A Change

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Dumbledore believed that Severus Snape could survive anything. He was wrong. Even now as he chatted with the Order before Harry Potter's first day of school he was mistaken. Severus sat to the old man's left doing his best impression of broody Potion's Master for there was a secret he kept most dear. No one knew. Not Minerva, not Mad Eye, not Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, not Astoria, not Lupin, and surely not anyone else daft enough to join the order or otherwise.

Yes, as he looked over at his colleagues making sure to argue every point his latest master made he was a dead man walking, or standing rather. No one knew that his heart was now literally made of ice. No one knew that his touch could cause frost bite on occasion. No one knew that after he ingested his food he went to the lavatories to cough it all up. No one knew he preferred the copper taste of blood to the smoky taste or pinot noir.

Severus is now what people consider an urban legend. The vampire. A monstrous undead beast, the patron of desire that knows only lust for both blood and sex. But, how did this come to be? One need not ask. Just read further down.

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8 yrs. Ago

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Lucius had called him to a meeting. He said it was important. Dress in the garb designated for them by his former master he met Lucius in an empty field.

"What is so important my old friend?" Severus asked removing his mask.

Lucius turned to face him, "Can you believe that our master. A man so powerful that even the cosmos shook as the earth quaked beneath his feet was defeated by a baby. The spawn of a mudblood?"

"It is laughable Lucius," Severus stood next to him, "But our master is resourceful. He will return."

He scoffed, "I have no doubt," he pulled out his wand, "Question is Severus will you be there when he returns?"

Also pulling out his wand, "You betray me!"

"What do you expect," Lucius rolled his long hair out of his face, "You were always masters favorite. You halfblood filth," he spat at Severus's feet, "When he returns master will be greeted by me. He will know that my loyalty to him is unquestionable. He will award me greatly instead of you. No more 'I wish you were more like Severus Lucius', no more, 'Once again Severus does me proud'! It will be me he calls son!"

"Jealousy doesn't suit you well Lucius." Severus raised his wand conjuring up a protégé to shield him from Malfoy's assault. For hours on end they battled until Lucius crumpled to his feet laughing with tears staining his eyes.

Severus stood before him. Avada Kedavra on his tongue. He bit it back as he looked at him, "Don't worry Lucius,I will not let Draco live without a father."

The man laughed even harder causing blood to rush to his face, "Oh Severus it is not I who will die tonight. Hahahahahahahha!"

Severus nearly dodged an unforgivable as he spun around to see several clothed Death Eaters awaiting him. Snape looked at them all one by one. Even he wouldn't be able to survive this many attackers, but even as he thought that he thought of the oath he made to Dumbledore. He would not fail the old man, not yet when redemption was nearly in his grasp.

As the sunset he had managed to beat back over half their numbers, but he was tired, his old age beginning to show. Not that anyone should count twenty eight as being old. It was just the fact that he wasn't as spry as he once was.

"You are finished my old friend." He heard Lucius say before a dagger was driven threw his heart from behind. For a fleeting instant life seemed to stand still; his fall to the ground far longer than it should had been before he felt himself stop. Not the instant kind like when you push pause on your VHS remote, but the slamming on your breaks while driving so that you can coast to a stop, stop.

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Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. His eyes began to flutter open proud that he had managed to survive vowing to make Lucius pay. He was a man of his word. Draco wouldn't grow up fatherless that is until after his seventeenth birthday.

"I see that you're awake." He sat up fully turning to see a beautiful woman with dark chocolate hair and brown eyes the shown as rubies against her bronzed skin.

He blinked again. Something, he couldn't put a finger on it, but something was definitely wrong here. He felt oddly cold, "Where am I? Who are you?"

She smiled at him, "The question is," she sauntered to him with a goblet in hand, "Who are you."

He sneered at her, "I do not have time for your games witch. I have other places I'd rather …" he paused instantly as the cup came to his lips. They opened of their own accord. Greedily he gulped it down swirling the red liquid around his mouth. After the drink was gone he cursed using his tongue to lick off what was left between his teeth and lips.

"Thirsty," she smiled, "Thought so. I have more."

After a few more glasses to quench his thirst he handed the goblet back to her, "What is it?"

She laughed at him, "Blood."

"Blood?"

She nodded, "Blood."

Upset he reached to pull his wand out on her to find it absent from his robes. Yelling, "How dare you force me to drink that!"

"Blood is what people like us drink," she placed her hand on his face, "My beautiful dark knight."

Slapping her hands away, "Wizards and witches don't drink blood!"

She rolled her eyes at him before sitting on the bed that he was previously laying on, "Do you know what happened to you today?"

"I was attacked by someone who I considered friend." Snape said bitterly.

"And?"

"He attacked me."

"No," she yanked him on the bed quicker than he could blink, "he killed you."

"If I am dead," he tried to remove her from off of him, "Then why am I here?"

"I saw you. I saved you. We are vampires silly. You died, but I, Lilith, took pity on you."

Managing to shake her off, "If you took pity on me you would had left me dead."

Yanking him back to her she began to kiss him, "That doesn't matter. What matters is that you are a vampire now. Deal with it and I am your Domina, your mistress and I will require certain," she reached for his manhood, "Offerings from you. Once a month you shall return to me and love me till the rising sun."

"I will not." He growled at her. The last thing he needed was another master.

Grabbing him harder, "You will do this and I may consider giving you back your precious human life."

"Or I could just kill you." He offered.

She kissed him on the lips, "Only the vamp that turns you. In this case me. Can turn you back," she smiled as the look of defeat crossed his face, "Now will you give me offerings."

"Yes Domina."

"Did you hear me Severus?" The Headmaster asked his distracted Potion's Master.

Snape blinked pulling himself out his reminiscing, "Sorry Headmaster."

Dumbledore looked at him again before continuing, "Severus we must give the child the foundation to someday defeat Voldemort. I have no doubt that Tom will be back."

"Of course Headmaster."

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