who proceeded to turn away and look at his potion.



He bit his lip as he realized he had been making the wrong thing. This was definitely not what a shrinking solution and Draco wondered if he could try to leave the classroom before Snape noticed anything was wrong. He grabbed the note that Ron had written him and put in his pocket as he eyed the unstable liquid that was now bubbling in his cauldron.



“I think I am going to let this sit and go get something to eat.” Draco said coolly as he nodded at Snape before he left the classroom.



Snape watched the blond go before he thought about how Draco had left so nonchalantly. He stood from his inspection of the plants and looked over at bubbling mess that Draco had left behind.



“Accio Draco.”



And a faint scream could be heard in the hallway before Draco Malfoy floated back in the class room struggling in the air. Snape watched the teen drop to the ground like a bag of bones before Draco glared at him, his hair effectively getting in his face.



“Fix this and then you can eat. No starting over.” And Snape turned; ignoring the curses Draco stated before he smirked and continued to inspect the plants.



OOO



Neville looked at the still failing splicing project and sighed. He was lying on his stomach as he stared at the spliced plants that didn’t want to grow, they weren’t dying but at the same time they weren’t growing. He sighed as his head dropped in the dirt and he closed his eyes, letting the sunlight from the sunroof warm his back as he thought about a nap.



“Is he sleeping again?” He growled as he looked up at his seventh year students who smiled sheepishly realizing that he heard them.



“I was entertaining the thought.” Neville yawned before he got to his feet and dusted himself off. “How are your projects coming?”



Neville glanced out the window as he listened to his student go over how their plants were coming along. Most of them were in the same state that his personal project was but they were all hopeful that something would grow after Christmas.



He had only seen Snape earlier than day when he had gone to deliver some of the plants he had managed to grow. The students worked on their own and Neville was grateful when he had managed to clean up green house one that there wasn’t that much to do.



Neville managed to get his hands on some dittany from a wizard in Africa and was now growing his own batch. The reason why the plant was so hard to get a hold of was that it was really useful but took nearly two years to grow fully. He had made a small garden in green house two just for this plant and had put charms around it so that it would remain the same temperature.



Neville stepped out of the green house and looked up at the clear blue sky. It was getting towards the afternoon and soon his class was going to be over. A chilly breeze reminded him that he would need to put more charms up since winter was coming and he was still growing some tropical plants. He noticed a few owls leave their tower and briefly wondered who would be mailing someone at this hour when he remembered his time as a student.



He mailed his Gran or his uncle every chance he remembered and that had been unfortunately at really weird hours of the day.



“Neville!” The teen turned to the castle to see Draco waving at him while Snape followed behind.



“Slytherins! Quick hide!” He heard his students whisper in the green house jokingly. He laughed a little at that too as he walked towards them and met them halfway.



“Hey.” Neville smiled over at Draco before eyeing Snape. Snape gave him a short nod but didn’t make eye contact as they made their way to the green house and Neville wondered if the older man was trying to stay out of his mind for some reason. He had told Snape that he had gotten a hold of some dittany but had wanted to start growing his own garden with half of what he had received.



The other half naturally going to the potions master.



“Good job Longbottom.” Draco stated as he eyed the new garden. He turned to Neville with a smirk. “Now if you were only good at potions, you’d be perfect.”



“Same could go with you and your lack of ability in Herbology.” Snape muttered and Draco frowned. There were some giggles at that and the three men turned as Neville realized his class was more than likely listening in.



“One second!” Neville disappeared under the tables and it was quiet until Snape and Draco could hear the student’s protest. “No arguments, if you don’t have this finished by the end of class I am giving you all a T for being nosy little gits.”



“You shouldn’t call students gits, Professor.” One of the students tried to sound offended but Neville rolled his eyes.



Neville appeared a few seconds later with, if possible, more dirt on him and Draco looked amused. He turned to Snape to say something before he eyed the other man. Snape was looking at Neville with a content expression that Draco had a hard time affiliating with the teacher.



Neville blushed a little as he looked at Snape before looking at Draco.



“You snogged didn’t you?” Draco didn’t bother hiding the disgust in his voice. He sounded like he had just seen his parents make out in front of people in Diagon Alley but as Snape opened his mouth to say something, Neville interrupted.



“And?” Neville tried as he felt his face flush up, suddenly really good that he had put silencing charms in the class rooms so his students couldn’t hear him.



“And nothing.” Draco said flippantly as he got closer to Neville and grinned as he whispered not so quietly towards Neville. “Is he any good? I mean I used to wonder while we were at school-”



“I wouldn’t finish that.” Snape glared at Draco who looked like he just noticed Snape was there and smirked back at his teacher.



“I was just showing you my skills of observation.” Draco pouted as he put an arm around Neville. “He is just so rude to me sometimes.”



“Maybe next time you will show me your skills of observation while you are trying to make a potion and not waste my supplies while you sulk about being stood up.” Snape replied curtly.



“You got stood up?” Neville looked at Draco who looked at his watch.



“Ron said something came up and that’s it.” Draco confided as he sad down dramatically on a chair.



“So you two?” Neville started but stopped when Snape put a hand on his shoulder. He was about to ask what was up when suddenly Arthur poked his head in the door.



“Hey!” Arthur smiled cheerily as he walked in and looked at Draco then Neville then Snape. “Am I interrupting something?”



“Actually…” Draco smirked before he sniffled over dramatically. Neville looked down at the blond as if trying to see what Draco doing but the other teen just winked at him before he continued his show. “I have a problem.”



“Is there anything I can do?” Arthur asked sounding worried as looked at Draco.



Neville looked at Snape who just rolled his eyes at the scene.



“There is…but..” Draco turned away and looked at his hands before mumbling. “You probably wouldn’t want to.”



“I want to help!” Arthur jumped back a little when Draco suddenly jumped up from his chair smiling happily.



“Then we better go!” Draco grabbed Arthur’s arm and the redhead looked at Snape and Neville for help but was dragged out of the green house. They heard Arthur try to protest more before Neville started to laugh. He looked up at Snape who was smirking at him and had the strong urge to kiss the man before he remembered his class.



After all the students had left, Neville made his way back to green house one to see that Snape was still there. He smiled happily as he went over to the other man and pulled him down for a kiss.



Snape let the show of force slide before he parted from the teen.



Neville could really get used to this.



OOO



It didn’t take as long as Draco would have originally thought to get to the restaurant. He had to go through Arthur’s closet in order to find if the man had anything decent to wear and Draco for once in his life thanked god that the twins had blessed their father with dress robes from this century.



He remembered what Ron wore to the Yule ball.



Arthur had spent the whole time protesting going to dinner with Draco, most likely because the blonde kept referring to it as a date but the way Arthur stammered and blushed just at the words so Draco couldn’t let up. He even tied Arthur’s tie for him and placed a kiss on the older man’s hand before he took him away from that school.



Draco knew exactly how he wanted this night to go now but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to have fun first.



He briefly wondered what his father would say if he walked in on this. Draco taking his ministry rival out on a date, he also slightly wondered what his father would say if he knew that he was trying to shag Arthur’s youngest son. The waiter was a young man, probably only a year or two older than Draco with sandy hair, he smiled happily at them and took them to a secluded booth that was only lit by candles and smelled of fresh roses.



Draco had forgotten how romantic this place was, he had only been here once with Blaise’s mom. But that was an entirely different story and for entirely different reasons.



Arthur had a permanent blush on his face by the time Draco pulled out his seat for him and seemed to be jumpier than usual as the waiter scared him when he asked what he would have to drink.



Arthur said water.



Draco corrected him and ordered champagne.



“Why are we here?” Arthur whispered as he looked around the place, his glasses falling forward on his nose a little bit before his blue eyes met Draco’s.



If Draco was into old men, or if Arthur wasn’t with Lupin he might have considered the older man as a possibility that second, but since that wasn’t the case Draco leaned forward as if to share the air of delicacy Arthur seemed to think this place needed and whispered. “My date stood me up and I didn’t want to waste a reservation.”



“Oh?” Arthur looked taken back by this before he whispered again. “Who was she?”



Draco wanted to pat the old man on the head at this but he just smiled sincerely at the older man. Arthur was good parent. He wondered if the man had to ever cheer up the other sons from heart break but then again he didn’t need cheering up just yet. Ron probably had a real good top secret reason as to why he couldn’t show up tonight and it wasn’t because he thought again about the idea of a relationship with the blonde.



Or at least he better have a good reason.



“Why are we whispering?” Draco whispered back causing the older man to blush and sit back normally just as the waiter walked in with three glasses, two empty and one with water, and a bottle of champagne.



“Sorry.” Arthur stated in his normal voice as he looked around again. “This place is amazing.”



“The chef recommends the lobster.” The waiter piped up as Arthur smiled over at the young man. The waiter blushed a little at Arthur before smiling at Draco and leaving the two alone again.



“Do you think that’s what Professor Lupin looked like when he was young?” Draco asked as Arthur seemed to daze off. “They have the same hair.”



“They do.” Arthur agreed as his face cooled down a bit. “But I don’t think Remus ever looked that young.”



Draco hummed in understanding as he poured himself a glass, then upon seeing the older man turn to look at the vase against the wall, he poured Arthur a glass. Arthur turned back around to see the glass pleasantly sitting in front of him before he looked up and eyed Draco.



“You don’t have any ulterior motives do you?” Arthur teased as Draco almost grinned.



“I think Lupin would kill me if I tried anything.” Draco watched the man flush up again as he tried to drink his glass innocently.



“You never said who the girl was.” Arthur tried to change the topic and Draco realized that Ron must have gotten his subtle side from his father.



“I never said it was a girl.” Draco challenged as he took a piece of cheese from the middle of the table and smirked as Arthur looked surprise. “I assume that you don’t have a problem with that?”



“Wha- oh no…” Arthur took a piece of the cheddar and looked at Draco as if trying to understand. “Is that why you wanted me here?”



“Because you are the only poof I could find to talk to?” Draco asked sarcastically and Arthur blushed again in embarrassment. “But I do need to talk to you.”



Arthur seemed to be used to hearing those words. As soon as they left Draco’s mouth the man sat down his glance and stretched a bit before he was comfortable and able to give Draco his complete attention. He didn’t say anything and just let Draco start the conversation in his own pace.



Draco found himself wishing he spent more time annoying Arthur and had to remind himself that he did have more time. They were both at the school after all.



“Have you talked to Ron recently?’ Draco tried this approach. He had thought about saying the truth straight out but was slightly worried about what would happen to Arthur if all this was thrown on him.



Arthur blinked a few times before nodding. “Yes, I mean he lives in Hogsmeade now doesn’t he? I see him more than his other siblings, probably because he is continually finding muggle stuff for my classes that I left at our apartment there.



Draco didn’t have the heart to tell him it was the blond who had found the muggle stuff after complaining to Ron to clean out the closet so they could put cloths in it.



“Anything new with the others?” Draco smiled pleasantly as the waiter returned and gave them both salads before disappearing shortly after.



“The other children?” Arthur asked to make sure he knew what Draco was talking about. “Well Bill and Fluer are expecting.”



Arthur seemed absolutely thrilled with the idea of a grandchild before he continued on his others, “Charlie is still with the Dragons, Percy is always busy with the ministry, and the twins are both doing great in their shop. I hear Fred is still dating Angelina and I hope that works out, she is such a nice girl.”



“What about Ginny?” Draco had heard Ron talk about his sister’s weird behavior the past few weeks.



“We aren’t speaking currently.” Arthur said sadly as he played with his salad. The redhead sighed and Draco almost felt bad for bringing her up. He had just wondered if Arthur knew anything more so that he could let Ron know later.



Ron.



Draco ran his hand through his hair and took a sip of his drink as the looked at the older man. It was now or never and if the older man decided to make a scene then at least there were silencing charms on the walls of each booth.



“So you must be dating Ron……” Arthur smirked a little at Draco who looked at him in surprise, “Either Ron or George but I don’t think you and George ever really knew each other.”



Draco opened his mouth to say something but found it close again as the older man laughed a little at his reaction.



“I have a pretty good intuition.” Arthur stated as he tapped the top of his balding head. “Having seven kids makes you prepare for anything.”



“It’s Ron.” Draco stated before looking at the older man with a sad sigh, “But we aren’t dating, at least not yet. Today was supposed to be the first.”



“Oh.” Arthur smiled pleasantly at that. “I’m guessing something happened at work, hopefully it wasn’t too bad.”



“So you don’t think that he is…..” Draco fiddled with his fingers for a second as he glared at the ring on his hand before looking up at Arthur. “You don’t think he might be getting cold feet?”



“Cold feet over a date?” Arthur said in such a ridiculous tone that Draco felt embarrassed. “No Ron is more the type to try and run away when he’s already chest deep.”



Draco laughed at that before he nodded in agreement.



“So you and my son?” Arthur took a good drink from his glass at that. “Interesting.”



Draco fiddled with his glass a little as he eyed the older man a little. Since they were already being honest it wouldn’t hurt to let the man know some of the other truths.



“I’m also living with him.” Draco stated as if this was an everyday conversation as Arthur looked at him in surprise. Draco turned his attention to the window that their booth was by and he could see it had been enchanted to look like a clear night sky. “I kind of forced myself into that apartment but he had been letting me stay for a little while now.”



There was a moment of silence.



“I guess I better tell Minerva I will be moving into Hogwarts for good this Christmas.” The older man smirked as Draco regarded him. “I don’t think that place is big enough for three men and I had been thinking about making Hogwarts my permanent home until I retire.”



“So you aren’t mad?” Draco looked a little surprised at this.



“Mad?” Arthur sat back in his seat and for the first time since they had gotten into the restaurant the older man looked comfortable. “I have received worse news.”



“So should I ask you permission to date your son?” Draco teased as the waiter came back and vanished their salads before serving them their main meals.



“Would you stop seeing him if I said no?” Arthur challenged as he poked his fork into the lobster.



Draco realized that he was glad Ron had cancelled their date at that second. It felt good to know that Arthur approved and that it was okay for him to be living with the redhead. He didn’t know if the older man was going to confront Ron about this later but Draco found he didn’t care. He now had a clear conscious about something he was doing and it had been a long time since he had felt this free about something.



“No, I suppose not.” Draco answered truthfully as he sipped his drink with a smirk. “But it is nice to have.”



“Then what choice do I have?” Arthur joked and they enjoyed their meals with little conversations about anything new happening at the school. Draco asking Arthur if Lupin knew that he was on a date right now and Arthur blushed as he looked at the teen in minor shock.



“I forgot to tell him I was leaving.”



OOO



Lupin sighed as he opened his eyes, he could see the sun was setting and smiled slightly as he sat up and looked around his room. He stretched bit before scratching his stomach and slowly getting out of bed, his body still ached as if he had exercised too long at the gym but he knew it was just a side effect for his transformation.



He walked into his office with a yawn before he noticed Arthur’s book on his desk. He smirked as he lifted it up and turned it over to glance at the back before setting it back down again and making his way to his empty classroom.



Everyone was probably leaving dinner by now.



He opened the door to his room before suddenly feeling something small bump into him. He looked down to see bright blue hair before his son’s face appeared and grinned up at him.



“Teddy?”



“Sorry Lupin.” Lupin looked up to see Harry looking very tired as he leaned against a wall. “I need to drop him off a bit early.”



“No its fine.” Lupin patted his son’s head before he lifted the boy up and walked over to Harry who seemed to be nursing an injured leg. “Are you okay?”



“Yeah.” Harry laughed as he rubbed the top of his thigh a bit. “Just got surprised at work today, don’t worry about it. Have you seen Mr. Weasley?”



“Arthur?” Lupin asked surprisingly before his eyes widened. “Did something happen?”



“No!” Harry quickly stated as he rubbed the back of his head. Lupin noticed the kid had scratches all over his face before Harry looked out the window. “I wonder if Ron found Neville yet?”



“He’s not in the green house.” Ron shouted as he ran up to them from the stairs. “I thought I would try here next.”



Ron had a bandage over on eye but otherwise looked unscathed. Wherever they had apparated from to get to Hogwarts must have been raining though, because as Lupin looked at Ron’s still wet hat he knew that there hadn’t been a cloud in the sky today.



“Have you tried the dungeons?” Lupin offered as he tried to think of any where else. Both the teens looked at him in surprise and Lupin just smirked before he added, “He has been growing plants for Snape.”



“Right.” Harry nodded as he started to limp towards the dungeons, Ron running a long ahead. Lupin bit his lip as he looked at his son who seemed to think whatever was happening wasn’t that interesting as he started to play with Lupin’s hair. As he tightened his grip on his son Lupin took a breath and followed.



He had to know what was going on.



They made it down to the dungeons in no time, as Lupin followed the two Auror’s into the room. Lupin saw Snape smirking down at Neville who was trying to show the potions master something about the plant he was holding, Neville smiling as if he had just gotten lucky.



Lupin wondered when they had finally gotten together.



The two teachers turned when they noticed the intruders. Ron took his hat off as he opened his mouth to speak and Lupin suddenly felt like he needed to take Teddy out of the room. He was about to turn but as he heard the redhead explain an incident in Blackpool the werewolf knew he couldn’t leave. He turned back around and let Teddy continue to play with his hair, the child still ignoring his surroundings.



Neville had gone pale and looked like he had just gotten stabbed in the chest. Snape had grabbed both of Neville’s arms as the teen swayed, dropping whatever plant was in his arm and Harry turned to look away as Ron kept explaining.



The Death Eater Travers had apparently gone to seek revenge against Agusta Longbottom; who had taken out the man’s brother during the Battle of Hogwarts. She had ultimately won the battle but not before destroying her house and getting hexed several times herself, he had snuck up on her when she was gardening.



She died before they could make it to St. Mungo’s.



Neville was staring at Ron as if he couldn’t actually see the ginger. His dirty blond curly hair sitting limply on his face as he continued to stare forward, his body now sitting up on the ground as Snape tried to keep him up.



“Travers was found, but he put up a fight and was ultimately killed by the Aurors.” Ron went on, his hands now gripping on to his hat. “Neville……”



“No.” Neville whispered as he looked away from Ron then and looked at Snape. “No.”



“Shhh.” Snape tried to make a soothing sound, which sounded very off coming from the dark haired man but it seemed to work as Neville looked back at Ron then Harry.



“She destroyed her house?” Neville choked a little at this.



“She blew up the whole bloody neighborhood. We had to obliviate almost all of the muggles in Blackpool.” Ron stated with a sad smirk.



“She always……wanted to go out……fighting.” And Neville couldn’t even try and joke as he broke down in tears.



Teddy pulled on Lupin’s hair making the older man look over at his son who was making motions to be put on the floor. Lupin put his son down as he watched the hair turn from blue to green as Teddy ran over to Neville.



Neville looked up at the child that looked worried and pulled him into a hug. Teddy seeming to absorb Neville’s pain started to cry silently too as Snape put a soothing hand on Neville’s shoulder.



OOO



Snape took a deep breath as he walked out of the castle. He could feel the breeze brush his hair back slightly and silently wished he had worn a coat as snow started to hit the cold earth.



He looked at the greenhouses and sighed he made his way over.



Knocking softly on the door he poked his head in to see that Neville wasn’t with the splice projects and he made his way through the green houses before he finally found was he was looking for.



Neville was still in his dress robes from the funeral that morning as he added fresh soil to his plants. The teen had bags under his eyes and his hair still looked slightly matted against his frowning face as he stared at the plants in front of him.



“You should change.” Snape stated softly as he walked over to the teen who looked up at him in some surprise as if he was just now seeing Snape for the first time in a few weeks.



“Severus?” Neville opened his mouth to say something before looking down at his cloths and smirking slightly. “I guess these aren’t that appropriate for gardening.”



“Not really.” Snape offered his hand to help the teen up and Neville took it.



They stood there for a second; holding hands, before Neville looked up at Snape and the older man couldn’t help but place his other hand against the teen’s cheek. Neville leaned into the touch as he continued to stare at the older man.



Snape leaned forward to place a kiss on Neville’s forehead and the teen closed his eyes as he took a deep breath.



“Come with me.” Neville whispered softly as he tightened his grip on the older man’s hand and pulled Snape towards the nearest door in the green house. Snape followed willingly as he was pulled back towards the castle, never letting go of the younger teacher’s hand until they made it to the door to Neville’s room.



Neville turned to him then and he looked at Snape expectantly. “Stay with me.”



Snape didn’t answer as Neville pulled him into his room; the older man taking in the surroundings as he looked around the messy room that had diagrams of dangerous plants on the wall and tons of books splayed about untidily. Neville put both his hands against Snape’s cheeks as he made the man face him before kissing the older man gently on the lips.



“Please.”



Snape closed his eyes as Neville whispered against his lips, enjoying the feel on the young man’s hands in his hair as Neville tried to deepen the kiss. Snape wanted to give in but he couldn’t, not like this.



“Neville stop.” The older man opened his eyes as Neville stared back at him. “I can’t give you what you want.”



“Please.” Neville trembled a bit as he felt Snape’s hands in his own hair before he moved his hands over the older man’s and tried not to blink as he stared into the man’s black eyes. “You can, please.”



“I won’t hurt you.” Snape stated and as the teen opened his mouth to protest he closed it again. Instead Neville pressed his body against Snape’s and kissed the older man’s neck softly. “Neville…..”



“Don’t hurt me then.” The teen whispered against Snape’s sensitive skin and the older man found himself pulling Neville up into a kiss.



It was gentle and the older man had to take it slow as he felt Neville press harder against him. He pushed Neville back a little before he placed a gentle kiss on the teen’s lips, he felt Neville pull him forward as the teen tried to move them from the door. Snape parted to see where he was going but Neville just grabbed onto him as he dragged the older man on top of him on his bed.



Snape looked down at Neville, his arms on either side of the teen as he felt Neville spread his legs and hook the around his waist. Neville was flushed and looked like he was on the verge of tears as he looked at Snape.



The older man closed his eyes, not wanting to see what Neville wanted him to do to the teen but slowly opened them again as he felt Neville’s hand in his hair.



“Please.”



Snape watched Neville lower his hands and start unbuttoning the top on his shirt, He could help put be mesmerized as the thing fingers struggled against the buttons, the shirt that was slowly revealing more tan flesh. Snape placed one of his hands over Neville’s hands before he slowly started undoing the buttons himself.



Neville just watched as Snape concentrated on his buttons. The older man’s hair was falling down his face and Neville found himself reaching up to pull it back. Snape looked at him then and Neville blushed as he felt Snape’s hand lay flat on his bare chest.



Neville pushed himself up then as he kissed Snape, the older man moaning into his mouth as he moved his hands from the man’s hair to the man’s robes. Snape pushed Neville softly back down on the bed as he took off his over shirt and went back to be on top of the teen who pulled Snape’s body down flat upon his.



The cloths seemed to be the only thing separating them as Neville grinded his hips against Snape and the older man groaned into his mouth. Snape was sucking on Neville’s neck while the younger teacher hooked his legs around the older man’s waist and tried to push the remaining fabric off the older man.



Snape’s hand was moving down his chest, moving down to his stomach. Neville gave a groan as he felt Snape’s hand cup his forming erection as the older teacher turned over so that he was spooning the younger man. Neville was about to protest before he felt Snape start to pump at his cock and Neville felt Snape kiss and suck at the back of his neck as he tried to catch his breath.



Snape other hand was now moving down his throat and onto his chest before it found one of Neville’s exposed nipples. The teen flinched as the hand pinched it and Neville tried to push his body into Snape’s; he could feel the older man’s erection against his back but the hands on him made him tense as pleasure over took his body.



Snape was whispering in his ear and Neville didn’t know what he was agreeing to as he nodded his head before he was turned over so that he was on his back. Snape was now in between his legs and Neville gave a shout of surprise as he watched the older man lower his mouth over his erection.



Neville’s hands were in Snape’s hair as he tried to spread his legs further for the other man. Tried to keep himself from bucking into the other man’s mouth that was now sucking on him. Neville squeezed his eyes shut as he felt a blinding light over take him.



Neville was panting as he finally opened his eyes, he blinked a few times before he realized he had come and tried to say something before felt a hand smooth out his hair. He looked over at Snape who was now cleaning Neville up, buttoning his shirt back up.



Neville wanted to continue, wanted to satisfy Snape in the same way the other man had done for him but when he opened his mouth to voice it he saw Snape shake his head and remained quiet. Snape placed a gently kiss on Neville’s forehead before pulling a blanket over the teen.



“I think you should rest a bit.” Snape said drying before the older man got off of the bed and made his way to the window.



Neville tried to think of something to say to Snape. Something to say to the man as he watched the potions master pick up his fallen over shirt and button it back one.



“Thank you.”



Snape smirked a little at that and bent over to place a kiss on Neville’s lips before he turned and left the room quietly. Neville sat there in his room and briefly wondered why Snape had held back even though he knew the answer.



He didn’t want their first time to be on the day he buried his grandmother anymore than Snape did.



Neville turned over as he sighed and pulled a blanket over himself further.



He would have to start teaching again tomorrow.



OOO



Ron sat still as he felt Draco kiss just above his eye where he had just gotten stitches removed from. He could feel the blond run his bony fingers through his hair and sighed as he leaned into Draco’s shoulder.



“Can’t you take off today?”



Ron could feel Draco smirk as he pulled back to look at the blond.



“Do you think Snape would actually let me have off?” Draco drawled before he pulled Ron into a bruising kiss, enjoying how the redhead squirmed a bit in his arms before giving up and letting the blond push him on the bed. “Maybe I would stay if you let me shag you.”



“Not yet.” Ron whispered as he felt Draco’s hand travel up his shirt. “Draco, I told you I wasn’t ready.”



Draco slumped against Ron in defeat, his hand that was under the redhead’s shirt sliding out as the blond looked down at his boyfriend. They had finally had their first date over a month ago and had been on several more since. Draco had respected that Ron didn’t want to move to fast in their relationship but the blond was finding it hard to hold back since they were both currently sharing a bed.



The blond bent over and gave Ron another kiss before he sat up and went for his heaving coat by the door.



“What are you doing for Christmas?” Draco turned to Ron at that and eyed the redhead who flushed a little before looking away. “Just wondering…”



Draco thought about a sarcastic comment he could make to that but just bit his tongue and grinned as he saw how red Ron’s neck had gotten. He hadn’t honestly thought much about Christmas, his mother would most likely go to Azkaban to spend it with his father, he looked over to the calendar they had on the door to see that the blasted holiday was only a week away.



“I didn’t have any plans.” Draco admitted as he fastened the belt on his jacket.



“Oh.” Ron stated softly and the blond wondered if he should stand there a little longer until Ron managed to say what was on his mind. He was running late though and so he tried to help out the redhead.



“Did you want to do anything?” Draco asked almost boredly.



“My family is planning on spending it at Hogwarts with our dad.” Ron admitted before he looked at Draco as if trying to force himself to recite the script he had in his head. “I was wondering if you wanted to join, if you want.”



Draco would have laughed at Ron for trying to act cool and collected while his voice cracked in that sentence but the redhead seemed to be embarrassed enough. He walked over back to the bed and kissed Ron again, forcing the other teen to open his mouth so he could deepen it. They both moan slightly before Draco pulled away and kissed Ron one more time softly on the lips and went back to the door.



“I will tell your dad I’m coming.” Draco smiled towards Ron who nodded a bit, still dazed as he touched his lips.



“Have fun at work.”



Draco shut the door behind him and quickly ran through the store underneath trying to not get in the way of the horrid witch that ran it before he made it out into the snow covered earth that was outside. He looked back up at the apartment to see Ron looking down at him.



The redhead tried to jump out of the way of the window as to not be scene causing Draco to shake his head and laugh as he started his walk towards the school.



Sometimes he felt like they were married.



Draco stopped at the thought and turned his head to look at the shop that was now a little ways away. Did he actually think what he thought he had?



Married?



To Ron Weasley?



Well they definitely weren’t sleeping together and that was the first sign of marriage wasn’t it? But plenty of people didn’t have just a physical relationship Draco thought idly as he walked in the snow. Their relationship was just something else.



There was plenty of physical attraction in it.



More than enough.



Draco liked coming home from training under Snape whenever Ron had gotten home first. The Auror would usually be cooking something in this ugly plaid apron that he had gotten from Ginny two birthday’s ago. He liked when they both had days off and they would just spend it in bed and reading books, thought Ron chose to read more about sports than anything really useful.



He enjoyed pretending not to notice when Ron was watching him.



He enjoyed being obnoxiously obvious when he was watching Ron.



But being together for barely two months, if even a whole month was not a lot of time in a relationship. Draco blew his warm breath into his hands as he walked onto the school grounds.



Married?



OOO







Please Review!