Into The Long Dark

DISCLAIMER: Not mine, never will be, I just like to play with the boys & girls. No money made from this.

The events take place after HBP

Thanks, Evil Auntie Snape!


Sunday, 10 August 1997


~~~~~~EIGHT~~~~\"DRAGON\'S TEETH\"~~~~~~~

Snape was not enjoying himself. He had hoped that a quick visit to The Dragon\'s Lair would provide him with a badly needed diversion. Unfortunately, that plan had dissipated like an inexpertly mixed potion the instant Snape spotted the prowling young wizard out on the dancefloor. Cheeky brat! He supposed it was only a matter of time before Potter had found his way to the club.

After witnessing Potter\'s detestable floor show in the muggle club, Snape had watched for as long as he was able before moving to the wizarding club located in the basement of the same building. There was a perpetual Port Key that connected the two floors. It was located in a shadowed corner in the front of the club, and was warded so that only wizards could detect it.

Snape was confident that his chances of being recognized were insignificant, especially in the muggle portion of the club. It was rare, although not uncommon, that wizards would frequent the dance club upstairs. Mostly, the forays there were merely to observe how hapless the non-magicals were, especially when intoxicated. This is what Snape found most delectable about his visits there. He wasn\'t seeking release. Tthe idea of engaging in intimate relations with a muggle made his skin crawl. Seeing Potter prostrate himself before that muggle like a hormone addled narffle had filled Snape with loathing. And perhaps the slightest bit of envy.

Now he stood in another dark corner, again sipping his drink, lost in thought. Not much better down here, he sighed. There were exactly three clubs in London that catered to the gay wizarding community, and all three were mixed. Unlike the danceclub upstairs, which was almost exclusively male, downstairs gay witches and wizards mingled about in nearly equal numbers.

The wizarding club was much smaller, and far more exotic than its counterpart above. Smooth, stone walls flowed upward to the low, curved ceiling, which was displaying a night sky filled with stars and a full moon. Torches burned dimly, illuminating a series of private alcoves along two of the walls. A bar covered the third wall. The bartender had morphed himself into the Greek God Pan for the evening.

A very small dancefloor completed the layout. Several fairies dutifully orbited a large mirror ball over the little dance area. A handful of rather sloshed magicals were attempting to impress each other under its swirling lights. A few house elves scurried about serving drinks and clearing tables. An enchanted mural over the backbar showed dragons of different breeds flying, stalking, and sleeping on various colorful, animated backgrounds. The words \'Dragon\'s Lair\' would float across the mural at regular intervals.

The Lair was the safest of the three clubs for Snape to patronize, as the wizarding clientele included no faculty of Hogwart\'s or anyone from the Ministry. At least, Snape had never seen any here. That is what also made it a good spot for their clandestine little meetings. And, his new appearance decreased the chances of recognition even further. That old Severus is gone for good, he mused, smiling.

As the latest single from the Weird Sisters, \"Petrificus Totalus\" blared from the musical penseive, Snape was contemplating his options. He had been fairly certain that Draco had been intercepted while on his way to meet himself and a few other Death Eaters here. The new pieces to the puzzle had fallen into place this evening. Until now, he had merely been uncertain as to whether a few members of The Order had somehow gone rogue, or if Potter had been acting alone. It was never a possibility that the Ministry was involved, as the capture of Draco would have been plastered all over the front page of The Daily Prophet.

Seeing Potter upstairs confirmed his new theory. The young wizard had acted on his own. By some fantastic coincidence, the arrogant runt had somehow caught Draco unawares and dragged him back to Grimmauld Place. And, it was very likely that The-Boy-Who-Lived had thrown a few Unforgivable Curses. Snape hadn\'t anticipated this, but he could certainly turn it to his advantage.

\"Evenin\'! Mind if I buy you a drink?\"

Snape was snapped out of his reverie by a short, squat wizard leering up at him hopefully. The wizard wiggled his eyebrows up and down vigorously.

\"What d\'ya say, handsome?\"

Fortunately, Snape\'s withering stare only wiped the smile off of his would-be suitor\'s face, as opposed to vaporizing it completely. \"I say that I would elect to wallow in a vat of warm skrewt dung rather than humiliate myself by accepting your paltry overture. Which, I might add, is nothing but an artlessly boorish attempt to numb my senses so that I would be mercifully stupefied in the wholly unimaginable circumstance that we would somehow engage in conjugal relations. The slightest thought of which is making me violently ill. So please remain gawking up at me with that moronic expression. My dinner will be up momentarily.\"

Punctuating his answer with his most mocking grin, Snape watched as the goggle-eyed wizard backed up about ten paces, before turning and re-seating himself at the bar. Taking another drink, Snape returned to his thoughts. Another thing was also certain. Draco was no longer being tortured. Rather, he appeared to have been healed, as the wounds on Snape\'s wrists and chest had begun to fade. And if Potter was here now, who was guarding Draco? Longbottom? Was Lupin aware of any of this?

Could Potter be that foolish, leaving Draco unattended? After his behavior this evening? Very possibly, yes. There was too much at stake. Snape had sacrificed too much, waited too long, to allow Harry Potter to ruin everything, especially now that the end was so tantalizingly close.

No time like the present to find out.

Snape drained his glass. A house elf appeared instantly. \"More?\" it squeaked pathetically. He sneered at the tired little creature, and simply dropped the glass. The elf\'s eyes gaped, but it easily caught the falling glass with a charm before it hit the floor.

Snape watched as the elf narrowed its eyes, and scuttled away in a huff. Arriving at a decision, he adjusted his collar, and moved through the crowd, heading for the dedicated Disapparition point located in the far back corner of the pub.


~~~~~~~~~~~


Harry was spiraling into darkness. He tried to scream, but nothing came out. A numbing cold was sweeping through his body, and his vision was graying out. He could feel the vampire\'s fangs sinking ever deeper into his flesh, greedily siphoning his lifeblood out of him. As his body grew more benumbed, the pain in his neck increased exponentially. He felt his body spasm, not once but twice in rapid succession, as his grip on consciousness began ebbing away. He was falling, slipping down into the grayness, the howling void of oblivion yawning wide to accept him, spinning further and further down, until...

THUMP....THUMP....THUMP....THUMP

Harry was jerked from the maw of the void. The fangs had ripped savagely from his neck, and his head was spinning. He could barely make out the tiled wall in front of him, as his eyes struggled to focus. He tried to speak, but all that came out was a strangled mewling sound. Harry felt strong hands roughly pulling up his shorts and jeans, and a moment later he was spun around, nearly falling over against the lav.

Thump....Thump....Thump....Thump

Harry glanced down groggily as those strong hands fastened his jeans, and then proceeded to stand him up again. His vision clearing, Harry looked up to see the vampire smiling down at him, blood still staining his lips. Red wiped his mouth with his fingers, and slowly licked them clean of blood. Harry\'s blood.

By the Gods, he\'s beautiful, Harry thought, unable to look away from those searing eyes, that were now a luminous silver, boring into Harry\'s very soul.

The fear was gone. The pain was gone. Everything was gone. Everything but him. Harry smiled as Red bent down to him.

thump....thump....thump....thump

Harry willingly craned his neck, revealing the ragged bite marks, making it easier, waiting for them to sink into him once more. He was becoming hard again, and he rubbed one hand on the stiffening erection in his jeans.

\"Do it, please? Do it!\" Harry hissed.

Harry once again felt Red\'s hot breath on his skin. He arched and bucked in ecstasy as the vampire\'s lips suckled and laved the skin around the bite. Harry waited for the sensational pain/pleasure of the fangs, but Red merely licked and kissed and caressed and lapped Harry\'s neck with his tongue. Each time Red\'s tongue passed over one of the bite holes, Harry nearly swooned.

Another few moments, and Harry came again, gasping breathlessly as Red gave his neck a final, tender kiss. He could feel Red\'s hands holding him up, keeping him steady. Harry put out his arms, and finding the fabric of Red\'s shirt, pulled himself to the vampire, burying his head into Red\'s chest. The vampire encircled Harry as well, cradling him gently in his strong embrace. Red nuzzled Harry\'s ear, nibbling the lobe playfully.

\"You were awesome,\" he murmured softly into Harry\'s ear.

\"My name\'s Rael. What\'s yours?\"


~~~~~~~~


The rusty VW rattled to a halt in front of the abandoned house at 156 Larchmere. The driver\'s door creaked open, and Tonks slid out of the driver\'s seat, holding a double latte espresso in one hand, her wand in the other. With a swift movement, she bumped her hip against the door, closing it with a hollow metallic bang. The street was deserted, with only a few of the homes still showing lights in their windows. Number 156 had been empty for some time, and sported a few missing windows. The front door was boarded up, and the steps and small porch were strewn with trash.

Tonks cast a few sensory charms, which showed no signs of recent activity around the front of the house. Sipping her espresso, she moved along the north side of the house. The homes were relatively close together here, roughly ten to twelve feet apart. A low iron fence separated the two houses. More sensory charms here, more negative results. A gust of breeze swirled bits of papers and trash in a miniature whirlwind around Tonks\' feet as she walked. Crickets whirred continuously. She entered the overgrown back yard, and cast yet another set of charms. Sure enough, she located the Apparition point, dead center of the yard in the ankle-high grass.

Not that she need the charms. There was a slightly flattened area plainly visible, as well as several more smaller flat spots, which were clearly footsteps leading across the yard to the rusted iron fence. Squatting down and slowly moving her wand over the Apparition point, she was able to divine that the weight of the caster was between 125 and 135 pounds. The decay rate confirmed that the spell had dissipated a little under two hours ago, just as Weasley\'s data had indicated.

The ruddy bastard knows his stuff , she sighed.

Sticking the wand into her electric purple hair, she took a few more sips from her cup.

\"Sorry, Harry. I think party time\'s over.\"

Frowning, Tonks walked back to her van. Sure, she had known Harry was sneaking about after dark. She still recalled what being seventeen was like. The poor kid needed a little fun. He\'d had way more than his fair share of crap to deal with. Besides, she was an Auror, and had managed to keep a relatively watchful eye on him. And even when she did lose sight of him, she knew his haunts, and she was always in the vicinity, anyway.

She had been a bit surprised when she watched Harry enter The Dragon\'s Lair for the first time.

Horny little wanker! Didn\'t see that comin\', she thought. Is everybody gay these days?

Climbing into the VW, Tonks tossed her empty cup over her shoulder. The engine revved to life, and she headed the old van up the street in the direction of Grimmauld Place.


~~~~~~~~~~


Snape was wondering if perhaps his planets were out of alignment. Nothing seemed to be going his way this evening. Once he left The Dragon\'s Lair, he had Apparated to the alley that ran behind Grimmauld Place. After quietly observing the surrounding area, he attempted to drop the wards guarding Number 12. He was more than surprised when they not only failed to drop, but actually had the audacity to send him flying through the air to land unceremoniously on his arse.

He had never sensed these types of wards before. Being a former member of The Order, he had been privy to the exact number and type in use at Grimmauld Place. But why had they changed them? And why didn\'t he know about it? Once again approaching the perimeter, he drew his wand and cast the appropriate sensory charms. Nothing. The wards refused to give up their secrets. He hadn\'t been prepared for this.

Again.

\"Shit!\" Snape swore loudly. Verifying that the alley was still empty, he backed up a few steps, and threw the strongest de-obfuscation and ward breaking charms he knew. The protection field wavered for a moment, but remained in place. \"Fuck!\" Bloody sodding Potter! Snape was certain that the mannerless brat had had something to do with this.

Primly brushing off his slacks, Snape moved back into the shadows and leaned up against the wall of a garage across the alley. He would simply wait. If Potter entered through front door, which Snape thought unlikely, the wards would drop, and when Number 12 momentarily reappeared, he\'d be able to gain entry to the rear garden before they went up again. If Potter approached from the alley, he\'d wait until the wards came down, stun the little cur, and retrieve Draco. Satisfied, he folded his arms and made himself comfortable. Patience.

After only a handful of minutes, Snape made out a shadowy figure walking down the alley in his direction. Stopping barely a few feet from where he stood, he could tell that the person wasn\'t Potter. The figure waved its wand, and Numbers 10 and 14 slowly began to shrink as Number 12 appeared as a thin line and expanded between them. In a moment, the wards had dropped completely, and the shadow opened the wooden gate that led into the rear garden of Number 12.

Snape leapt across the alley, his wand drawn, and flung the garden door open. The shadow ahead of him was just beginning to turn around, and he could barely make out the shape of a wand swinging in his direction.

\"Expelliarmus!\"

The shadow flipped thru the air, crashed against the rear of the house, and landed in a tangled heap in a barren flowerbed. Snape ignited his wand and knelt down next to the still body. The purple hair was a dead give away.

\"Apologies, Miss Tonks,\" Snape drawled.

Extinguishing his wand, he quickly climbed the rear steps, and smiled as the wards on the back door came down easily. Snape could hear the clicks and slides as the door unlocked itself. A moment later the door swung open, and he strode over the threshold.

Snape had taken just a few steps down the hall when the repulsive house elf appeared from one of the doorways and advanced quickly in his direction. Its huge, yellow eyes were narrowed on him, the mouth twisted into a hateful snarl.

\"NO! Must get out, now! No one allowed in house while Master gone!\" Kreacher moved purposefully forward, and threw a disabling curse with relish.

Snape blocked it, and threw his own magic.

\"Mandatum Occultus!\"

The effect was startling and immediate. Kreacher seemed to freeze in mid-step, the hatred in his face draining away instantly. His body assuming an attentive posture, Kreacher\'s eyes looked up at Snape, clear and wide, waiting for something.

Snape pocketed his wand and straightened the cuffs of his shirt. \"Take me to Draco Malfoy,\" he said firmly.

Kreacher nodded, and led Snape to the basement door, dropped the ward, and headed down the steps. Igniting the torches, the elf made an expansive gesture indicating the cell at the other end of the basement. Snape walked past Kreacher, towards the cell, never moving his eyes from the form lying on the filthy floor.

Sensing the guardian wards in place, Snape whirled on the elf. \"Drop all the wards, now! Open the cell, and release him from those bindings! Now, you deplorable creature!\"

Kreacher stared for a moment, then took a few steps towards the cell. With a wave of his gnarled hand, the cell door squeaked open, and the shackles binding Draco fell off. The elf moved aside, and stared, never taking his eyes off the wizard.

Snape moved slowly through the doorway, kneeling down in front of Draco, who was very still. Snape moved his hands lightly over the faintly bruised wrists. Watching closely for a moment, he could discern the subtle rise and fall of Draco\'s chest. Snape then gently brushed a few strands of white-blond hair away from Draco\'s closed eyes. He cast a few general healing charms for good measure, plus a Featherweight, and proceeded to pick up the limp Slytherin.

Draco moaned slightly, and his head lolled against Snape\'s chest as the older wizard carried him quickly up the stairs. Kreacher followed like a trained bullywog.

Snape quickly moved outside into the ruined garden. He turned to the house elf. \"Drop the wards! Now!\"

Kreacher complied.

Snape steadied Draco with one arm, and drew his wand swiftly with the other, pointing it directly at the house elf.

\"Perantia Reverto!\"

Kicking the garden gate open, Snape marched through it into the alleyway, turning just in time to watch as Number 12 once again disappeared from sight. A split second later, he Apparated. They were both gone before the telltale crack had died away.


A/N: Comments? Please! Thanks!