"You're the son of a farmer," they would remind him. "What use are books to you?"
They're a way to escape, he wanted to tell them, a way to ignore the fact that farming was bland, and that father was quick with his fists. But he would merely say he was trying to better himself.
"Think you're too good for all this, Snape? Look around, no, really look, and chances are that you're not. You're no worse or better than the rest of us." Sometimes he even believed it. Other times, of course, he liked to take matters into his own hands.
"We'll see," he'd say to himself when he was alone. "We'll see."
His best friend growing up had been Lily Evans. She had red hair that shone in the sun and she never complained about hard work. She was always joking, not like James or Sirius joked, but in an intelligent, beautiful manner. If he didn't know better, he would think he was in love. But he knew better. He didn't fall in love, and he certainly wasn't going to mess up his one true friendship.
James Potter liked Lily Evans quite a bit too, in fact he may have loved her, but Snape wouldn't have it, if he had any say in the matter at all.
"He's harmless," Lily would say.
"If you call leaving me in the woods harmless."
"Well that's where you saw that castle, isn't it? The one out past the river. The one we've heard about since we were babes."
"You believe me, don't you?" he said, suddenly looking tense.
"Well . . . honestly, Severus, I don't know what to believe."
He hissed like bacon in a scorching pan.
"I want to believe, but you're always telling me to use my head."
"For a girl, you're awfully logical," he said with a scowl.
"I don't know whether to be glad or upset."
"Forget about it," he said, leaning down to pick up a wildflower, handing it to her. "But I bet I could find the castle again if I tried. Would you like to see it?"
"What castle?" said Sirius Black from the window of the house nearby.
"Stop listening in!" said Lily with a frown.
"What castle?"
The tension was suddenly palpable. Lily looked from one scowling face to the other before answering. "The castle from the legend of the Beast."
Sirius stared at them. "You have got to be kidding me," he scoffed. Perhaps they'd been working out in the fields for too long.
"No, no. It's quite real," said Severus impatiently.
Sirius turned to look at Lily.
"Well, at least he believes it's real. I've never seen it myself."
"Of course not!" said Sirius. "It is not a woman's place to be traipsing about in the woods at odd hours."
Lily scoffed. "I wouldn't want to traipse in the woods anyway. It doesn't sound remotely appealing."
"Sounds appealing to me," said Sirius.
"Sense of adventure intact, if only for a lack of brains," said Severus amusedly. "Well, I accept."
"Accept?"
"A mission to the castle. You and I and whoever else."
"And what will we do with this Beast once we reach his castle?"
"Nothing," said Severus with a shrug. "We will return home and you can tell James that I wasn't making it up after all."
"What's seeing a castle going to prove?"
"Well, it's a rather odd castle. Enchantments seem to be going rampant."
"How do we know a Beast is inside?"
"Fine," said Severus with a sigh. "One glimpse of the Beast, but that's it. Is it a plan?"
"It's a plan."
They shook on it. Lily muttered something about boys and their idiocy. Sirius and Severus just smirked at each other.
They claimed it was a hunting trip. This fact alone was why Snape allowed James Potter to come along. James was an excellent marksman and trapper and they would have a much more legitimate excuse if they came back with actual kills. Peter was an excellent fisherman. Sirius and Snape were not much of either, but they were the entire reason the "hunting party" excuse had been cooked up in the first place. To hide the fact they were going to get a glimpse of the Beast.
That night after they'd finally stopped trying to find it in the dark, despite Sirius's protests, the boys all fell asleep. Well, all except for Sirius himself. Sirius got up again and used the light of the almost-full moon to try and find the place. When he was just about to give up, when the sky turned that deep sort of almost-sunrise blue, he saw a large stone building flicker into sight and gasped.
This had to be it. It had to be the castle. His toes and his fingertips tingled. He walked forward, hardly breathing lest the flickering image die completely as some sort of forest mirage. The closer he walked, the odder he felt. He was filled with both apprehension and boldness, and really had no idea how the two could mix so well, but they did. The place was eerie. He could hear the soft music of a harp in the distance, but it didn't take a genius to figure out that there most probably was no harpist at all, nor any instrument for the harpist to play upon. The desolation was evident, and yet he tingled.
His compulsion and apprehension mated at last in a flurry as he touched fingertips to the entrance to the castle. There was no door to the large wall surrounding the palace. He chewed at his lip and then crossed the threshold. Crossing the threshold was, perhaps, not the greatest idea.
Even in the darkness he could tell that the Beast was much younger than he had expected. "Hey there," he said with a small smile, trying the friendly approach, even as his voice quavered slightly.
"Sirius Black," said the gruff voice of the Beast, speaking through fang-like teeth as wide as a man's finger.
Sirius was actually scared now, caught completely off-guard.
"You're here in the forest trying to find me. Well, take a look," said the Beast. There was a moment of silence in which Sirius did indeed size him up. "Good. Now that's over, go get me my Severus Snape."
"I'm not sure I can find my way back to them," said Sirius softly.
"Then follow me," said the Beast. He led Sirius to the camp, which took a shorter time than it probably should have, and then he hid behind some trees while Sirius woke Snape up hesitantly.
"What is it?" grumbled Snape. "It's not something stupid, is it?"
"No," said Sirius. "In fact, I found the castle. Took a good while, though. Flickered in and out of sight, it did."
"Really? It was . . . elusive? It didn't seem to draw you in, rather?"
"No, drawing me in is not how I would put it."
"It's grand, the castle, isn't it?"
"I met the Beast."
Severus raised an eyebrow. "Met?"
"Yes. And he speaks. And he knows who you are."
The Beast chose that moment to slip out of his hiding place, to a gasp from Severus. "You're Severus Snape," he said. "You read books. Your father hits you, sometimes. Other times he leaves you alone."
Severus, though frightened, scowled. "Presumptuous."
"Or merely correct," said the Beast. He turned back in the direction of the castle, and within minutes they were not only through the gates, they were inside the castle itself.
Great. More bloody contradictions. It was all at once foreboding and warm, the interior of the castle. Really it was, for lack of a better term, quite royal. The ceilings were high, but the walls were covered in paintings anywhere from paintings of a garden, to the sea, to former inhabitants (all except the Beast, of course), to scenes of dragons, of unicorns, of Heaven and Hell alike. Beautiful works of art, with nearly no room devoid of them, even in the library where there was a depiction of a wintry scene on a blank wall, and the snow actually seemed to drift down.
Fabrics were the finest available, the finest imaginable, and gold and jewels glittered wherever necessary, and even wherever it almost seemed superfluous. Sirius found he would not object much to being stuck inside with such splendor, or at least he didn't think so. He was grateful and joyous that the Beast offered, therefore, him a place for the night. He accepted with all haste. Severus was less enthusiastic, Sirius could tell, but he agreed to the arrangement as well.
The soup was warm, served by bowls and cutlery that moved on their own, as Sirius supposed the stove did as well. But, hey, he didn't much question a good thing. He was no Severus. Not only, in fact, was the soup warm, but it was delicious, with the finest ham he'd ever tasted. And the supply seemed to be endless, until they were all finished and the leftovers vanished right in the pot.
Severus was getting more and more tired as the night progressed, what with all the walking necessary for the tour and with the hot, filling meal. He stifled a yawn. The Beast waved a hand to clear the dishes away and led them to two adjacent rooms.
"We've no idea what his motivations are," said Severus after the Beast left, gazing longingly at the luxurious bed that was all his for the taking.
"Well we won't know until he reveals them to us, will we?" said Sirius. "In the meantime, we can study him. Get some rest, why don't you, Snape? You need it."
Severus glared at Sirius until he left, and then turned to glare at the bed. "Shall we?" he said disdainfully, though all protests died on his lips when he slid into the velvet and silk and slept more easily than he ever had.
Chapter 2
Morning came rather early, much to Sirius's chagrin.
"You were the one who decided to go out looking for trouble in the middle of the night."
"True, true," Sirius muttered with a sigh. "Off my bed."
There was a knock at the door and Sirius said, "Come in," and soon the Beast was hovering in the doorway. "It's your house, mate," said Sirius, as the Beast seemed to wait there, apprehensive.
"Yes. Well, I would like the two of you to get ready and join me for breakfast, and then I thought we might take a stroll."
Sirius glanced at Snape and shrugged. "Can't see why not."
"Until he eats us, you mean," muttered Severus. The Beast must have heard it, with the way his ears twitched at the moment the words were uttered. But the Beast seemed to take it in fun, smiling slightly.
"You look tough and stringy," he teased, pleased to see that the statement made Sirius laugh. "Now, back in your own room to change into something else. The washboard will take your clothes, of course."
"Of course," said Severus with a sneer.
Sirius emerged from his room wearing a velvet coat in a soft tan with dark green trousers on as well. "Snape?" he called with a knock on the door to Severus's room. "Severus?"
The sounds of cursing could be heard. When Sirius placed a hand on the knob it unlocked itself and the door swung open.
"Stop it!" he snapped at the clothing which was insisting on being worn. He whirled around to look at the door, "Tell them to quit it."
"Stop?" said Sirius hesitantly. The clothing did nothing of the sort. Sirius shrugged. "It's not all that bad, Snape."
"For someone who looks like you," said Severus, trying to extricate the second arm from the vest. "Blast!"
"I don't fancy he'd be alright if we didn't show up, do you? Hurry it up there, Severus."
Severus huffed. "Alright, you silken harpy, you can have your way if you just hold still!" The garment complied and he slipped it on, defeated-looking.
"Can't win them all, Snape," said Sirius with a harsh pat to his back.
"I look ridiculous," Severus moaned, moving to the large mirror to stare at himself.
"Yeah, but that's no different from usual."
Severus sneered, then put on the white pants to go with the deep blue of the shirt that had been attempting to strangle him moments before. "If I had to stay in this bloody place, I'd go mad." The shirt suddenly constricted itself like a corset, before releasing to let Severus gasp in some air.
"If I were you, Snape," said Sirius with amusement flickering in his eyes, "I wouldn't insult the clothing anymore."
"You boys look nice," said the Beast pleasantly as they came in for breakfast.
"Thank you," said Sirius with a smile. Severus merely grunted.
"Help yourself," said the Beast, indicating the veritable feast laid out for breakfast. Despite himself, Severus licked his lips.
Severus drew in a breath. "I've never seen so many flowers all in one place before."
"Nor I," said Sirius, grinning widely. "Beautiful."
The Beast nodded. "Yes, it is."
"Excuse me, Mr. Beast—"
"Oh, you can call me Remus."
"Remus, then. How do you know so much about us?"
"Oh! The mirror. I didn't show it to you last night?"
"No," said Severus, "I'm sure you didn't."
"Well, by all means, allow me to do so! The enchanted mirror is not to be missed."
"Wait," said Sirius, moving toward a small gazebo with a tree inside that was moving restlessly, "what's this?"
"What's wha—don't touch that!" the Beast yelped.
Sirius paused, staring back at him.
"It...," the Beast merely stopped at the first word, obviously having no intention of finishing the thought. Both boys stared at him for a moment.
"Well, sorry, then. Anyway, I need to be getting back soon, Remus," said Sirius. "Thanks for your hospitality."
The Beast nodded. Sirius went back into the house to change back into his old clothes. The less explaining he had to do, the better. The Beast and Severus sat down on a bench, watching the tree.
"What's so special about it?" asked Severus.
"It moves," said the Beast, shrugging and looking away from Severus.
"Interesting." Severus stood and stretched. "I, too, thank you for your hospitality."
"No!" said the Beast. Severus quirked an eyebrow. "You can't leave!" he continued, standing himself. He loomed over Severus a bit. "You just got here. Severus Snape. You just got here. You're Severus. Don't you . . . don't you want to see the mirror?"
"Sure," said Severus, "but then it's time for me to go."
"No!" The Beast fretted a bit, looking around as if needing some support from another person, but they were the only two beings in the garden.
"Let's get on with it," said Severus, "Show me the mirror."
The Beast turned away from Severus, hiding his troubled expression. He led the other boy into the castle and over to the Mirror Room. In the Mirror Room was a looking glass much bigger than Severus had ever seen. It spanned almost the entire wall.
"Show me Tobias Snape," said the Beast softly, and all of a sudden there was an image of Severus's father working the fields.
"Lily Evans," said Severus after a moment, and Lily appeared, scrubbing at the floor of the kitchen in her house, under Petunia's critical eye as she cooked. Their father was out in his shop making horseshoes and whatnot, so the girls were quite alone inside.
"Impressive," said Severus, touching the surface of the cool glass right where Lily's cheek appeared.
The Beast smiled.
Severus tried to make it clear that he needed to get back to the village. But when the Beast asked when he could next visit, he said after the harvest, and the Beast became frightened at the prospect of being all alone again. Severus understood more than he would have liked as an armchair slid behind him and a footstool knocked him off-balance until he fell back into it. The armchair wrapped itself around him, and he was truly trapped. He snarled at the Beast.
"No, Severus," said the Beast softly, turning away, "I'm afraid you're not going anywhere."
Chapter 3
He supposed he could have whined about his situation. But he was no Sirius Black. He was no James Potter. He was no Peter Pettigrew. He sighed and sat there. Instead of whining, instead of freaking out, he merely went over the inventory of all the nice things he had seen in the castle. He had quite a thorough memory, so this took him quite a while.
All of a sudden, though, the armchair seemed to melt off of him, forming its original shape, leaving Severus free. "Hello," said the Beast.
Severus was nearly beside himself and did not trust himself to speak yet.
"I've brought you some food," said the Beast with an indulgent smile, two large trays floating in his wake as he stepped forward into the room. He handed Severus a bundle of clothing as well. "After your bath, you can put this on."
Severus glared, dropping the clothes unceremoniously to the floor as he stood. He was at his tolerance limit. "Bath?!" he sputtered. "Oh, as if the clothing you choked me with this morning wasn't enough!"
"Choked you?" said the Beast quietly, moving out of the way so the trays could gently nudge Severus.
"Stop it!" said Severus, staring down at the tray hitting his chest.
"I think they want you to sit down, Snape," said the Beast.
"Oh they do, do they? And what now, I suppose they want to do this too," said Snape, and he took an entire Cornish hen and flung it at his captor. The Beast dodged it rather well. So Snape threw a cup of hot tea, looking smug to hear a yelp as it hit Remus's chest and neck, soaking his clothes.
For the first time, the Beast actually looked like he was dangerous. Severus had no idea why the thought had not occurred to him before that it might do him harm if he pressed its temper. He turned on his heel and ran, glad that the Beast didn't even try to stop him.
"You won't get far," the Beast called after him. Severus slowed, but did not stop. When he made it out the front door, he ran to the gap in the gate and then frowned. It wasn't as if he hit a wall, it was as if his shoes were glued to the floor as he stood at the gap, trying to fight it. But the moment he resolved himself to his fate, he was able to move his feet again. He cocked an eyebrow and tried to leave again. But to no avail. He could not move his feet until the intention of fleeing left him.
He stared down at his feet as he backed up a step, the old, worn boots incongruous with the silken image of royalty the homicidal clothes he was wearing put forth. With a curl of his lip, he backed up a step, untied the old boots, and tossed them outside the magical barrier. With bare feet, he padded back toward the castle to accept his new life as a slave to something inhuman who obviously hated him. Oh well. At least there was a library.
"What are you doing?" hissed Sirius, who had just narrowly avoided being hit by one of Snape's shoes. Severus whipped around in a flash. "Stop fooling around and come back to camp with me, Snape. I thought for sure you'd have followed me."
"No, but not for lack of trying."
"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Sirius, gathering up Snape's shoes.
"Are you stupid?"
"Snape," said Sirius warningly.
"I am trapped here. Trapped. Can your mind comprehend the word?"
"Trapped?"
"Like a prisoner. I am his prisoner. You may as well keep the boots. I'll have nice ones for the foreseeable future, I'm sure."
"What's he want with you, then?" said Sirius, "I thought you were all tough and stringy."
"Who knows," said Snape. "Go back to them and tell them whatever you would. If I can get back to the village eventually, I will. But it will take time." He drew himself up to his full height, looking defiant. "Now go."
There was really nothing Sirius could do but nod and turn back toward the camp, finding somewhere to hide Severus's shoes when he thought of it.
Severus himself did not go back inside, now that he'd had the talk with Sirius. He took a stroll through the gardens until the sun began to get low, just letting his mind wander. The situation he found himself in was so unreal it had not even impacted him much yet. That would come in time.
In the meanwhile, he was going to practice magic. If the Beast could do it, why not him? What was so special about the Beast, save the fact he was covered in fur? Severus tried climbing some of the trees to escape, but a similar effect as the one on the gap in the wall lined the top of it. He was, as he'd told his old village rival, trapped. He was trapped rather thoroughly. He almost had to give the Beast credit.
Though he held himself stiffly, the Beast, he was acting with less anger than he had been that morning. He was trying to stay calm as he came outside with a basket of some rolls and some cheese in hand and two ornate chairs following him.
Severus glanced over at him from one of the benches, and the Beast coaxed him over to the side of a small pond, the chairs settling themselves near each other. Severus moved the chair nearest him a bit farther from both the lake and the other chair before sitting in it. He accepted a roll with some cheese, and then blinked in surprise when the Beast conjured a glass of wine and floated that to him as well. He took a sip. If it was poisoned, it was poisoned. Oh well.
They ate in silence except for the rustle of the soft wind through the trees and grasses, the soft sound the Beasts' movements made as he would reach for the basket and crumble a roll into small bits that he threw onto the surface of the pond with soft plips for the large fish to eat. It seemed like not very long at all when the sun began to get very low.
"Come inside now, Severus," said the Beast, rising, dusting himself off.
Severus turned his head away, not rising.
"You can hate me just as easily from inside the castle as out, and there are no books in my garden."
The Beast had spoken the truth, he found, as he gathered the books he had found in the library to his chest. Returning to his room, he saw that the mess from before had been perfectly cleaned and idly wondered if he would soon begin to blur reality and dreams. Magic and reality seemed to have different sets of rules. He laid himself back down in the ever-warm bed and read Shakespeare until he fell into a slumber. If he were to be a prisoner, this was exactly the sort of prison he would want to belong to.
Chapter 4
Forget the Beast being dangerous, if Severus ever made it out of the tub, he would murder someone. It was the Beast's fault if the only one around was the Beast himself. The water was warm, the perfect temperature, but that did not excuse the fact that the Beast had a very insistent tub and a very enthusiastic scrub brush. "Ow! Ow! Beast!"
The Beast entered the room, covering his eyes with a furry, clawed hand. "What is it?" he asked.
"This is not the time for modesty!" shrieked Severus. "Your scrub brush is going to scrub me to death!" He was already bleeding a bit on the side of his right arm.
"Oh!" said the Beast, dropping the hand, snapping his fingers. The scrub brush zoomed to him. "Did you insult it?" he asked Snape softly, petting the brush.
"Insult it?! It is a scrub brush!"
"That doesn't mean it has no feelings."
Snape raised an eyebrow, but made no comment.
"Well, I suppose you're done, then." As soon as the words left him, the tub was gone, seeming to have sunk through the floor. Snape was standing, wet and naked and flushed red from the heat of the water and the furious attentions of the brush. His hair and skin were soon dry, and a shirt and a pair of trousers were fluttering dangerously close to his side. He scowled at them but allowed them to come near, putting them on so he might ignore the scrutiny of the Beast's large, blue eyes.
"You see," said the Beast, "while I can exact control over the items in this household, the castle tends to have a mind of its own. I think its residual magic, or something like that. Anyway, I will procure a new scrub brush the next time you bathe."
"I hate this castle," said Snape darkly. "And I hate you."
"Don't say that!" said the Beast, seeming to shrink a little.
"Would you have me lie, then? Fine, I appreciate your company. You don't scare me. You aren't ugly. You aren't mean and cruel and murderous."
"I've never murdered!" growled the Beast.
"Yet," said Severus with a sniff. "Keep up with this temper and it's only a matter of time before I'm in little pieces on your dinner table."
The Beast looked as if he'd been struck, and he pulled the scrub brush out of his pocket. "Have at him," he said to it as he let it float in the air in front of him.
Severus spent the rest of the morning hiding from the brush in the wardrobe, feeling like a right ponce as he expressed praise to the wardrobe for doing so. "Thank you, strong wardrobe. Never have I seen a more solid oaken structure." He rolled his eyes at himself, though his voice remained sounding sincere. When the scrubbing brush finally gave up knocking against the door, he slumped to the bottom of the large wardrobe and slept uneasily in its protective, cramped darkness.
If there was one thing he knew about the intellectual process, Snape, it was that realizations came if and when they would. Sometimes they came quickly, sometimes they came late, and sometimes they came just in the nick of time. There was no reason, then, to kick himself for not realizing it sooner when he came to the conclusion that the nicer he was to the furniture, the more indulgent it was. It took him a run-in with a shovel, a hoe, and a garden trowel to finally break free of his urge to insult them in their annoying insistence. He learned to hold his tongue, all within the period of a day. For him, it was remarkable. While a quick learner, he did not do "change" well.
Exhausted and bruised, he sat still in his bedroom as the tub returned, this time with a cloth instead of the infernal scrub brush, and cleaned the cut above his eye. The water turned into some sort of a soothing ointment and his clothes parted, and he sighed, lying back on the bed. "Thanks," he murmured to the things in the room as the aches from the gardening tools seemed to leave him. He also noticed his shirt was drying. He had been doused by a watering can or two. No more insulting the Beast out loud to himself. That was for sure.
He was extremely startled to realize that he almost wished the Beast would come gather him for supper as he lay there naked, relaxed, smelling of the perfumed ointment, skin tingling with the healing powers. "I don't want him to see me like this. I hate him," he reminded himself, and was promptly smacked by the cloth. "Ow!"
It hit him again, more gently, until he quickly apologized, and it desisted, rubbing along his chest gently, suddenly silky to the touch. He grasped the cloth in his hands and curled up on top of the bedding, letting sleep claim him.
It was nearly dark when he awoke, the sun so low the only indication of it was a blur of red on the horizon. The tub had disappeared, though the cloth had stayed. He ran fingers over it gently and it seemed to quiver like a pleased cat, though it stopped short of purring. He smiled and released it. It melted into the comforter he was lying on, becoming a part of it, he assumed, or disappearing entirely.
The Beast did not come to fetch him for dinner, and he berated himself for thinking the Beast wanted to see him naked again. That morning was the first time he had ever been seen in the flesh by another being, even if the being was not perfectly human. He tamped down the odd desire to be praised by the Beast in his obvious obsession for him, and gasped.
The Beast liked him, perhaps. Maybe not like a lover, but like hero-worship or something. And Snape enjoyed it. Oh did he ever! He put on some new clothing that had been laid out, and this pair did not fight him at all. Perhaps he was gaining some of that magic already!
The dishes were nice and polite as he dined alone. Later, as he sat in the library, he found the time to be ten o'clock. He considered the fact that he had gone without having said good night to the beast. It was odd he should count this as some sort of a disappointment.
He occupied himself reading or going into the Mirror Room and having a look at the lives of the villagers. With luck, he'd be able to return home soon, and there was no sense in not catching up on gossip.
When the Beast returned, it was not the day after the incident with the gardening tools, nor the one after that. Somehow Severus knew when the Beast had come, though, and sat stiffly in his chair in the library, wondering whether he should greet him or not. He decided not. Not yet, at least. He waited for about an hour before standing to see if his suspicions were correct. They were.
The Beast was home. However, he was also in bad shape.
"What happened to you?" Severus blurted out, forgetting stealth entirely as he left the room he had been looking in on the Beast from.
The Beast looked up with tired eyes as the tub and cloth worked, cleaning his wounds. One looked particularly deep, bisecting his chest. "People."
Severus raised an eyebrow, looking for elaboration. As he entered the room, he hesitated, then proceeded to run a finger alongside the gash.
"They found your shoes in the forest and thought I'd eaten you." He smiled softly. "They were surprised to see I still wear clothes."
"Still?" Severus withdrew his hand, standing up straight and waiting for the Beast to continue.
"I . . . wasn't always," the Beast hesitated. "I was once human."
"What?!"
"Is it so shocking?" the Beast laughed, a low, rumbling chuckle. "Well, that was nearly thirty years ago. I was around your age. Now I age much more slowly than I used to, I think. It could be my new form, or it could be the castle."
"You were not always . . . furred?" Severus tugged at some of the hair on the Beast's arm.
"Watch it," said the Beast, pulling his arm away.
"Sorry." He stepped back a bit. "What did you look like? Why are you here?"
"Prince Remus did not die. He was cursed," said the Beast with a self-deprecating smile. "And now he lives alone, ugly, and friendless. I . . . Severus, don't leave the castle. Please."
Severus fled from the room and into the safety of his bed.
Chapter 5
When, exactly, did Heaven see fit to change everything about his life? He would have appreciated an official notice. His world was upside-down and he was being shaken; familiarity and sense were both dropping from his pockets unbidden. He was not particularly amused.
"Used to be a prince?" he said aloud. He slid under the duvet after kicking his new nice boots off. It curled in around him like an embrace. The Beast had been a prince. Prince Remus. When he had told him to call him that earlier, why hadn't he made that connection himself?
"The farmer's odd son, the guest of a prince." He smirked at how magic really was different from reality. His calloused hands were already softening, and it felt as if he'd known the castle and the Beast—Remus—for much more than a few days. It both thrilled and scared him.
That night he went out to the gap in the wall and felt the rain with his fingers, caught it in his mouth, soaked up a few drops with his hair. But it was not enough. He tried to use what power he had gained over the castle's magic to lessen whatever had blocked the rain.
Getting to his feet carefully, Remus walked out to the front of the wall to see Snape reaching for the rain. There was an odd stirring in his heart as his apprehension about Severus messing with the magic and getting away turned to appreciation for the gentle side of Severus that loved rain so much.
Limping a bit, he moved a bit closer to peel back the magical weather shield and heard Severus's cry of delight. He leaned against the thick, stone wall and smiled as his guest ran a bit, even danced a bit, ignoring the gap for the time being. Severus looked to be enjoying himself immensely so, with a sigh Remus left him to it. But as he headed back to the castle, Severus spotted him.
Severus ran to Remus. "Come," he said, pulling him into the wet patch. Remus's breath caught. He watched Severus take off his boots and splash in the puddle, pulling wet strands of hair off of his face, smiling softly at Remus, enticing Remus's affection further without hardly any effort.
When he became rather water-logged, Severus ran hands through his wet fur, along his neck, his hands, his face. Remus gasped inaudibly as he realized that he wanted Severus as much more than a simple palace guest. He wanted as much as he could possibly get from him. He wanted someone to love in the most sinful of ways.
Startled by this revelation about himself, Remus smiled benignly, but backed up from the wet patch of sky and ground. "I'll see you tomorrow, Severus," he said, peeling back more of the weather shield.
"Thank you," Severus said quietly, amongst the roll of distant thunder, to the light of flashes of awesome lightning, "Thank you."
Remus nodded acknowledgment, then wisely ran inside before he had the urge to kiss his Severus.
"You were alone for thirty years?"
"A little over that, actually."
"And I'm supposed to believe you're Prince Remus?"
"Do you require proof?"
Severus gave a curt nod and they stood from their chairs to go to the Mirror Room where the Beast told the mirror to show him Prince Remus and it showed him his own reflection. He sighed and turned away from the image to look at Severus. "Satisfied?"
"What did you look like before?" said Severus, adding an "Off," to the mirror so that it became like a blank, silver screen. Normally, it did not even reflect. As far as he had seen, there were very few mirrors in the castle.
"I'll show you," said Remus. They made their way to one of the long corridors filled with portraits of the royal family, eventually coming upon the one of Remus in human form.
Severus stared at the portrait for a long moment, and Remus asked him if he thought it looked like him. "Yes," Severus said, "I can see the resemblance." After he said it, it became even more true. They looked remarkably alike, the human and the beast. Both were handsome, he had to admit. "You really are a prince."
Remus smiled softly and gave Severus a pat on the shoulder. "Yes, I am."
"What are your favorite sorts of books, Remus?" asked Severus, trying to find a new book to read.
"Tragedy, and romance. Romantic tragedy, too. Horror. Mystery. Most types, I guess." He smiled softly.
"Non-fiction?"
"No. Afraid not."
"Ah. I noticed you don't have much of it."
Remus snapped his fingers and a bookshelf rose up from the floor. "In the study I do. Choose what you like." He gently took the fictional book Severus had been considering reading from his grasp and reshelved it along the far wall.
Severus settled down for a good read and did not complain much when Remus leaned over the back of his chair and read over his shoulder, idly playing with the ends of his hair.
When he thought too hard on the fact he was enjoying himself, possibly even more than he had in the village, he almost felt like a traitor. Therefore he avoided comparing the two ways of life, when he could, but it was in him to be so damn analytical that it was hard.
He still practiced his magic. He still practiced being nice to the items in the house, and nice to the Beast—Remus. Though, it was becoming harder and harder to find fault with Remus.
Remus's obsession was turning into care. As it got chillier, he would make sure Severus didn't spend too much time outside, and would make sure that when he played in the rain he took a bath and got warm. Despite the precautions, Severus managed to catch ill sometime near the beginning of November, and Remus was at his side.
He fed him warm broths for the stomach, cool cloths for the forehead, and kept the fire going in the grate. He even procured self-cleaning handkerchiefs and helped him dry his rather large nose. He even gave the boy a gentle massage that had him relaxed and softly moaning. Then he tucked him back in and called his bed in from his own room to sit on the ground next to Severus's.
When Severus recovered, he felt even more affectionate toward his captor. Not even his own mother had paid him that sort of attention when ill. He began looking forward to bathing, to wearing the nice clothes, to eating rich meals. He looked forward, even, to Remus's company. He stopped seeing it as a prison, and as more of a . . . what had Remus called it once? A household. It was their household, and Severus was okay with that. He even liked it. He would admit it to himself, if not to Remus. Bloody beast had a big enough head already.
Chapter 6
"Is your magic growing?"
"What?"
"Yes or no, Severus. Yes or no."
"I think it is, yes," he said softly after a moment.
"Once you break through the barrier, you'll be able to go, you know."
"I know."
"And will you?"
"I imagine I won't be strong enough until January or February."
"And will you?" he repeated.
"We'll see," Severus said. "Now if this inquiry is over, I must retire." He sniffed and left the room. Severus's cloth napkin took the shape of a large butterfly and fluttered to Remus's shoulder. He smiled at it, then sighed.
"It the first snow!" called Severus.
Remus growled from his bed. "Do you know what time it is?"
"It's not my fault you have a weather shield up," said Severus matter-of-factly. He grasped the duvet and tugged it off of Remus.
"Severus!"
"Come on," he said, grasping Remus's hands. "Give me the winter."
Remus hesitated. "Alright, but just a patch, like last time.
"Are the plants even affected by the snow?" asked Severus, dancing a bit again, snowflakes clinging to his hair delicately in a way that made Remus so want to join him.
Remus shook his head. "Actually, the only thing affected would be the tree over there, but that still means I need to keep the chill away from it."
Severus came over to look at the tree, and Remus nervously watched him. He reached out, and Remus nearly growled at him to leave it alone, but Severus just ran fingers along the sides of it and its branches before it swatted at him playfully. He smiled at it as Remus shivered.
"Stop it. That tickles," said Remus.
"Your tree is ticklish?" Severus raised an eyebrow and glanced back over his shoulder at Remus.
"No, but I am. The tree contains my life-force."
"Your life-force is ticklish?" Severus circled around the tree, dodging its swats to tickle it again. When he tickled it, it seemed to freeze up and he grinned devilishly at Remus.
"Stop it," said Remus with a flush.
"If I took an ax to it, or tore off a branch, what would happen?"
Remus shuddered. "You know what would happen."
"Oh do I?" Severus moved back over to Remus.
"I would die," said Remus. "That stops moving altogether, and I die."
There was an awkward silence at Remus's display of vulnerability. And then Severus wrapped his arms around Remus and all tension between them in that moment slipped away.
After Severus played around some more, a cloak appearing out of nowhere to help keep him warm, they went inside and sat by the fire until they warmed up again.
"Let's get you out of those clothes, Severus. You're soaked," said the Beast with a soft smile. Severus nodded and they made their way up to his room.
The candles were low and the fire was warm and the water was just right. The tub enlarged after a moment of Severus sitting back luxuriously as Remus stood and looked him over. He closed his eyes and basked in the fact that he was being watched as a different, softer scrub brush washed him. "Remus?" he said, eyes opening after a while.
Remus paused as if having been caught staring at him. He moved to turn away, but Severus stopped him.
"No, it's fine," he said, stretching a bit, tossing his head, attempting to look enticing. It worked.
Remus tentatively began to slide out of his clothing, the clothing helping by fading away. He placed a hand on the edge of the tub hesitantly.
"Nothing's stopping you," drawled Severus, glancing at him from over his delectable, pale shoulder. Remus gave into the urge, sliding in behind Severus as the tub enlarged even more. He grasped the pitcher of shampoo from the air, pouring some of it into his hand. Massaging Severus's scalp, neck, and temples, he eventually had him groaning and melting back into him. Gently creating a waterfall from his first two fingers, he rinsed Severus's hair and placed a kiss at the crown of the head, which made Severus tense and then relax again.
It surprised him when Severus turned around and smirked softly, taking the pitcher of shampoo from suddenly-limp fingers. "Let's get your hair as well," he said quietly, and the Beast sat back as Severus turned toward him, pouring the sweet-smelling soap over his head, down his back, over his chest, and then proceeded to rub it gently but firmly into his fur until he himself was groaning.
"Lovely, Severus, just lovely," he sighed, enjoying the feel of it all almost as much as Severus was enjoying touching him. Something about the muscles covered in thick, brown fur had Severus entranced, and very excited. He felt his prick stiffen as he created a new pitcher out of thin air and scooped up some of the water from the tub, pouring it over Remus to rid him of the soap. This done, he licked his lips, staring straight at his captor.
"Severus," said Remus softly, shakily, "may I kiss you?"
Severus's wide eyes were forced back to their normal state after a moment and he leaned in and captured the lips on his own. The teeth were menacing, but the mouth was warm, and the fur brushing against his cheek made his first kiss like nothing he could have ever imagined. He pressed closer, chest to Remus's furred one, and cock pressing into Remus's muscled, hairless abdomen with a moan.
As soon as Remus felt that hardness, he broke off the kiss to turn Severus around, back in between his legs, his own bright erection gently greeting Severus's lower back. With gentle rubbing motions, he moved against Severus, and his hand moved beneath the line of the water to grasp Severus's shaft, and he kissed Severus's neck's skin, wonderful, human skin for the first time in at least thirty years.
Severus rubbed back against what he knew must be Remus's need, moaning as the grip on him seemed to tighten a bit at that, both around his hip and around his prick. He threw his head back, hair brushing Remus's chest, and Remus growled softly as he moved his hand from Severus's erection to his hip, holding him still as he rubbed against him.
Severus yelped, reaching down to grasp himself, eyes rolling and head lolling as Remus nipped at his neck and his shoulders. He stroked himself as quickly as the silky, oily water would permit, biting his lip hard and tossing his head.
"Gorgeous like this," rasped Remus against his shoulder blade, and Severus cried out as he found his release.
"Oh God, oh God, oh Remus," he murmured, pressing back against Remus's erection.
"Mm," said Remus, nuzzling the back of his head as he too hit his orgasm, causing Severus to moan as he felt the warmth and the slight force of it even from under the water. Remus fairly collapsed, and Severus had to get him out of the tub and into the bed, after allowing the clothes to dress him. He got dressed as well and slid in beside his Remus.
"Love?" questioned Severus aloud as he began to drift off to sleep. Perhaps it was. The spirited willow tree of Remus's life-force suddenly sprouted blossoms, which it had never managed before.
Chapter 7
In the gentle morning sunlight, Severus lay on his side, tracing patterns in the hair over Remus's chest. He flinched when Remus's eyes opened and their blue depths surrounded him. He drew his hand away, but the Beast caught it before it got very far. "Nothing's stopping you," he rumbled softly, repeating the words Severus had used the day before.
Severus paused for a moment, then buried his face in Lupin's chest, inhaling the scent of the shampoo.
"Do you like rather hirsute men, Severus?" Remus teased, running fingertips along Severus's pale back.
Severus pulled away to look into his eyes and speak. "Perhaps. But what I really like now is bathing. Continue to join me when I have to do it, and I'll not complain to a scrub brush again."
Remus smiled softly. He'd been afraid they'd gone about doing things all wrong. He didn't really know what he was doing, truth be told, when it came to being with another boy. He twined his fingers in the soft, black hair. "I'll try for as long as you let me, Severus" said Remus, hardly breathing.
"My prince," said Severus after a moment, running fingers through the hair of Remus's cheek, stroking his furry ear.
Remus held out an arm and Severus settled himself in closer, wrapped in Remus's embrace.
The next time he looked at his tree, just after New Year's, Remus couldn't help but notice that it had sprouted blossoms. His heart started pounding in his chest as he stared at it.
"They're so pretty," said Severus, moving toward the tree.
"No! Don't touch it!" said Remus, running over to stand in front of Severus, holding him close. "You could make one fall off."
"What?"
"If those blossoms all fall off the willow tree, Severus, I'm done for. An ax may as well have chopped the tree to bits."
"So they're not just pretty. They're deadly."
Yes, thought Remus. Love was deadly.
He spent a while trying to find where he'd tossed the poem that had told him of the curse and of his fate. Eventually, he found it, though, and his breath caught at the words.When love's blossoms start to bloom
Marriage will stop impending doom:
Nothing short of it will work
To stop the way that death does lurk.
Petal blossoms fall away
If love does not end in that way.
And if the loved one leaves his side,
He'll die of heartache for the bride.
He supposed Severus would suffice as the bride. Now all he had to do was propose and figure out a way for them to get married—if Severus didn't kill him for his forwardness first. He supposed the most important issue would be whether or not Severus would accept the proposal. Forget heartache after his "bride" was away for a while. He would die of heartache if Severus didn't accept!
The next morning he rose early and dressed in his very nicest clothing. He bathed Severus gently when he awoke, making sure the dark-haired boy enjoyed his ministrations immensely. Even if Remus didn't touch him like he had the time before, Severus felt prized again. Remus dressed Severus himself, sensuously, in a rich, dark purple, the hardest color of all to create, even with magic.
"You look very stunning, Severus," he said as Severus looked himself over in the mirror with a frown.
"I look like a farmer's son playing dress-up."
Remus shook his head. "No, you look perfect." Severus scoffed. "If anyone is playing dress-up here, it's me." He tickled the hair on his chin and twitched his ears, making Severus smile. "I look much more like a wolf than like royalty."
"Very good point," said Severus, reaching out to trace one of the ears. "But you're a prince underneath."
"A lonely prince," he reminded Severus. Severus scowled at him. "I have to talk with you," Remus said, and led him down to the dining hall.
"What is it?" he asked over dinner. "What do you have to speak with me about?"
"All in good time," said Remus.
In the garden, they walked about together.
"Oh look," said Severus, pointing to the tree. "Your life-force is . . . well, it's losing its petals." He gave Remus a worried glance.
"Yes," said Remus quietly. "In fact, that's what I wanted to discuss with you."
"What is it?" said Severus. "Are you going to die?" As he voiced this concern, he felt his throat constrict.
"I have a chance to go on living," said the Beast, looking away from the other boy.
"Whatever it is, do it."
"I believe it requires your permission," said Remus.
Severus raised an eyebrow, so Remus went on. "Well, I never even imagined I'd have this sort of a problem to deal with," he said with an affectionate glance at the tree, reaching for Severus's hand. He pulled the poem out of his pocket and read the eight lines about love to him, leaving him stunned.
"So you see," said Remus, "I need to get married."
Severus felt numb all of a sudden. "Yes. Yes, of course you do. You can't die on my account."
"Great!" said Remus, replacing the paper in his pocket. Then he paused. "Where are you going, Severus? Don't you want to help me plan?"
"It's not my place to do so," said Severus curtly as he headed for his room.
Remus frowned to himself. Not his place? Was the man bloody daft? Of course it was his place. He was the bride! Remus moved to the door of Severus's bedroom and knocked on it.
"I'll see you tomorrow," said Severus.
"But, Severus . . . ."
"Tomorrow!"
No amount of pleading after that could convince Severus to let Remus in. For someone who was about to be married, he sure felt alone. He went off to bed, feeling rather defeated underneath his slight elation.
They never did see each other the next day, however. Severus made sure of that. In the middle of the night, he rose from his bed. He had not undressed, having planned what he was going to do. There was a tight feeling in his chest. How on earth could he have expected the prince to feel about him the way he now felt about the prince? He shuddered as he left the castle door and stepped into the night air.
He supposed he should be happy that the Beast was going to be able to live once he got married. All he felt was jealousy and guilt. He felt guilty about the fact he had caused the blossoms to form. He was evil.
The simple fact of the matter was that he was a male. He had a penis. He had neither breasts nor a vaginal opening. He could not have children. He was not supposed to be with another male. He could not live as Remus's official lover. Remus probably did not want him anyway. It was his fault alone that the tree was killing Remus. If only he hadn't tempted the other boy into the tub, the tree would not have had to call Remus on the lewd behavior in such a deadly fashion. He was more a murderer than Remus would ever be.
Severus felt sick as he picked apart layer after layer of the spell on the gap in the wall. With one last glance at the castle, he moved away into the cutting darkness of the forest, feeling emptier than he had in his entire lifetime.
Remus had assumed that Severus was just avoiding him. A little early for pre-wedding jitters, he thought, but ah well. He hummed to himself as he ate and as he tended to the garden himself, eying the tree that would soon stop losing its petals. He was on top of the world, or so he thought. Until, that is, he realized Severus was not even on the premises.
What kind of a cruel, vindictive turn had fate taken now? To give him the world and then take it back like a dishonest peddler. If he could only spend the rest of his miserable existence in the tub, remembering Severus, or in the rain, or the snow, in Severus's room, or even in the library, he would do it. But he knew the only room he would be occupying for the foreseeable future would be the Mirror Room.
His heart was thrumming with the sad, true indignity of it all. He was in love with someone who could not share his feelings, or at least that was what he now presumed. It had seemed they must be in love, for "love's blossoms" to bloom, but maybe the flowers were brought about simply by the fact that he himself was in love and were no indication of Severus's feelings at all.
After all, Severus had been little more than a prisoner since the day he'd arrived. Remus had had an obsession with the boy, before the castle, probably since Severus had been a meager five years old. The obsession had changed over the years from curiosity, to care, to lust-tinged affection. Severus hadn't liked his lust-tinged affection. He had just been pretending so that Remus wouldn't eat him. Now Remus wished he had done so after all, no matter that he wasn't particularly cannibalistic. He squished a dropped petal under the toe of his boot.
Chapter 8
Severus was easy to spot in the ensemble he was sporting. In fact, he stuck out like a sore thumb. He didn't get far into the village at all when he was stopped by Rodolphus Lestrange.
"Good afternoon," said Severus softly, trying to be polite.
"Maybe it is. Or maybe it isn't. Come. Speak to me."
Warily, Severus nodded and followed him.
They sat at the table as Bella, Rodolphus's wife, poured them some ale. Rodolphus started talking to him about an irrigation problem the village was having. Before long, Severus was drifting out of consciousness. He woke up in the cellar, tied to a bed. Bella had put something in the ale and now he was a true prisoner. It was not like when he'd been with the Beast. It was much worse.
"Good afternoon," said Bella mockingly.
Severus looked around for a bit.
"Where did you get that clothing?" Rodolphus asked, sharpening one of his knives in the corner. Severus gulped.
"From Prince Remus."
"Prince Remus is dead."
He shook his head. "No, he's just a beast now."
"You're supposed to be intelligent," said Bella, eyebrows lifting in surprise. "You really expect us to believe a handsome prince is the same as that thing in the forest?"
He shrugged. "I believe it."
Bella let out a cackle of laughter.
"I say we obtain this 'beast' and find out for ourselves, Bella."
"Probably just a very hairy man," said Bella. "Or a very kind bear."
"Either way, I believe he'll come to find his secret pet," said Rodolphus with distaste. He stood, sheathing his knife. "Don't you agree, Severus?"
Severus's eyes were wide.
"I'm going to stuff him," said Rodolphus with an unsettling smile. "I'll have him on display for all the world to see. We'll dispose of you later, of course."
"Or maybe we could keep him," said Bella, glancing over at the boy tied to the bed.
"Perhaps," said Rodolphus, not much caring. "We'll see."
Rodolphus was gone soon and there were tears crawling silently down the sides of Severus's face. "Cheer up," said Bella in a too-sweet manner. "He may let us keep you for a while instead of killing you right away. You've grown more handsome since you were away, I think."
Severus was not prepared at all for the moment that she began cutting the clothes off of him with a knife, careful not to cut skin in the process. But he was even less prepared for the moment that she grasped his limp prick in her hand and began to will it into hardness.
His shame was almost tangible, and she reveled in that fact as she had her way with him and he prayed for it all to go away. It was disgusting. It was nothing like Remus's hand on him, or his prick against him. It was wet and squelchy, and he hated it. He felt more used than he'd ever felt in his life as she came, shuddering around him, constricting around his shameful erection. He wanted to hide, but he was trapped, and as she pulled off, she wrapped fingers around him and stroked him, roughly, to an orgasm. He gasped as he found a terrible release, and then he cried more than ever.
Remus would have come to Severus's rescue, but for the simple fact that he hadn't been able to leave the forest in decades. The floral frame of the mirror, solid gold, seemed much too good for such a disgusting appliance. The mirror had shown him such beautiful things in the past, sides of Severus even Severus didn't realize he had, and now the mirror had just finished displaying the ultimate nightmare. He went out to the tree and pulled off a total of seven blossoms before he grew bored of the suicide and moved back inside to Severus's old room, to curl up in his bed. To smell his scent and never leave.
Rodolphus Lestrange made it to the castle, but was surprised to be met at the door. "I can't enter the village, so you'll have to do it here," said the Beast.
Rodolphus stared at him.
"Can't do it?" he said, taking the advantage the surprise his utter humanness seemed to cause in villagers. "Shame." He slid the knife from Rodolphus's grip and held him at its point. "I can enchant this knife to stab you even without holding it. On top of that, it doesn't like you, and none of my cutlery does either. I'll send them along, and a basket as well. If you don't free Severus, I will be able to tell because you'll come back here in little pieces. Understand? Now go."
Rodolphus, surprised, and a little fearful, turned to head back toward the village.
"By the way," called the Beast, "Were I to not have already known you were coming, you would never have been able to find the castle."
Severus felt sullied. He could not, would not face the other villagers, even his own father and mother, even Lily, even Sirius, like this.
He'd jumped into the lake and swam a bit, leaving his magically-healed clothing on a rock. When he got out and redressed, he ran back into the forest and it was only a few feet before he found the castle.
"Remus!" he said, and buried his face in Remus's shoulder.
"I'm here, Severus," said a very choked-up Remus. "I am." He picked Severus up in his arms and made his way into the house, into Severus's room, and they laid next to each other in silence until sleep swallowed them up.
The walk up to the house had exhausted Remus, and Severus brought his food to him when he awoke, feeding him.
"The tree," was all Remus had to say.
Severus nodded, turning away from him, leaving the room.
When Remus was feeling better and Severus had returned, he sat up, wringing his hands. "I saw what happened. On the mirror. I'm so sorry! I can't leave the forest. I'm so sorry!"
"Enough whimpering," said Severus. "I have something to say to you."
Remus paused, frowning softly as he turned to look at him.
"I'm sorry I made the tree bloom. I know we're not supposed to be together." He pushed himself up out of the bed. "Look at me. I'm no princess. When you find the girl you want to marry, I'll be happy for you. So I'm sorry too. If I hadn't enticed you into the tub, you wouldn't be in this mess. Hell, I probably wouldn't have run away were you not essentially having to replace me."
Well, that explained a lot! "Severus, wait!" he called after him.
"I'm going to the garden," was the curt reply. Remus scrambled to get out of the sheets.
"You are so stupid!"
"How?"
"I read that to you to explain we had to get married. Us. You and me. The tree's blossoms only bloom when there's love present. I love you. I don't want a princess. I want a Severus. You bloody fool, I only need you. That's why I need you to help with the wedding. It's your business; it's all your business, and only yours!"
Severus was so stunned he fell back onto the bench. "Oh."
"Yes, 'Oh.'" Remus moved to the bench to sit next to Severus. "You're the love of my life. I'll never find someone like you again. I've watched you for a long time, Severus. I need you. You've been my light in the darkest times, even when I'd never met you. Don't turn me down."
"I couldn't!" said Severus, a bit irked. "I couldn't ever turn you down." He slid his hand into one of Remus's. "If that's what you meant by showing me that, I'm sorry. I thought you meant to say that you wanted a bride and you needed my permission, out of kindness to me, to marry her."
"I do want a bride. I want you to be it! I just have to get married. It never said it had to be a woman."
"Your bride?" he raised an eyebrow.
"My groom?"
Severus shrugged. "Your Severus."
Chapter 9
"So will you do it?" he finally asked.
"Of course," said the old man with his twinkling blue eyes.
"You do realize that you'd be marrying a man to a man?"
"What I'm doing," he reminded Severus, "is saving a life."
"That's a good point," said the physician, walrus-like mustache bobbing as he nodded his head.
"We'll have to go up to the castle, as he can't enter the village," said Severus. "The castle's not hard to find if you have the right intentions or if he knows you're coming.
"Lucky us," said Father Albus. "We have both."
It was quiet, with the physician as their only witness. Hand-in-hand, they invited the two to stay for the wedding feast, and they obliged quite enthusiastically.
They hadn't wanted to kiss in front of the preacher and their witness, so they had their wedding kiss when the table had been cleared and goodbyes had been said.
"One moment," said Remus, breaking the kiss. When he returned, he practically tackled Severus.
Severus groaned and wrapped his arms around Remus's neck.
"The tree, Severus, it seems better than ever. Blossoms are sprouting, and I think the petals on the ground became part of it again! Severus!" He kissed him deeply, pressing him back into the table.
"Stop," said Severus after a moment. "Let's go to your room."
Remus covered Severus's back with oil and began to massage him like he had that time that he was ill. When Severus was thoroughly massaged from his neck and shoulders to his very arse, Remus made him roll over. The feet and hands and even his chest went well enough, but when Remus drizzled oil over Severus's hardening prick, Severus pulled away, curling up around himself.
"Leave me alone."
Remus, stunned, took a moment to let it sink in before he took the oil with him to another guest room and let Severus have his bed for the moment.
Dinner was awkward. Neither would look at the other, and they didn't speak much at all, until Severus breached the subject.
"I don't know what happened, but I don't want you blaming yourself."
"I should have been more careful. You've just been raped."
Severus shuddered. "Shut up."
"Sorry."
The rest of the meal was in silence, and then they went to bed in separate rooms. Remus wondered how the tree was doing, but couldn't bring himself to step outside and check.
It took until April to bring their trust back to where it had been, Severus not trusting Remus, and Remus not trusting himself. But they eventually settled into the pattern of life before love-making.
Remus would admit that he was lusting after Severus, secretly, but he would wait all eternity if it came to that. He didn't particularly wish to wait, though.
"Perhaps I could give you a bath," said Remus gently to a Severus who was reading intently. He nearly dropped the book at that, though.
"Bath?"
Remus laughed softly. "Yes, you know. Big tub of water, some soap, maybe a scrub brush."
"But you will not . . . ."
"Only if you want me to. It's up to you." He gently cupped Severus's chin and simply held his gaze before releasing the chin again.
"Alright." He closed his book and swallowed hard.
He had almost forgotten the decadence of being soaped up by Remus. And when he got him out of the tub, he told him to lie down for a massage, tense as Severus was. "Severus," he said as he worked on his back, "When we're done here, I just want to lay next to you. The petals are dropping again. I'm sorry if I ruined things for us."
"I thought I told you that I do not blame you," said Severus, voice muffled as he spoke into the bed. "Of course you are welcome to sleep next to me. I've missed you too."
"I wish you would have said something."
Severus turned onto his back, glaring up at him. "What would you have had me say, 'I'm sorry I ruined our relationship because I'm pathetic and sniveling'?"
"Severus!" said Remus, shocked, "You didn't ruin our relationship. I did."
"No, you didn't."
Remus chuckled suddenly. "Well maybe it's not ruined after all, then. Maybe it was just postponed." He gently opened his arms in welcome, and Severus settled against him. They slept for a while, a better rest than they'd had since Remus had stopped sharing Severus's bed.
Remus awoke with an erection, willing it away as he held the sleeping Severus in his arms, stroking his hair. Soon Severus woke as well, nuzzling into Remus's shoulder.
"Careful there," said Remus. "I should get up."
Severus sent him a puzzled look, until he realized what he needed to be careful about doing was turning Remus on any further. He flushed brightly, but grabbed Remus's arm. "No. Stay. Let me touch it."
Remus gulped. Just how could one refuse such an offer like that from their spouse? He spread his legs a bit, but held the duvet over him, waiting for Severus's hand to grasp him.
"No," Severus grumbled, "let me see it." He flung the duvet all the way onto the floor and the sheet followed soon after. He kissed and nuzzled Remus's neck as he reached down and took him in his hand, dripping some oil into his hand to make the going smoother. Remus had a pointed, red prick unlike anything a human had. There was no distinguishable cockhead. He paused in his kisses to glance down at it. "Very interesting, Remus," he purred.
Remus shivered. "Think so?"
"Know so," he said in reply, licking his lips. Maybe sometime he would taste it. He leaned over Remus, pinning him flat to the bed, then pressed his face down upon Remus's for a searing kiss. His grip was slick around Remus, making the beast buck his hips slightly and moan.
"I h-have an idea," said Remus, stilling Severus's hand with a last moan.
Severus frowned. "What is it?"
"Lie down on your stomach again, my love," he said to him gently, giving him a nudge. One of his hands slid to grasp at his own cock with a shiver.
Severus, looking a bit wary, did so. Remus massaged the back of his legs and worked his way up to Severus's arse, just like he'd done before. He splashed oil onto the soft backside, the friction heating it and causing Severus to moan.
"Tell me to stop and I will," whispered Remus. He poured oil over his fingers, moving his hand down to stroke at the opening to Severus's body. Severus shivered. Remus continued to rub at it, enticingly, until Severus pressed back a bit and he decided to push one in, just to see what Severus thought. Severus tensed a bit, but soon relaxed and accepted it. He began to thrust the finger in and out. "Tell me to stop and I will," he repeated.
"It's . . . weird. But don't stop," moaned Severus. Remus groaned at the words. He added a second finger into the mix, pausing when he heard Severus gasp. "Remus?"
"Yes?"
"You have to do that again. Whatever you did, I need more."
Remus groaned, obliging Severus as he parted his pale legs a bit more.
"How far do we go?" murmured Remus softly. "Another finger and then my p-prick?" he asked, biting at his lip a bit.
"Whatever you want, Remus. Don't stop," said Severus. There was no chance of Remus wanting to stop.
A third finger was slid into him, and he was feeling thoroughly stretched, the odd sensation of fur in him, tickling his entrance and beyond, and the knowledge that a claws were detracted so that Remus could bump against the inside of him both causing him to shudder with need, prick hard against the bed.
"Remus!" moaned Severus, and that was all the convincing it took. Pushing him up into a hands-and-knees position, Remus covered himself in oil and wiped the rest across the hole he was about to breach. Pressing against him, he paused.
"What the hell are you waiting for?" muttered Severus, pushing back a bit. Remus simply moaned. He'd been studying how males got together of late, and he'd liked the sound of it. He pushed into the hole, groaning as tightness and heat both greeted him.
"Oh God, Severus," he moaned, and as he was enjoying himself, he knew Severus was too by the way he arched back into him, shivering.
"Remus," he murmured, spreading his legs and pushing back even more, moaning.
Remus leaned forward a bit, thrusting into him with a bit more force. "Good?"
"God!" Severus cried out, body tensing in preparation of orgasm. Remus was doing that thing again, and this time with his pointed cock. Severus had never known such bliss. Neither had Remus.
When Severus came, the earth shattered around him and he truly shrieked. His elbows gave out as Remus grasped his hips and pounded into him until he too could find release.
After Remus carefully pulled out, he laid back, Severus pressing their bodies together. "I love you, sweet Prince Remus," he said when he caught his breath.
"I love you too, Princess Severus," he teased. Severus shot him a withering glare, but merely snapped his fingers so the blankets would cover the two of them up again.