Mate

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor do I make any profit from this piece of writing. Remus and co are all property of Ms Rowling.


Sirius struggled but the weight of a werewolf, nearly adult size, was more than an overly large dog could win against. Sirius’s dog instincts took over, and he bit the wolf hard on his shoulder. Moony snarled and hissed, biting Sirius back. As he did so, Sirius’s beast recognised the wolf as a dominant, an alpha, and he lowered his head in submission, something Sirius would never have ever considered doing with the normally quiet boy.

The wolf, however, was not interested in Sirius’s submission. What he wanted was to kill the... the thing that had made his mate hate him! Hate him! He would kill this thing to show the boy that he wasn’t interested in it, and wanted only his mate. Maybe then his mate would look at him again. That thought filled the wolf with hope and the anger he had felt towards Sirius all week trickled out of his mouth in a bone tingling growl.

Another scent assaulted his nose; the stag-that-wasn’t-food. The wolf growled again, in warning. In some part of his brain, he knew the stag was friends with the thing-that-stole-his-mate. He wanted the stag to be warned that nothing would come between the wolf and this particular kill. He flexed his claws, ready to tear into this squirmy little dog beneath him.

A pain blossomed in his side and he went flying away from his prey and slamming into a tree with a pained whimper. He staggered to his feet and shook himself. His hackles rose and he growled again. How dare this stag?

Sirius rose shakily to his feet and barked out a warning to James as Remus prepared to charge him. But Remus missed; James was too fast for the wolf in this terrain. The stag had the advantage as he bounded from place to place, distracting the wolf. He tossed his head in a gesture that meant for Sirius to leave, to go. Sirius did so, darting into the dark shadows back towards the school.

No! The wolf snarled, noticing the scent of his prey leaving. He turned from the stag and darted after the dog, scenting the way as he moved.

Shit! He’s following me. I can’t go back to school – if he follows me there then people will know and could die. It took a second for Sirius to alter his path and head back into the forest. He’d lead Remus on a chase till dawn. He could do it; he’d done it before. He’d just have to be very, very careful. Not what I intended to happen. He darted under a log too big for the wolf to fit under just as he felt a nuzzle try to rip in to his fur. Moony climbed over the log, intending to get the dog as he emerged.

The difference between him and me is, Sirius thought to himself as he extracted himself from the way he entered, is that I retain my human thoughts and don’t act entirely on instinct. He wiggled out and had launched into a hard run. He’d have to slow down soon, but not until he had some distance between and the angry wolf.

~x~x~x~

Severus couldn’t sleep. It was the full moon. Two months since... well not since he’d first met Remus, but since the wolf. At first, Severus had wondered why it had taken this long for Remus to know they were mates. Wouldn’t he have known when they met? His books told him that since Remus had been bitten as a child, his wolf had been a cub until puberty, and the reason that most wolves didn’t find their mate was because the wolf is the first to sense the mate. And they have to be close.

But Remus and he weren’t mates; how could they be when Remus would kiss Black.

The throbbing pain of the betrayal nearly made him cry out. He tossed in his bed for a few minutes, before getting out and heading to the common room to stare moodily into the fire. He was restless. Last full moon, Remus had told him why he felt restless: it was because, as the mate, he felt the need to be with his dominant. He sensed his mate’s need for him. Severus had admitted that he felt that need as well. The need to run his hands along that dark fur and to look into those amber eyes. He shivered, feeling aroused. That arousal had shocked him at first, but Remus had looked pleased, happy and possessive when he’d mentioned it, blushing. It’d take getting used to, he’d said, but it meant that he loved the wolf too. He had wanted to go see Moony that first full moon, but Remus had said it would be too dangerous for him.

He snarled and left the common room, intending to walk his restlessness off. His thoughts were wandering to all the things Remus had done. Dammit! But how could Remus do this to him? How could he say one moment that they were mates, that he loved Severus, and the next kiss Black. Was everything he said a lie? Did Remus feel anything other than... other than lust? he thought bitterly, blinking back tears.

It was cold. Severus blinked and brought his mind back to the present. How did I end up out here? He thought. He was facing the Forbidden Forest. Where Moony hunts with his little friends. Yeah, he knew about them being unregistered animagi. And it was such an agony that he’d be with Moony. Be able to frolic, or whatever it was that wolves and dogs did.

Don’t think of it, Severus! He told himself sternly.

As he stood there looking, he saw a large dog emerge from the forest, and had to restrain the urge to cast several dark spells on it. He didn’t, mainly because the moon light was quite bright, and he saw the rivulets of blood on the dog’s body. That wasn’t right.

A howl broke out in the night, and Moony appeared on the dog’s tail. Severus watched the chase and one thought crossed his mind: this was not the chase of a courtship. This was a hunt.

Without thinking, Severus broke into a run, his wand drawn. He didn’t know why he wanted to save Sirius, except that if Remus killed one of his best friends, it would kill Remus. The dog changed course, darting past him, towards the forest once more. Severus dived in the werewolf’s path without thinking.

The wolf stopped dead and sniffed. Mate?

Severus nodded, breathing hard. “Yes,” he managed to get out. He was scared.

My mate. Mine! The fierceness of the wolf’s assertion made Severus shudder. He reached out to touch his snout, to brush against the fur on his face.

“You’re beautiful!” He said, in awe. The wolf came close, sniffing Severus’s neck, who bent his head in submission. It was this one whose submission the wolf needed, craved. This one who would make him whole. This one that dog nearly took from him. But he was here, now.

“You shouldn’t be here,” Severus said, rubbing his face against a furred shoulder. “Take me to where you should be. The Shrieking Shack, right?” The wolf couldn’t sigh, but it gave a sound that Severus took to be a sigh, but he began to pad back, looking over his shoulder to make sure Severus was following.

My mate, the wolf said again, licking and nipping Severus’s neck. Severus sighed and pressed into the light nips. He wasn’t afraid – the wolf couldn’t turn him. Mates were immune to the wolf virus.

The wolf continued to lavish attention on him and Severus moaned his appreciation. He felt so good, and somehow he’d lost his shirt. The chill air on his chest made his mind clear, and the fog lift. He pushed Remus away, sent the wolf stumbling.

“I’m still very, very pissed with you. But I am staying here so you don’t so fucking stupid that you’d kill your best friend!” Severus snarled. “Now if you don’t mind, I am going to sleep!” He conjured a pillow and some blankets and rolled over.

The wolf whined, but crept next to his mate and curled up, keeping him warm.